A TV 180
When "Grimm" and "Once Upon A Time" appeared on TV, I started watching both. I find it interesting to think about how they've changed, along with my reaction to them.
After a few episodes, "Once Upon A Time" became one of my favorite shows. I really liked the fact that evil wasn't a pushover, that a force strong enough to conquer a kingdom and alter reality for thousands of people didn't just fold when faced with a street-wise heroine and her cute, precocious kid. Of course the good guys were going to win -- it was that kind of series -- but their slow progress and failures along the way made sense. Somewhere along the line, however, things changed. It must have been decided that having interesting characters wasn't enough; they all had to be somewhat sympathetic...and they all had to have unexpected twists in their backgrounds...and they all had to have surprise past relationships with each other. Oh, and we needed about three new permanent characters per week. "Once Upon A Time" is now a soap opera.
"Grimm" started out as a live-action cartoon. The character behavior and the plots were mostly comical (unintentionally, I assume) even given the starting premise. Over time, though, there's been added depth to the storytelling and some reduction in campiness, making it much more enjoyable for me. (It hasn't been completely cured of the over-the-top approach though. In the most recent episode, one person's description of why she didn't like Christmas could only have been more melodramatic if she'd revealed that her parents had been eaten by reindeer.)
After a few episodes, "Once Upon A Time" became one of my favorite shows. I really liked the fact that evil wasn't a pushover, that a force strong enough to conquer a kingdom and alter reality for thousands of people didn't just fold when faced with a street-wise heroine and her cute, precocious kid. Of course the good guys were going to win -- it was that kind of series -- but their slow progress and failures along the way made sense. Somewhere along the line, however, things changed. It must have been decided that having interesting characters wasn't enough; they all had to be somewhat sympathetic...and they all had to have unexpected twists in their backgrounds...and they all had to have surprise past relationships with each other. Oh, and we needed about three new permanent characters per week. "Once Upon A Time" is now a soap opera.
"Grimm" started out as a live-action cartoon. The character behavior and the plots were mostly comical (unintentionally, I assume) even given the starting premise. Over time, though, there's been added depth to the storytelling and some reduction in campiness, making it much more enjoyable for me. (It hasn't been completely cured of the over-the-top approach though. In the most recent episode, one person's description of why she didn't like Christmas could only have been more melodramatic if she'd revealed that her parents had been eaten by reindeer.)