It seems that you're using an outdated browser. Some things may not work as they should (or don't work at all).
We suggest you upgrade newer and better browser like: Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer or Opera

×
Well, I'd start off recommending JAG, the series from which NCIS was created and, incidentally, one of my favourite series. Ever watched "A Few Good Men"? That's JAG in a nutshell.

British crime dramas are, in my book, some of the finest TV you'll ever find and I'm glad you already got recommendations on Morse, Lewis, Endeavour, Life on Mars, New Tricks, Gently, etc. All of these are definitely worth watching. I'll also throw in Agatha Christie's Poirot (with David Suchet in the titular role) and Miss Marple series. I'd be remiss not to mention Sherlock Holmes. Here you have the 1984 series, starring Jeremy Brett, or the more modern adaptation with Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. The US made its own version (as they usually do, often poorly) called Elementary, which I'd only recommend watching for Lucy Liu (Jonny Lee Miller isn't too bad as Sherlock). It is a tad too procedural for my tastes though, and each season has way too many episodes. If you don't want anything too dramatic, I'd counsel to stay away from Broadchurch and Luther (even though they're pretty good series in their own right).

Back to the US, I'd probably recommend The Mentalist and Psych. Curiously, they share a similar premise in that the main character is highly observant, what allows them to solve crimes in their role as a consultant to the police. In The Mentalist, the main character, Patrick Jane, used to be a con man who pretended to by a psychic. In Psych, the main character, Shaun Spencer, poses as a psychic in order not to get arrested by the police and it spirals from there. Psych is by far the more humorous of the two, dishing out pop culture references left and right.

Oh, yeah, and before I forget, you also have White Collar, a procedural about a highly talented con artist who's hired as a consultant by the FBI. Has a very Ocean's Eleven vibe.
avatar
gandalfnho: Doesn't need to be english, if the series is interesting and I can find subtitles in my idiom, any suggestion is valid
Look out for these:

Forbrydelsen (The Killing, not the US remake)
Varg Veum
Broen (The bridge, not the US remake...)
Beck
Ófærð (Trapped)
Sebastian Bergman
Sorjonen (Border own)
Wallander (Swedish version)
Post edited February 25, 2018 by amok
avatar
LongitudinalThrust: If you're into British detective dramas I'd suggest:

Foyle's War

Inspector Morse and it's spin offs Lewis and Endeavour are pretty good too.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092379/

Edit: links
avatar
gandalfnho: Not much familiar with british TV, except for series like Dr. Who, Sherlock and Primeval. How's the violence and humour of those suggestions? They're more action-focused or are in that style "much talk and few action"?
avatar
auroraparadox: Castle would be a good choice. The early seasons are absolutely hilarious with excellent story lines. I will say that the last couple seasons were not as good.
avatar
gandalfnho: Got the first season, didn't watched yet
avatar
drmike: Old woman turns small town in Maine into Murder Capital of the World

Or is that too far away from being a crime series?
avatar
gandalfnho: Detetive stories are too, if aren't boring (when the characters only talk instead of advancing the plot)
avatar
mqstout: Military: It's not a TV series, but a series of TV-movies. Check out Sharpe's Rifles. Police Squad
avatar
gandalfnho: Saw the series once (and the movies)
avatar
amok: does have to be in English?

there are quite lot very good Nordic noir crime shows with subtitles

If British, I would also recommend Inspector George Gently, Life on Mars, Line of Duty, Wallander (remake of the Swedish series, but actually very good) , Endeavor and New tricks (which is the more funny one)
avatar
gandalfnho: Doesn't need to be english, if the series is interesting and I can find subtitles in my idiom, any suggestion is valid

avatar
tinyE: F-Troop :D
avatar
gandalfnho: Don't know this one, but looks interesting

avatar
Breja: Miami Vice and Crime Story. Hardly new, but it doesn't get any better than Miami Vice.
avatar
gandalfnho: Never was much interested in watching Miami Vice and don't know the other one, will check

avatar
MarkoH01: The Closer
Major Cimes
Bron - The Bridge (not the crappy US remake)
The Killing (not the crappy US remake)
avatar
gandalfnho: How's the violence and humour?
Closer and Major Crimes both have a good mixture of interesting characters/cases, a bit suspense and humour. Not much violence in it at all.

