TV reviews
Well... this is one part review and one part analysis. Maybe two parts of the latter, on further reflection...
So I watch a lot of TV. More reality and competition shows, rather than scripted dramas and comedies. A reason for that is because a lot of scripted shows have lost my interest over the past few years -- between the sucker punches and the formulaic work, it just isn't all that compelling.
Often I'll go for a few seasons loving a show, and then, suddenly -- WHAM! I hate it. (One of the most surprising shifts was with "How I Met Your Mother." I absolutely loathe that show now.) I wasn't sure if it is was due to some abrupt change introduced by the producers/writers or if it was the accumulation of a lot of little nits. In some cases, maybe it's both. In any case, I thought I'd discuss some shows I've recently fallen out of love with and why...
White Collar
I didn't watch this show from the beginning, so I've always been at a disadvantage with it. Trying to pick up the threads of the backstory among the current episodes was always an issue, but I did it willingly, because I liked the premise and the interaction of Neal, Peter, and Mozzie. I liked how there was this implied (or in some cases, clearly stated) tension between Neal's past as a criminal and his new job of working with the Feds. Could Peter trust him this time? Or would Neal's criminal nature finally get the better of him?
That part worked, and kept me hooked. Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, the show stopped holding my interest.
I think it started with the season ender from last season, when Mozzie is shot, apparenty fatally. Now, as I said, I liked the Mozzie character; I liked that he helped Neal solve his cases, even though helping Neal meant helping the Feds, which he wasn't all that interested in doing...
I hated that it looked like Mozzie was dead, because I loved that character. But I realized when the current season started, and there was Mozzie... well. That just flipped a switch in me. It felt like a cheat, because the hitman had made sure Mozzie was about dead. He came back and checked the body.
The other new thing that bugged me is a complaint I have with a lot of detective-type shows lately: at some point they stop doing cases with innocent victims and all their cases seem to have some connection to their past, or some member of their family, or something like that. And that happened with "White Collar" this season. I think every single episode has had some connection to one of the cast's past. It's boring. Tediously so, even. It's lazy writing, and it feels like navel-gazing of the worst sort.
One of the eps that really sticks with me (back when the show was good) is the father and his little daughter who beg Neal (who then begs Peter) for his help to solve their problem. They're about to lose the family home, which grandpa left to the little girl, only grandpa supposedly took out some bad loans, and now the house is mere days away from foreclosure.
You could relate to it, because a lot of people are in similar situations now. Even if you're not, how can you hate this poor little girl? And in the end, Peter and Neal help put away a dirty judge... it's wonderful
But this season, it's all been people from various characters' pasts, a flashback episode of when Mozzie, Neal, and Peter first met. (It didn't work at all. Just not at all... Ugh!) These "bottle" stories shine a glaring light on some of the niggling issues which had bugged me on a subliminal level for a long time; because suddenly those issues were front and center.
For instance: Peter and his wife. They just don't strike me as a couple. There's no passion. No chemistry between them at all. They're there, that's it. So in a recent episode, when the wife was talking about her husband (who had been kidnapped), she mentioned how their relationship was different because they worked at it... well, that just didn't feel true at all. Because you never saw that. What you'd see is people who peck each other... If they're so in love, where are the kids? Is there a reason why they've been married for years but there aren't kids? If so, what is it? Does one of the them not like the idea of having a family, or is there a problem? There's all sorts of emotional material which could be mined here, but the wife is such a throwaway character, you almost never see her. (For several episodes last season, she was somewhere in California, for "business.")
Another thing is the names of the characters. I can't even remember the wife's name. Half the time I can't remember Neal or Peter's name. Chuck and I are consantly asking each other, "What's that guy's name, again?" They just don't seem like a Peter or Neal...
