The notion of a television show that practically demands you keep watching it is here to stay. TV series are made to suck you in, and not just for advertiser dollars — buying the dvd boxsets means you can smash through those shows in a marathon of viewing. Check out these 5 crazily addictive ones.

#5 “Gossip Girl”

Following the machinations of these spoiled New York rich kids might seem strange at first, mainly because they’re such jerks and their private schools are so fancy. But when you have money and privilege and combine it with Manhattan and an insanely juicy plot-line, you’ve got the recipe for a show that’s as addictive as a hard drug. If you get the DVD boxsets, be prepared to stay in your house for many days.

#4 True Blood

There’s just something about a bunch of crazy vampires and the metaphor of the gay community and the loads of crazy sex and over-the-top violence that makes people nuts for this show. If Bill the southern gentleman vampire doesn’t turn your crank, you’ve got Anna Paquin’s Sookie Stackhouse to make you crazy, too. Addictive as anything!

#3 Jersey Shore

There have been few reality shows (especially in the latter part of the decade) that have captured the public imagination like this trashy MTV series does. When you watch it all on a dvd boxset, the sheer shininess of it all might be a little bit too much, but it also lets you see the hilarious behavior patterns that made the show so memorable.

#2 The Office

Talk about addictive — not only is this show hilarious in its send-up of corporate culture and office inefficiencies, it also amazingly inserted a wonderful romance that has its many, many fans clamoring for more. If you go through the show on DVD, you’ll really see how wonderfully it’s been done.

#1Lost

Lost is absolutely custom-created for addiction — by following the cliffhanger format and building its story around a series of wild revelations, you simply can’t watch this show (especially if you’re picking up the dvd boxsets and going through them in a marathon) without becoming completely beholden to its format. Easily the most ‘addictive’ show of all time.

Are you addicted to TV series which is not mentioned in this list? Don’t worry, you can easily find any TV series on DVD online at a very reasonable price.