In its writing, acting and direction, recent Emmy-winning drama series Picket Fences is more subdued than it was last season, actually making it more powerful.
Guest stars Roy Dotrice and Denis Arndt are especially good, and Kathy Baker and Tom Skerritt, even at moments without dialogue, display their superb acting talents.
It is a show that's always Tackling Major Themes whenever it's not trying to achieve the sort of sweet whimsy meant to disguise the fact that this is one of the most profoundly humorless series ever made.
The bottom line is that Picket Fences, as one of TV's few serious drama hours, and as a lonely beacon of thoughtfulness on the silly network landscape, deserves to live long and to prosper.