The other niggly bit is the female detective who's gay. I'm sorry, but that always felt like it was dropped in. It would be mentioned by other characters (namely Peter telling Neal, "You're not her type.") rather than be an element which just organically arose from the story. It felt forced and unnecessary. You never saw her pursuing a relationship or feeling conflicted about dealing with meeting and dating someone when you're a gay FBI agent. Where do you go to meet available people? Do you worry that some criminal might try to take advantage of your situation? Does that keep you from letting yourself get too close to anyone...?
I mean, if we're going to make the series about the regular cast instead of helping this week's guest characters, then let's really dig into who these characters are and what makes them tick, rather than fall into the same tired formula of criminal X from regular cast member Y's past tangle with each other...
At least they've spared us from the workplace romance storyline, which has gotten utterly stupid in many series. Like "Royal Pains," for example...
Royal Pains
I liked the concierge doc idea; it was novel, and yet made perfect sense. And it's happening in real life (and will probably be even more practiced under Obamacare, but I digress...) I liked the interplay between the two brothers -- one who lives to help others, and one who wants to make money. Compassion and crass commercialism, entwined in a never-ending struggle. And, funnily enough, when Dad was thrown in, it was the compassionate older brother (who had clearer memories of the louse that dear old dad had been) who couldn't forgive and move on from past transgressions.
There's one more member of HankMed, Divia, the medical assistant. (Sorry, forgot her title...) She and Evan have a love-hate relationship which had tremendous sparkage potential, but that got put on the back burner some time ago...
They even threw in a female concierge doc competitor last season, to spice things up. Someone who temporarily helped out with Hank's practice, only to compete with him upon his return. Is the Hamptons big enough for the two of them?
But that might have been the beginning of the end, since Hank and Jill (the hospital adminnistrator) had had a bit of a relationship previously, but when Ellen (?) the concierge competitor came along, she and Hank hooked up.
Then Divia and Evan were starting to explore their relationship when he gets involved with someone else, and she kisses one of their patients...
Oh, and did I mention that Divia's engaged in an arranged betrothal?
There are at least three too many romantic entanglements going on here... because it's starting to read like a bad soap opera.
Which is why I've lost interest in "Royal Pains"...
So I watch a lot of TV. More reality and competition shows, rather than scripted dramas and comedies. A reason for that is because a lot of scripted shows have lost my interest over the past few years -- between the sucker punches and the formulaic work, it just isn't all that compelling.
Often I'll go for a few seasons loving a show, and then, suddenly -- WHAM! I hate it. (One of the most surprising shifts was with "How I Met Your Mother." I absolutely loathe that show now.) I wasn't sure if it is was due to some abrupt change introduced by the producers/writers or if it was the accumulation of a lot of little nits. In some cases, maybe it's both. In any case, I thought I'd discuss some shows I've recently fallen out of love with and why...
White Collar
I didn't watch this show from the beginning, so I've always been at a disadvantage with it. Trying to pick up the threads of the backstory among the current episodes was always an issue, but I did it willingly, because I liked the premise and the interaction of Neal, Peter, and Mozzie. I liked how there was this implied (or in some cases, clearly stated) tension between Neal's past as a criminal and his new job of working with the Feds. Could Peter trust him this time? Or would Neal's criminal nature finally get the better of him?
That part worked, and kept me hooked. Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, the show stopped holding my interest.
I think it started with the season ender from last season, when Mozzie is shot, apparenty fatally. Now, as I said, I liked the Mozzie character; I liked that he helped Neal solve his cases, even though helping Neal meant helping the Feds, which he wasn't all that interested in doing...
I hated that it looked like Mozzie was dead, because I loved that character. But I realized when the current season started, and there was Mozzie... well. That just flipped a switch in me. It felt like a cheat, because the hitman had made sure Mozzie was about dead. He came back and checked the body.
The other new thing that bugged me is a complaint I have with a lot of detective-type shows lately: at some point they stop doing cases with innocent victims and all their cases seem to have some connection to their past, or some member of their family, or something like that. And that happened with "White Collar" this season. I think every single episode has had some connection to one of the cast's past. It's boring. Tediously so, even. It's lazy writing, and it feels like navel-gazing of the worst sort.
