TV Strikes Back

Welcome back, TV.  For the little television watching I do, it surprised me how refreshing it was to hear “New Episodes!” blaring excitedly over fresh clips of condensed hilarity.  Perhaps it’s not so much an excitement for the return of new sitcoms as it is for the reduction of reality TV.  It hurts my head to even overhear snippets of Bachelor contestants bitching back and forth while I’m in the kitchen.

But, fear no more, The Office returns.  At this point, I’m more interested in seeing how the writers meet the weekly challenge of new material than any advancement of plot of character development.  It’s been a mixed bag this “season”.  The double-length episodes dragged and felt forced to fill two time slots (and for some reason seemed extra commercial interrupted), but the normal episodes, especially Jan’s sexual harassment suit, have fared much better.

I wish I had the time to watch some TV series and track some variables across them because, just thinking about The Office and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, there seems to be a trend from season to season.  I use these two examples both because of their high level of quality and because, well, they’re really the only two sitcoms I’ve watched completely in recent years.

A pattern seems to have each show beginning about the intangibles of its setting–the office and Paddy’s Pub, respectively.  There is a period of character development, in which another character is introduced both to up the stakes and also to act as a foil to already established characters, giving them more identity by contrast.  Settings also become more variable.  Finally, it seems that character development reaches an end–I haven’t learned anything new about Jim, Dwight, or Stanley, or Charlie and Mac.  At this point (4th season Office, 3rd season Sunny), the setting no longer dictates the action, the characters ‘type’ is set, and the comedy truly falls back to the bare bones of the situation.

For it’s part, season 3 of Sunny was akin to live-action Looney Tunes.  I should also mention that this isn’t a criticism of either show.  I have not laughed so hard, ever, as I have at the 3rd season of Sunny, and The Office is far from stale.  I note this observation wondering what that says about the creative process, and maybe if there actually is some kind of a notion of recognizing when enough is enough?  More so, I wonder how this compares to older sitcoms from the early 90s.  Maybe in retirement I can sit around and watch all that TV.

A Genealogy

In the days of the drought, when Ephraim entered the country of the Moabites, that is the time when Ralph came to the land of Judah through Jerash and Beit-El in the North down to Lachish and Hebron and finally to Be’er Sheva. And this is where he settled.

Ralph begat Dennis; and Dennis begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren; and Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; and Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Salmon; and Salmon begat Jesse; and Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; and Soloman begat Asa; and Asa begat Joram; and Joram begat Abia; and Abia begat Jehosaphat; and Jehosaphat begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Ezekiel; and Ezekiel begat Amon; and Amon begat Jechonias; and Jechonias begat Booz of Rachab and his brethren. And after they were brought to Babylon, Booz begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Achim; and Achim begat Azor; and Azor begat Phinehas; and Phinehas begat Mattathias; and Mattathias begat Josiah; and Josiah begat Benjamin the Revolutionary; and Benjamin begat Jerry; and Jerry begat Jack, who is called the White; and Jack begat Abe the husband of Mary; and Abe begat Dino.

Then there was a great rush of resounding noise that set upon the whole country in those days. And none could escape its sound and all were beholden to its cry of the end of darkness and the victory of light.

Yea it shall be, that upon this day the trumpets shall ring throughout the mountains and the seas shall tumble upon the cities of the coast and the boulders shall crumble into rocks of smaller size and the whole people shall dance and prostrate and eat and sing and weep and then they shall dance once again.

And so sounded the glorious sound, whence come it was not known: Ye in ivory towers, ye in schools and in philosophies fortified against this real and earthly world, let ye come down and condescend to the plebeian opinion machine, the blog.

And so it was. And it was good.