So the TV writers are on strike again. Great. Looking through the disagreement I think both sides have a legit gripe but come on people, not this again. Some shows I like had to go immediately into reruns (Letterman, The Daily Show) and most shows have a few in the can and a few scripts to work with and then they too will start the reruns. They're already talking about scrapping the entire season of Lost, which I like quite a lot, until 2009 and 24 is likely to follow owing to its premise.
You know what it means if this drags on right? Reality shows. Lots of them. The networks are going to try to keep viewers and the only way to make new shows will be to make new shitty reality shows. I already hate all the old shitty reality shows and am on record numerous times about it. I fucking hate them. Now there are going to be a shit load more and y'know what? The lowest common denominator is going to eat it up and beg for more. In case you didn't know, the lowest common denominator is a LOT of people. It's not like most of these people will shrug and turn off the TV and pick up a book. No, no, they'll tune into whatever nitwittery the networks air just to have the TV on. Barn Raising With the Stars! Extreme Celebrity Fishing! I shouldn't do that lest I give them ideas.
This means that even when the strike ends there will be even less room on the schedule for scripted show than there is now. While you would think that less room would mean more competition which would lead to the cream rising to the top, you'd be wrong. It makes sense to think it but it won't happen. Isn't TV in general dumb enough without this? Do we really need to go out of our way to make it worse?
Look TV people, I realize you're just trying to look out for yourselves whichever side you're on but seriously, you're contributing to the further dumbing down of the country and we can't afford to get much dumber. Make a short term deal and get back to work and hammer something else out as you go. My brain begs you.
8 comments:
Reality TV is exactly the cesspool that chilled my own blood when I heard about the strike. The last serious writers' strike left us with the current glut. I shudder to think what'll result from this one.
On the plus side, reality TV pretty much cured me from watching much television.
On a side note, 24 isn't that big a loss. The first season was some of the finest television in years. The next few seasons weren't quite as good, but still quite watchable. Last season was fucking horrible. It's pretty much built into the show... unless you change your cast, it's going to spiral into stupidity as you continually one-up the previous season. But Keifer carries the show (and I believe I recall that he now produces the show or sommat), so... nagganahappen.
Ah well, at least I have another season of BSG... assuming it's not headed for the fan due to the strike.
With the cliffhanger at the end of the last season of BSG, there will be fucking murders if the new season gets canned.
"I am frightened too. I am FRIGHTENED!"
I should go through an entire day where I speak only in Tool lyrics.
It's times like this I'm glad I have all those DVDs in my room. No need for me to tell you, but I loathe reality TV. Save for a couple seasons of The Amazing Race -- which I'm told is a reality TV show despite the fact that it's a straight forward competition -- I've never found a moments entertainment in Big Brother and co.
I've been hanging for the new season of TV shows because it's actually been a really strong time for quality on the box, if you know where to look. Network TV here has fuck all, except for Californication, which wraps up in a week or two here though I've already downloaded and watched them all. That said, aside from the one-two punch of The Office and Scrubs on NBC, I don't think network TV has that much to offer for you guys either, does it? I haven't been following Lost for a couple of seasons now, I have to catch up... but other than that, I don't even know what's going on. Between HBO and Showtime, I have everything I need, with Weeds wrapping up soon and Curb and Californication now done for the year... it doesn't leave me in that bad a position.
I should probably be crying out about Heroes, but after trumpeting the show all of last year I've not managed to watch past episode one season 2 (same thing that happened with Lost, incidentally).
I just picked up Season 9 of Seinfeld, and I've had my Green Wing DVDs returned to me, so I think I'll soak in those for a while instead of thinking about a world with even more crap on the box.
It looks like it's gonna get pretty bad. Damo, good call on the DVDs. Maybe I'll go pick up the complete series of Angel and have a marathon. I haven't watched any of season 2 for Heroes either which is odd considering how great season 1 was. Other than The Office, Scrubs, 30 Rock and My Name is Earl I've kinda gotten into this new show called Reaper. I think I dig it though now it might not even get to finish a season.