One of the eps that really sticks with me (back when the show was good) is the father and his little daughter who beg Neal (who then begs Peter) for his help to solve their problem. They're about to lose the family home, which grandpa left to the little girl, only grandpa supposedly took out some bad loans, and now the house is mere days away from foreclosure.
You could relate to it, because a lot of people are in similar situations now. Even if you're not, how can you hate this poor little girl? And in the end, Peter and Neal help put away a dirty judge... it's wonderful
But this season, it's all been people from various characters' pasts, a flashback episode of when Mozzie, Neal, and Peter first met. (It didn't work at all. Just not at all... Ugh!) These "bottle" stories shine a glaring light on some of the niggling issues which had bugged me on a subliminal level for a long time; because suddenly those issues were front and center.
For instance: Peter and his wife. They just don't strike me as a couple. There's no passion. No chemistry between them at all. They're there, that's it. So in a recent episode, when the wife was talking about her husband (who had been kidnapped), she mentioned how their relationship was different because they worked at it... well, that just didn't feel true at all. Because you never saw that. What you'd see is people who peck each other... If they're so in love, where are the kids? Is there a reason why they've been married for years but there aren't kids? If so, what is it? Does one of the them not like the idea of having a family, or is there a problem? There's all sorts of emotional material which could be mined here, but the wife is such a throwaway character, you almost never see her. (For several episodes last season, she was somewhere in California, for "business.")
Another thing is the names of the characters. I can't even remember the wife's name. Half the time I can't remember Neal or Peter's name. Chuck and I are consantly asking each other, "What's that guy's name, again?" They just don't seem like a Peter or Neal...
The other niggly bit is the female detective who's gay. I'm sorry, but that always felt like it was dropped in. It would be mentioned by other characters (namely Peter telling Neal, "You're not her type.") rather than be an element which just organically arose from the story. It felt forced and unnecessary. You never saw her pursuing a relationship or feeling conflicted about dealing with meeting and dating someone when you're a gay FBI agent. Where do you go to meet available people? Do you worry that some criminal might try to take advantage of your situation? Does that keep you from letting yourself get too close to anyone...?
I mean, if we're going to make the series about the regular cast instead of helping this week's guest characters, then let's really dig into who these characters are and what makes them tick, rather than fall into the same tired formula of criminal X from regular cast member Y's past tangle with each other...
At least they've spared us from the workplace romance storyline, which has gotten utterly stupid in many series. Like "Royal Pains," for example...
Royal Pains
I liked the concierge doc idea; it was novel, and yet made perfect sense. And it's happening in real life (and will probably be even more practiced under Obamacare, but I digress...) I liked the interplay between the two brothers -- one who lives to help others, and one who wants to make money. Compassion and crass commercialism, entwined in a never-ending struggle. And, funnily enough, when Dad was thrown in, it was the compassionate older brother (who had clearer memories of the louse that dear old dad had been) who couldn't forgive and move on from past transgressions.
There's one more member of HankMed, Divia, the medical assistant. (Sorry, forgot her title...) She and Evan have a love-hate relationship which had tremendous sparkage potential, but that got put on the back burner some time ago...
They even threw in a female concierge doc competitor last season, to spice things up. Someone who temporarily helped out with Hank's practice, only to compete with him upon his return. Is the Hamptons big enough for the two of them?
But that might have been the beginning of the end, since Hank and Jill (the hospital adminnistrator) had had a bit of a relationship previously, but when Ellen (?) the concierge competitor came along, she and Hank hooked up.
Then Divia and Evan were starting to explore their relationship when he gets involved with someone else, and she kisses one of their patients...
Oh, and did I mention that Divia's engaged in an arranged betrothal?
There are at least three too many romantic entanglements going on here... because it's starting to read like a bad soap opera.
Which is why I've lost interest in "Royal Pains"...