Kudos to you for going legit on your TV shows.
As far as the best / most-cost-effective way to watch shows on your TV, may I suggest the following:
1.
Instead of getting the cords to hook up your computer to your TV, I second the suggestion to grab an ATV3. You can get a refurbished one from Apple here for $85 plus tax (free shipping). While the cords to hook up your computer will certainly cost less than $85, I think you will find the added convenience of not having to hook/unhook your laptop to your TV, "detect displays" and all that every time you want to watch a TV show will be well worth the cost difference. You can also "Airplay Mirror" your PC/Mac's screen to the ATV3 using either
AirParrot (for mac or PC), or the built-in Airplay mirroring on recent Macs running Mountain Lion. Plus if you have an iOS device you can airplay any photos/videos/music from that device to Apple TV as well.
2.
Using the iTunes store for first-run TV shows may not be the most cost effective way to watch them. It depends on what shows you watch.
If you are watching shows which are only otherwise available on cable channels (Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, etc.), then iTunes is probably your best bet.
If you are watching regular network TV shows (CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, PBS), then it's likely you'll be able to watch those shows for free via either the networks' websites on your PC/Mac (airplay mirrored to your ATV3) or your iOS device (via a network app and Airplayed to your ATV3.) Free Hulu on your PC/Mac, Airplayed to your ATV3 should work as well for all except CBS.
Even Hulu Plus (at $8/month subscription) might be a better deal than paying $2/episode on iTunes. And your Samsung may even have a Hulu Plus "app" on it, if it's a "smart TV", which may eliminate the need for purchasing cables or an ATV3.