Bleh.
If this makes me wait so much as one extra second for the final season of The Wire there will be bloodshed. I am NOT joking.
I still haven't watched an episode of Buffy or Angel yet. I saw 5 minute chunks skipping through channels, and my sister was into both so I caught glimpses when she watched it, but despite agreeing on stuff like Ferris Bueller, Snatch, Sex and the City, etc... I don't know, seeing the complete collection there, I never felt the need to check it out. Maybe because it was on the same shelf as her copy of Dark Angel, which I also avoided.
BTW you still owe me an explanation for your hatred of The Shins... and have you watched this last season of Curb? I thought it was pretty good! Pretty, pretty, pretty good! Supposedly more on the way for sure this time around, here's hoping.
I thought it was genius for him to put his real world divorce into the show. Very few people could pull that off especially since it was still ongoing.
As for the Shins, I dunno, they just do nothing for me. It's like walking down a sedate country road and then you realize that it's ok and all but it's not really going anywhere. You're just kind of meandering around.
Granted I've only heard a few of their songs but that's what I get each time. If they have better stuff then I'm all ears.
Oh where to start...
I'm not a big TV watcher. I used to think I was, but looking back on it now I realize I didn't really watch as much as many other people do. I have had one, real die hard TV love and that was Friends. Other, not so hard core loves, include: Sex And The City, Fraiser, 3rd Rock, Seinfeld, News Radio, and Just Shoot me (most of the last three I didn't even really get into until syndication). Shows I've watched and loved on a sporadic basis include CSI and some of the Law and Order's, SVU being a favorite. And new shows like Dexter and Studio 60 are the only things I'm fairly up to date on, as I'm only now just discovering The Office (both UK and US) and Scrubs. So, my range in television knowledge is seriously limited, and the strike isn't really affecting me in a huge way. For anything I already know and love and need to catch up on there's torrents, netflix and DVD's I may already own or plan on buying. But, this strike is fairly serious, so it seems.
Because I'm not big on prime time, and this may in part be due to my intimidation that every time I turn on the TV I'm faced with the likes of Dancing With The Stars, Big Brother, and the Biggest Loser (UGH) when I first noticed the picket lines I never bothered to find out what they were striking for. That's right, I see the writers on almost a daily basis outside picketing since Fox headquarters is my next door neighbor at work. But after reading your entry my interest as to what the hell the issue was raised a bit. I wasn't aware even, since I haven't been on the 6th ave side of my building (at least during business hours) in a few days, that the strike was still going on. So today I'm reading about it and if I'm going to side with someone, its going to be the writers. The studios are claiming that with the fledgling numbers of internet sales they're unsure of the kind of profit they'll be making in the future, therefore not wanting to commit to a compensation percentage for the writers because it's something of an experimental phase, still. But that seems like a load of bull shit. The writers know that this, digital distribution, is going to get huge in the coming years, just like DVD sales did. The Prod companies didn't think that was going to amount to much revenue either, and yet...Coyote and Damo, just take a look at your DVD shelves, how many TV show box sets have you got? The writers make VERY little off those because when they first negotiated contracts for home video release they set aside 80% of rev to production value, assuming it wasn't going to be such a hit. Isn't that outrageous? 80% goes to the production company! The writers not only deserve a nice chunk of that rev, but a nice chunk of anything being distributed on the net as well - and the production companies need to stop being greedy ass holes and pony up the dough. If it weren't for your fabulous writers you would not be as enthralled with what little good programming there is left.
I understand no one wants more reality TV, I stand with you on that. But these negotiations are necessary - these people work hard and are talented and deserve, much more so than the producers themselves, to be compensated. Don't you agree?
Although...part of me wants very badly to print out your entry and drop it with some of the picketing writers, so they might know a fraction of the plight we as viewers will undergo if there be, god forbid, a rise in reality television shows. God knows they agree, but...still. At least they might get a chuckle and feel a bit better of themselves out in this dismal, gray weahter hanging over them as they fight for what they deserve.
Whew.
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