Los Angeles — For years there has been much squabbling between the WB and UPN about which one is the nation’s fifth-place network. In the current hierarchy there’s the Big Four — ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC — and then the Tiny Two, where the WB and UPN come in.

All of this chatter has perked up even more now because UPN finally has some buzz shows coming this fall and the WB, after undergoing a management shakeup and essentially redefining the network (teen girls are still good, but hey, they want everybody), is potentially vulnerable in this creatively down period.

Unfortunately, both networks have it wrong about their place in the world. They are looking at the TV landscape strictly in terms of broadcast network positioning — and that’s not how you, the viewer, watch television. Besides, not everything needs to be based on ratings. Critics — and the vast majority of them from this country and Canada are squeezed into the same hotel here — tend to view things more along the lines of overall quality. We’re less concerned about what happens when a collection of goobers push buttons for Nielsen.

In our world, let’s not kid ourselves, HBO is No. 1. After that, there’s a divide. But there is truly something to the notion that after the Big Four, a cable channel — a basic cable channel — is more likely going to edge out both the WB and UPN.

This is a little like sitting in a bar arguing about favorite songs or the best third basemen in all of baseball. But the content level across the board on basic cable channels has been rising for years, and this gives viewers some exceptionally good programming options. But which channel, ultimately, could be seen as a sort of No. 5?

The bet here: FX.

But first, take a look at the competition. USA has probably come the farthest, offering a beefed up schedule of scripted series. And that’s really key here. Whereas Discovery and others — like Bravo — are peppering the landscape with light and delectable unscripted fare, the battle for the soul of the viewer takes place around fiction, not reality in any disguise.

Comedy Central, with Jon Stewart, Dave Chappelle, "Reno 911" and "South Park," is right there with USA and, depending on your tastes, probably more relevant.

Sci-Fi and Lifetime have made significant strides with their series. And A&E, after slipping in past years, is starting to rally back. Some of the fringe channels like BBC America and Trio are deserving of attention. But if pure quality is the barometer, FX is the choice.

It’s really pretty simple. Picking a go-to channel is like sussing out a good stock pick. It may seem flashy and hot in one quarter, but the P/E ratio might be alarming or, worse, there’s no future growth potential to validate the choice. Given the fluctuating directions of some of these channels — they detour at the first sign of audience shift — you never know what can happen in two seasons.

That’s why FX is so solid. It has two of television’s finest series — "The Shield" and "Nip/Tuck." On Wednesday, it’s about to add another gem in the Denis Leary firefighter dramedy, "Rescue Me." And even though it eventually gave up on "Lucky," because the fledgling channel had no other comedies to build around it, that was easily one of the funniest shows anywhere.

With "Rescue Me," there is no more wondering out loud about whether FX has been extremely lucky, no pun intended, and stumbled upon two quality dramas in some fluke-filled guessing game. Three is a trend, people, and there aren’t many channels that can say, "We don’t have any bad shows on our air."

But beyond that, you have to look at the team in place. FX has gone out of its way to, as they love to say down here, "build the brand." In the insanely competitive arena of cable channels, it’s hard enough to get noticed for anything you do, short of setting the company on fire. "The Shield" was a calculated step to move FX out into the light. It told people, "We’re going to test boundaries of basic cable television, because you’re all grown-ups."

That "The Shield" so spectacularly fulfilled that role wasn’t dumb luck. You have to give a lot of credit to the vision of Peter Liguori, president and CEO of the FX Networks.

When FX lost Kevin Reilly, its other key component on the creative end, to NBC, it replaced him with John Landgraf, who co-founded Jersey Television (which made "Reno 911," "Karen Sisco" and others). Now, why are these people important to you? Because the assumption is you’re a savvy watcher and you don’t want a lot of crap on the small screen. That’s the complaint, isn’t it? People always want to know why television sucks. Well, it’s complicated on the one hand, but simple on the other: When people lack vision as they seek to make money and please the largest audience, a little thing called content trouble ensues. Translation: "Trading Spouses: Meet Your New Mommy."

There’s no content trouble at FX, at least not yet. This is a channel that is growing slowly, but without any creative missteps. Both Landgraf and Liguori are essentially making — though they’d never say it — a kind of mini HBO. Look, this is a channel that has done an awful lot right in a little bit of time. Starting Wednesday it will have three highly acclaimed dramas, which UPN can’t equal and the WB, despite having several extremely watchable hours, can’t even measure up to. As good as "Gilmore Girls," "Smallville" and "Everwood" are, they’re not even in the same zip code as "The Shield," "Nip/Tuck" and now "Rescue Me."

On Friday, Leary and writing partner Peter Tolan ("The Job," "Larry Sanders," "Murphy Brown," "Home Improvement") lamented — with a string of hilarious and angry profanity — just what it was like working for ABC and how that channel completely botched one of broadcast television’s cult and critical hits ("The Job"). They talked about coming to FX not only because of the vision thing, but also because taking care of the series extended all the way down to effective promotion (Leary said you can’t take two steps without seeing a poster of Michael Chiklis) and publicity, which FX, like HBO, is masterful at. That’s why of all the basic cable channels, there’s a proven foundation at FX that’s drawing in the creative community.

The next drama for the channel will be "Thief," starring Andre Braugher, which begins shooting next month. And two comedy pilots — the first since "Lucky" — have gotten the green light. And yes, FX is getting into the reality game, as almost everyone needs to do to survive these days, but it has chosen to work with documentary filmmakers Morgan Spurlock ("Super Size Me") and Emmy winner R.J. Cutler. It has also tapped comedian Jack Black to come up with something and is developing a war drama with Steven Bochco.

You want a channel to watch, it’s this one.

Although FX was completely robbed by the Emmy voters who essentially shunned both "The Shield" and "Nip/Tuck," that kind of ignorance can’t last forever. In the same vein that HBO makes almost no missteps, creatively, it’s hard to ignore a fledgling channel that’s about to go three-for-three.

While it’s true that critics are soaking in a lot of lameness down here, there are at least a few sterling examples that TV can find higher ground, and FX is one of them. One of five, come to think of it.