A change in perspective.
Mar. 7th, 2006 11:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
longwingI really think that LOST is going to be the last television show I watch. Frankly, I'm getting a little tired of the constant give/take between consumers and "Old Media". There's a lot of really good entertainment out there. Battlestar Galactica, which should be a favorite of mine, leaps to mind. I loved the original series, and I've heard incredibly positive things about the new version, but I just can't bring myself to invest in it. It takes too much money and time to really enjoy old media anymore. Single seasons of shows cost more than I can afford, and I despise advertisements too much to truly enjoy the broadcast versions of anything. (Not to mention that I'm not willing to shcedule my life around when a network decides to show something.)
The networks understand this too, which is why they fight so hard to limit the availability of non-broadcast entertainment. We've seen it time and again, people really hate ads, and advertisers really like people. They're like an annoying yapping dog, they don't yap out of spite, they yap out of love (and no matter how nice you are, you still want to kick them for it). The networks figured out long ago that people watch shows together, not by themselves. LOST is a social phenomenon as much as it is a drama. Americans can't get enough television because we can't get enough of each other. TV is a really convenient excuse to gather, to pay attention to a mutual interest, to be entertained... and I want that. Does anyone here watch LOST and not talk about it with their friends? The networks realized that a show is most valuable when it's topical. No one talks about shows from 1995 except those who've aready seen them. Geting people you know to watch an old movie or an obscure film is like pulling teeth. I know this, I'm part of the problem. So I endure the adverts and buy the DVD's...
but I'm tired of it. I'm tired of the constant barrage of "buy our crap!", and the equally constant barrage of "watch our not-so-crap!". I can't help but feel that there's some way to break the cycle, I just don't know what it is.
The networks understand this too, which is why they fight so hard to limit the availability of non-broadcast entertainment. We've seen it time and again, people really hate ads, and advertisers really like people. They're like an annoying yapping dog, they don't yap out of spite, they yap out of love (and no matter how nice you are, you still want to kick them for it). The networks figured out long ago that people watch shows together, not by themselves. LOST is a social phenomenon as much as it is a drama. Americans can't get enough television because we can't get enough of each other. TV is a really convenient excuse to gather, to pay attention to a mutual interest, to be entertained... and I want that. Does anyone here watch LOST and not talk about it with their friends? The networks realized that a show is most valuable when it's topical. No one talks about shows from 1995 except those who've aready seen them. Geting people you know to watch an old movie or an obscure film is like pulling teeth. I know this, I'm part of the problem. So I endure the adverts and buy the DVD's...
but I'm tired of it. I'm tired of the constant barrage of "buy our crap!", and the equally constant barrage of "watch our not-so-crap!". I can't help but feel that there's some way to break the cycle, I just don't know what it is.
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no subject
Date: 2006-03-07 06:21 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-03-07 09:36 pm (UTC)heh. kidding ;P
no subject
Date: 2006-03-08 12:07 am (UTC)I love discussing movies afterwards. It's like gossiping, but no one's feelings would be hurt. I've been looking for people to watch foreign films with too, but since those are always hit or miss, mostly miss, no one would bother investing the time with me. So it's mostly anime and manga from here on out. Although I highly recommend House.
Anyway, to your point. Discussing tv is something coworkers can do. They can do this, because watching the same thing does not require them to make it personalize, and to share a large part of themself. I think it's laziness in an eagerness to feel like I too belong.
no subject
Date: 2006-03-08 10:12 pm (UTC)Other nags? I'd be lying if I said cost wasn't a factor. There's also the time concern. I loves me some television, and I'll spend most of my day in front of those evil little boxes if given the opportunity. TIVO motivates people to watch a lot more TV, and down that path lies lethargy.
All that said, you are right about the laziness of pop culture, the way it homogenizes and convinces people to spend only a little effort on getting to know each other. I wish I had something wiser than a word of agreement to offer in that regard, but no solutions leap to my mind.