Bron and The Killing are both Scandinavian series which heavily rely on characters as well. They are much darker and also do contain some explicit scenes though I still would not call them violent. Not much humour in The Killing but character based humour in Bron - The Bridge though I would hardly call it comedy. In core all those series are more crime than humour and all series have extraordinary good acting/characters.

avatar
amok: Forbrydelsen (The Killing, not the US remake)
Broen (The bridge, not the US remake...)
Here is another one with a pretty decent taste :)
Post edited February 25, 2018 by MarkoH01
oh, and two more US TV series which if found quite good

Medium - [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medium_(TV_series]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medium_(TV_series[/url])

The Mentalist

edit- sigh... bloody gOg forum software messing up links again...
Post edited February 25, 2018 by amok
avatar
LongitudinalThrust: If you're into British detective dramas I'd suggest:

Foyle's War

Inspector Morse and it's spin offs Lewis and Endeavour are pretty good too.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092379/

Edit: links
avatar
gandalfnho: Not much familiar with british TV, except for series like Dr. Who, Sherlock and Primeval. How's the violence and humour of those suggestions? They're more action-focused or are in that style "much talk and few action"?
Almost no violence; the detectives find the bodies, they don't make them.
Humour is... well... British. Not the slapsticky Monty Python/Dr. Who kind, subtle British, mostly based on the characters quirky personalities etc. I know, bad explanation, but there isn't really a North American equivalent of British humour that I know of.

If you're looking for more light hearted North American style I'd suggest a couple of Timothy Hutton shows:
Leverage - kinda modern day Robin Hood type stuff, think A-Team but hold (most of) the cheese.
Nero Wolfe Mystery - basically 1920s Amercian version of Sherlock Holmes.

If you want older military, here's a Vietnam hospital based one:
China Beach. - basically MASH, but much more on the serious side.

Edit: Woops, didn't notice Matewis already said Tour of Duty.
Post edited February 25, 2018 by LongitudinalThrust
On further thought I would also recommend Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries. The story lines are good and the violence isn't over the top.

However, Miss Fisher herself is a bit on the promiscuous side but nothing is shown on screen.
Post edited February 25, 2018 by auroraparadox
In terms of crime series with humor, I'll second Psych. A somewhat similar series is Monk who is an inspired detective who is rather OCD.

For firemen there is Rescue Me. Plenty of humor but can be pretty emotionally gritty too.
Criminal Minds is an excellent procedural crime drama.
Also, I love the Blacklist, though it's a bit different from most procedural crime dramas, and the 5th season makes some huge logical leaps which challenged my ability to keep watching.
avatar
paladin181: Criminal Minds is an excellent procedural crime drama.
Maybe, but it's way too dark for what the OP's asking. At least it was in the earlier seasons since I stopped watching a while ago.
avatar
paladin181: Criminal Minds is an excellent procedural crime drama.
avatar
OdanUrr: Maybe, but it's way too dark for what the OP's asking. At least it was in the earlier seasons since I stopped watching a while ago.
In that case Psych is awesome. So is Monk, and to, a different degree, Supernatural.
I'm sorry for not properly reading everything, but has someone mentioned River? I quite enjoyed it when I watched and it isn't overly long.

www.imdb.com/title/tt4258440/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_12
Military and crime makes me think of JAG instantly...

But for me personally nothing beats the British crime shows. The Scandinavian ones are really good too but usually a lot more darker with way more unpleasant themes than good old murder for profit (or something like that) ;)

Some of my favourites:
Midsomer Murders
Lewis/Morse
Vera
Hinterland
Shetland
DCI Banks
Wire in the Blood
Waking the Dead
My all-time favorite crime TV show is Cold Case. It follows the work of a woman detective who reopens cases that were never solved. The cast, the stories, the depiction of past decades, the music... they're all fantastic. Unlike most procedurals, the focus is always on the victim (who they were, what led them to their death and what consequences their death caused on the people they knew). It's a bit hard to find, since it was never released on DVD because of music licensing issues (the songs are significant to the plot so they cannot be replaced). And it might not qualify for what you're searching (some episodes are VERY dramatic, as in "don't watch it in a bad day" dramatic). But it's one of those hidden gems that don't receive much attention, and it's the only crime show that I genuinely miss.

If you're looking for comedy, Psych and Castle are the safest bets. Once you get past the absolutely unbelievable initial premises, they are very funny, at least during their earlier seasons (Psych is more consistent in the long run).
Post edited February 25, 2018 by Caesar.
Ever checked Robbie Coltrane's "Cracker" ? It was a little bit awesome.
The Rockford Files, with James Garner playing a private detective.