(Photo credit: Wikipedia)I'm am perpetually late when it comes to trends, fads, and popular things of the moment.
Take TV shows, for instance. It took me two seasons before the final season to watch an episode of House on my own, and now at the 7th season I am finally picking up the wonder that is Psych. Same with 30 Rock-- I didn't star watching the show until last year.
The Wire, one of my favorite shows of all time because the characters are so well developed and fascinating (even the "bad" guys are good and the "good" guys are bad-- it's all gray), and it so perfectly captures the nuance and complexity of our struggling, corrupted institutions.
Even though kids at my high-school were talking about how good it was, I didn't start watching that show until 2007, when I was in college and spent an evening (and some of the morning) watching the entire first season of the show.
I'm perpetually late to get on the bandwagon. I don't really care about following fashion trends or other silly fads, so my tardiness isn't an issue there, but it can be a problem with film and television when it comes to social interactions.
I'll give you an everyday example: When I was younger, my parents closely monitored everything that I listened to and watched (but not what I read-- I read a lot of books intended for grown-ups when I was a kid. Not anything too racy, but books with foul language, something my mom tried to shield me from, in them, certainly). I wasn't allowed to view MTV or watch rated R movies until high-school, though I did watch Speed, The Craft, and a few others during grade school sleepovers.
Because of this, I'm still catching up on the great movies of 80s and 90s that everyone has already seen, and so I feel like a goof after watching something like LA: Confidential because I want to chat about it and how cool of a movie it is, but only because it's fresh in my mind. I would seem slightly anachronistic if I went up to someone at a party today and said "What did you think of the film version of American Psycho? Personally, I think the book is better."
My interests are outdated. It's okay, though, I'm used to it. I was listening to The Beatles and The Shangri-Las when my classmates were listening to Green Day and Puff Daddy.
I'm not sure why it's seems that I'm so out of touch with what's popular, or why I have a hard time starting a new TV show, but I think it has something to do with my stubbornness.
Also, once I start a new series, I usually want to start from the beginning, and watch every episode in sequence. This drives Ben crazy-- he doesn't understand how I can watch hour after hour of the same show, but I do it often. I get involved in the characters and I like to experience the story as the arc progresses. I'm a little insane that way, but I'm sure I'm not the only one. Right?
And so, despite hearing good things about House, I never watched it until I happened to be at a house party whose host was a House fan, and turned off the music and sat everyone around the television when the new episode of that week premiered. I didn't think I would like it, but I did in spite of myself. Still, I didn't start watching it on my own for quite some time after. My stubborn nature has a way of overcoming me, but I can overcome it, as well.
Even when a show comes highly recommended from a friend, I take my time in checking it out. I did it with The Big Bang Theory, when my friend Kenny told me he though I'd like it, I did it with True Blood until my sister forced me to sit down and at least watch the first episode with her (we ended up watching the entire first season in one sitting), and I've done it many times before.
Watching a new (well, new for me, anyway) program means time, particularly if the show is already a few seasons in, so I am always a little hesitant. If it's a brand new show, I'm usually a bit more game. With American Horror Story, I was drawn in immediately because it was a new show and the creepy subject matter spoke to me. I can't wait to see what they do with season two, coming later this year.
The Newsroom, is another example. I had seen the previews for Aaron Sorkin's new idealistic work and it seemed interesting enough, so I DVRed it. I really enjoyed it, so I'm making it one of my new summer shows, not that there are many to choose from in the first place.
Are you obsessed with TV like me? Are you extremely particular about the shows you watch, or are you pretty open minded? I wonder if anyone else shares my crazy habit of watching long blocks of episodes?
Take TV shows, for instance. It took me two seasons before the final season to watch an episode of House on my own, and now at the 7th season I am finally picking up the wonder that is Psych. Same with 30 Rock-- I didn't star watching the show until last year.
The Wire, one of my favorite shows of all time because the characters are so well developed and fascinating (even the "bad" guys are good and the "good" guys are bad-- it's all gray), and it so perfectly captures the nuance and complexity of our struggling, corrupted institutions.
