Well, the writers’ strike is over, and your favorite TV programs are to be returning to the tube in the next few weeks.
I’m sure, right about now, the writers are really hoping that you still remember what scripted entertainment is vs. all this "reality" crud that you’re being fed by the networks right now as a placeholder. Although, undoubtedly, the networks are hoping you’ll see things differently as they line up reams of nobodys hoping for their 10 minutes of reality TV fame.Me, I really struggle with the whole TV thing. I love to watch sports and competition. And, yes, I admit to getting hooked into the occasional drama or sitcom. But, I have trouble with commitment; however, unlike a TV drama, I don’t think it’s me, I think it’s them!I never got into Seinfeld, Friends, 90210, Desperate Housewives or any of the other mass-appeal, lowbrow shows. I don’t know what it is, it’s surely not some kind of elite snobbery. I just never got into them. I guess my tastes and humor are a little off the beaten path --no surprise there, huh?Recent shows that I’ve locked onto are The Unit, The Office, Friday Night Lights and Big Bang Theory. Two of them are on their way up and two of them are on their way down.Friday Night Lights, a football drama that was based on a movie that was based on a FANTASTIC book. The first few episodes--even the first season--showed a lot of promise. Hard-hitting action, for a while it seemed like there was a genuine attempt to capture the "behind the scenes" look at small-town football and a city that lives and dies by their team. It started out great, the characters had depth, the plot was driven by football and the cinematography was captivating. Well, it seemed that some exec thought there was too much football in a show about football and it didn’t appeal to a wide enough audience by limiting itself. So, hey, let’s cut down on the football and ratchet up the teen drama, right? Somehow, I’m sure somebody thought that would make the show accessible to everybody. But, in reality, all it did was cause it to lose interest from the people that were initially attracted to it by its uniqueness. The result: just another teen drama that NOBODY liked, and, no surprise, all indications were that they were going to can it. But, apparently at the last minute, DirecTV came to the rescue and wants to offer it OnDemand, and NBC will show the re-run a day later. Yeah, sounds like the kiss of death to me.
The Unit: WOW! This show was action-packed, hard-nosed and thought-provoking (wow, three hyphenated words!). This show was about a special operations army unit that worked in all the gray areas of government and military involvement that everybody likes to deny involvement with. This show kept you on the edge of your seat for the entire episode. It was fantastic. Well, guess what. Some exec got involved and decided that the show was confusing to people that like to shut off their brains when they watch TV. The show was violent and hey, shouldn’t there be some soap-opera like drama? Well, they reformulated the show, keeping one of the cast members home from a mission each week to participate in a sub-story line @ home drama, which took time away from adding any depth to the real plot. The result by the end was a watered-down action show that was being anchored by some at home soap opera. There’s plenty of shows out there if you want to watch @ home drama (see Desperate Housewives or Lipstick Jungle). But, you’ve taken the appeal out of another unique show to broaden its appeal. The result: Desperate Military Wives that people are fast falling away from and, no surprise, its return is questionable.
The Office: This show was just hitting its stride right before the strike. It is a mock-documenary about a fictional company in Scranton, PA with a bumbling staff and a hapless leader. Admittedly, I was confused by this show at first, but once you caught on to the nuances of all the characters, it became quite hysterical. It’s part live-action dilbert and part Hogan’s Heros. It’s dry wit is is driven by the akward leadership of Michael Scott (Steve Carrol). It’s got all the elements of office life and all the oddities that people deal with on a daily basis, and it shows them in a very funny light. The show is in the process of taking off, including an interactive website that involves fans in cast plots and embracing new media, including SecondLife. It’s an enthusiasts dream, BUT I’m concerned that it’s showing signs of influence of incorporating drama in the name of wider appeal. The "Jim & Pam" romance line is starting to dominate the show and take away from The Office aspect of it. The Result: the show will be back, and I’m hoping that this show rights the ship and gets back to "business."
