Pop Culture Bracketology: Television, Drama Region

With March Madness upon us, WEEKEND has gone a little bracket crazy. Over the next month, our staff will debate, discuss and argue their way through three 64-team pop culture-centric brackets to determine the best TV series on the air, the best active film director and the best music act of the moment. We will now post the pairings and starting next Monday, March 15, we'll begin weeding out the pretenders and celebrating the contenders. Posts will be updated accordingly.

For our television bracket, we are trying to figure out the best series on the air right now. The four regions are as follows: Drama, Comedy, Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Action and Reality/Variety/Talk. Below are the pairings in the Drama Region. Other pairings can be found in the right sidebar.

*UPDATED WITH STAFF COMMENTS*

Cory Barker: Other match-ups to think about: Dexter v. Big Love: I don't watch the latter, but have heard nothing but good things. And I think the former is a little stale despite a mini-resurgence in S4.

Brian Marks: I'll go ahead and toot Big Love's horn. I think there are few dramas right now that have characters that are as fleshed out and complicated as on Big Love. The idea of polygamy is completely foreign to most people (certainly me), but instead of turning it into a circus or some kind of comedic relief, the characters all seem like real people. And although the show doesn't bash you over the head with social critique, they have a lot of great political and social observations. Plus, four consistently strong seasons is a bit of a rarity in dramas.

Austin Morris: Can I put forth my bid for a Good Wife upset of CSI? Julianna Margulies deserved her Globe and Emmy. Sure, CSI was good in its early seasons, but has anyone cared since the Miniature Killer storyline, or even before?

And PLEASE GOD Friday Night Lights over Desperate Housewives.

CB: Anyone willing to argue Gossip Girl over Mad Men?

...more to come!

1. "Mad Men" (AMC) vs.
16. "Gossip Girl" (CW)

The most award-winning series on cable goes up against the series with the most OMG moments on broadcast. As polar opposites as these two series might seem -- "Men"/"Girl"; '60s suburbia/'00s metropolis -- they do share high levels of drama, sex and intrigue.

8. "The Mentalist" (CBS) vs.
9. "Breaking Bad" (AMC)

Both of these newer series are powered by off-center leading male characters, but Patrick Jane and Walter White couldn't be more different. One stops crimes by paying attention in CBS' latest -- and most fun -- procedural hit and the other is slowly becoming an evil drug kingpin in what is one of cable's bleakest and amazing dramas.

5. "NCIS" (CBS) vs.
12. "In Treatment" (HBO)

"NCIS" has recently catapulted into the number one scripted television drama spot, while "In Treatment" is one of HBO's lesser known programs. Both are well-respected, but kind of boring. Someone's gotta win!

4. "CSI:" (CBS) vs.
13. "The Good Wife" (CBS)

CBS's old guard versus one of its more modern success.

6. "Dexter" (Showtime) vs.
11. "Big Love" (HBO)

Both of these pay cable powers feature leading men who do illegal things but we basically love them for it anyway: Dexter kills and Bill is polygimist. Though those are varying degrees of evil, "Big Love" is often more depressing and difficult to watch while "Dexter" brings the shock and awe to its long-form character study.

3. "House" (FOX) vs.
14. "Sons of Anarchy" (FX)

One's on the rise and the other might just need to go away if it can't get it stuff together. Guess which is which.

7. "Desperate Housewives" (ABC) vs.
10. "Friday Night Lights" (NBC/DirecTV)

Two shows that deal with family drama in vastly different ways.

2. "Grey's Anatomy" (ABC) vs.
15. "Damages" (FX)

More people watch "Grey's" commercials than original efforts of "Damages." Does that make it better?