Even though kids at my high-school were talking about how good it was, I didn't start watching that show until 2007, when I was in college and spent an evening (and some of the morning) watching the entire first season of the show.
I'm perpetually late to get on the bandwagon. I don't really care about following fashion trends or other silly fads, so my tardiness isn't an issue there, but it can be a problem with film and television when it comes to social interactions.
I'll give you an everyday example: When I was younger, my parents closely monitored everything that I listened to and watched (but not what I read-- I read a lot of books intended for grown-ups when I was a kid. Not anything too racy, but books with foul language, something my mom tried to shield me from, in them, certainly). I wasn't allowed to view MTV or watch rated R movies until high-school, though I did watch Speed, The Craft, and a few others during grade school sleepovers.
Because of this, I'm still catching up on the great movies of 80s and 90s that everyone has already seen, and so I feel like a goof after watching something like LA: Confidential because I want to chat about it and how cool of a movie it is, but only because it's fresh in my mind. I would seem slightly anachronistic if I went up to someone at a party today and said "What did you think of the film version of American Psycho? Personally, I think the book is better."
My interests are outdated. It's okay, though, I'm used to it. I was listening to The Beatles and The Shangri-Las when my classmates were listening to Green Day and Puff Daddy.
I'm not sure why it's seems that I'm so out of touch with what's popular, or why I have a hard time starting a new TV show, but I think it has something to do with my stubbornness.
Also, once I start a new series, I usually want to start from the beginning, and watch every episode in sequence. This drives Ben crazy-- he doesn't understand how I can watch hour after hour of the same show, but I do it often. I get involved in the characters and I like to experience the story as the arc progresses. I'm a little insane that way, but I'm sure I'm not the only one. Right?
And so, despite hearing good things about House, I never watched it until I happened to be at a house party whose host was a House fan, and turned off the music and sat everyone around the television when the new episode of that week premiered. I didn't think I would like it, but I did in spite of myself. Still, I didn't start watching it on my own for quite some time after. My stubborn nature has a way of overcoming me, but I can overcome it, as well.
Even when a show comes highly recommended from a friend, I take my time in checking it out. I did it with The Big Bang Theory, when my friend Kenny told me he though I'd like it, I did it with True Blood until my sister forced me to sit down and at least watch the first episode with her (we ended up watching the entire first season in one sitting), and I've done it many times before.
Watching a new (well, new for me, anyway) program means time, particularly if the show is already a few seasons in, so I am always a little hesitant. If it's a brand new show, I'm usually a bit more game. With American Horror Story, I was drawn in immediately because it was a new show and the creepy subject matter spoke to me. I can't wait to see what they do with season two, coming later this year.
The Newsroom, is another example. I had seen the previews for Aaron Sorkin's new idealistic work and it seemed interesting enough, so I DVRed it. I really enjoyed it, so I'm making it one of my new summer shows, not that there are many to choose from in the first place.
Are you obsessed with TV like me? Are you extremely particular about the shows you watch, or are you pretty open minded? I wonder if anyone else shares my crazy habit of watching long blocks of episodes?
1 comment:
I agree with you Allie. I got rid of cable when I realized that most tv shows would get a dvd release.
I made a conscious decision after the Finale of BUFFY aired, that I'f no longer be a slave to appointment tv shows. Generally, sitcoms can be watched leisurely, but a well written drama begs to be consumed in a short tine frame. In fact, the best of these shows reward a viewer watching a season in a short period. References, clues and jokes are alluded to early on, have a payoff later in the season. A casual weekly viewer will probably miss out on these extra layers and won't get the fully articulated experience the creators intended.
The beautifully patient labyrinth of writing of Mitchell Hurwitz on Arrested Development and of course David Simon and crew on THE WIRE are the greatest examples of this. But shows like HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER and COMMUNITY have picked up this torch and strive for something more than just a joke every 20 seconds. Or worse, in a dramatic show, some shocking cliffhanger every episode. Just make the characters believable, and I will keep watching...until the sun comes up.
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