There are good and bad plasmas, just like there are good and bad LCD's and its personal preference as to which you like. (Just go to the store and see which one takes your fancy)
In most cases you also get what you pay for, buy a cheap plasma or LCD and in most cases they look crap, however get a Pioneer or Panasonic Plasma or a Sony LCD and you will be in heaven.
The best value however in both Plasma and LCD has got to be Samsung though. (Not quite as good as the top end sets, but blows the rest of the market away)
Go for 3 HDMI and Full HD (Not the lower resolution HD Ready) 1080P/24fps to get the best from Blue-Ray.
I still use a Samsung 21” CRT for general viewing, as I have a projector (DLP) and screen for Home Cinema use. (For me even 50 or 60” Plasma or LCD’s are just too small to get a true Home Cinema experience)
Hope this helps

Bill