Big Bang Theory: A geek’s paradise. It’s hysterical in its akwardness, yet intelligent in its interplay. The show is about a set of geeks who are intelligent beyond their own good. The geeks, along with their friends struggle to navigate the social maze of frienships, interpersonal relationships and even a love interest. The show takes place largely in the apartment of the two main characters. This show does have the potential of painting itself into a corner. There’s only so many akward social scenarios that can play out, but, hey, they’re highly intelligent, they’ll figure it out, right? I’m definitely looking forward to the return of this show. It’s witty, funny and makes you cringe all in a 30 minute package. The show was just hitting its rhythm when the strike hit. Hopefully they’ll be able to pick up where they left off.
Two and a Half Men: My how Ducky’s grown! This show is about a perpetual bachelor, his reluctant-bachelor, live-in brother and his savant nephew. This show’s got a great edge. The main character, Charlie, struggles to hold on to his days as a ladies man, while he reluctantly shares his beachfront property with his divorced brother Alan and visits from his son, Jake. The show is nothing groundbreaking, but takes a funny spin at some familiar old cliches. It’s edgy humor is still funny and fresh. An underused element of the show is the kid, Jake. The kid’s timing, facial expressions and dunce-like interactions quietly steer the humor of the show. For the most part, this show still has its edge and has kept things fresh. I think the show has struggled to amuse with Charlie’s behavior without the sometimes-character, Rose, who helped frame things for the audience. Still, I think there’s a lot that can still be accomplished by this show and I look forward to it coming back for some more mindless giggles.
How I Met Your Mother: The show is built around the premise of a father reminiscing his life’s story building up to "how he met their mother" story to his children. It doesn’t rely quite as heavily on narritive as The Wonder Years did, but it does use some narritive to help with the plot. The cast is built around Ted--the main character and his friends’ interactions. As far as formula goes, there’s the overly-happy couple, the ambiguous love interest couple and the insecure, well-dressed ladies man--played by Doogie Howser. The show’s funny as it relates to a group of people with varying levels of history together. There’s a good mix of characters on the show and a lot of fresh content. Because the show is built around a narrative to children, sometimes the comedy comes in the form of how potentially-adult situations are communicated. I think the writers wisely realized the trap of the ambiguous relationship and have wisely steered away from the cliche. I still think there’s a lot of good milage left in this show and I’m looking forward to having it come back.
Rules of Engagement: Another rather new show that’s caught my attention. It’s kind of like a mid-town Bundies show. You’ve got the husband a la Al Bundy who bemoans many of the cliche female routines of his wife. You’ve got the new couple down the hall a la Marcie and Jefferson. And, you’ve got the goofball convinced that he’s a stud a la Bud Bundy. It’s a fresh spin on an old formula. They’ve managed so far to keep it interesting--as I feel there was a lot of life left in Married With Children when it met its untimely demise. Except, in this case, they’re all living in the big city and they don’t have kids--thus elminating the angle of being bad parents (which was picked up by Still Standing). Despite the cliche nature of this show, they’ve kept it amusing with Puddy (from Seinfeld) and his reluctant affection for his friends and wife. Just one question...how the hell does David Spade keep getting parts? But, seriously, if this show comes back, I’ll still catch it when it’s on.
Whoa, did I get off track! This was meant to be a blog about how TV continues to wreck itself by watering shows down from what made them special into something with broad appeal that is exactly like everything else. Instead, it became Woody watches too much TV. I guess that’s what happens when you’re all messed up on Sudafed and sick as a dog. Anyways, the short story is: sometimes a niche show is a niche show. Stick to your guns, not everything on TV is going to appeal to EVERYBODY. When you try to make it for everybody, you’re going to take away what made it worthwhile to the people that appreciated the niche. Then you’re up against every other low-hanging piece of fruit on TV and you’re ultimately going to lose the small, nice audience you once had and get cancelled.
Time for more drugs....
