“Hey Ted, move your head.”
Living in a family of book lovers, readers, and library fanatics, I feel a twinge of guilt every time I turn on the TV. Why is it that I feel somehow “less than” when I choose this visual pleasure over a written one?
Maybe it’s because it was called the “idiot box” and the “boob tube” when I was growing up. Or because I’ve always been a slow reader and diving into a book has never been my idea of a good time. Maybe it’s because the television medium suits my nature, or because the technology and many shows have gotten REALLY good.
I’ve always loved television, from the earliest days growing up in Mexico City when all we had was a black and white set (with rabbit ears wrapped in tin foil) and all the shows were dubbed in Spanish. I grew up watching shows like “Super Agente 86,” “Los Intocables,” and every Bette Davis movie ever made.
Today my DVR captures the edgier Mad Men, and The Riches, HBO reruns of The Wire and Six Feet Under, the popular network dramas like Grey’s Anatomy and Brothers and Sisters, and voting-off reality shows like So You Think You Can Dance and Project Runway. The characters and story lines are like family visiting me every week.
I’m transported by the 60’s cigarette haze of Mad Men — a show that reveals the shadowy cracks of an idealistic era where most women had no clout or power. The extraordinary writing, acting, and set design goes right to the jugular of my experience as a young girl about to come of age.
I never tire of Michael Scott’s wide-eyed, politically-incorrect shenanigans on The Office (oh how he makes me cringe sometimes!) and seeing Jack Bauer on a 24-hour roller-coaster ride of near-death experiences as he single-handedly saves the world from annihilation.
I’m impressed by how Tyra Banks mentors young women on America’s Next Top Model. Crazy dormitory antics aside (which I fast forward to the parts I love: the photo shoots), this show often surprises me. It says more about cultivating inner beauty and self-awareness than strutting your stuff.
I delight in the shaping of raw talent by the most brilliant choreographers in the world on So You Think You Can Dance — a show that takes my breath away by its artistry and beauty. It’s like you get free front-row seats to the best show in town. Honestly, it doesn’t get better than this!
I watch my shows because they move me, inspire me, make me think or laugh or squirm. I watch them because they raise my energy level. They teach me something, or shed light on our collective shadow, or make a difference.
That’s why I watch television.
How about you? Are there any shows out there that move you or make your heart sing?
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