Television rarely gets the respect it deserves.
I recently finished watching all six seasons of “The Sopranos” for the very first time. Now that I’m caught up with the rest of the TV-watching world, I must say that it lived up to the hype, and then some. In fact, I can think of few other artistic experiences in my life that measure up to “The Sopranos’” sheer excellence.
Television is not generally considered a great artistic medium. It gets disrespected in particular by those snobby, collegiate d-bag types that, if you’re an English major, probably constitute half of your class (look for the messenger bag). You tell one about some show you watched the other night, and he explains to you proudly how he doesn’t even own a television set so he hasn’t seen it and isn’t really interested anyway.
To him, it’s the mature lifestyle choice. In reality, he’s just limiting himself. Whether it’s only listening to classical music, only watching black-and-white movies or considering television programs to be beneath you, such limitations are just another prejudice.
By no means am I saying that television is a flawless artistic medium. Basic cable will have you suffer through a near-endless parade of insulting and idiotic commercials, and networks are notorious meddlers. But neither of those flaws are inherently deal-breakers, nor is television alone in having them. Commercials provide time to go to the bathroom and prepare a snack. Plus, movie theaters pull the same shit, except you have to buy their $10 snack. The majority of movies have to contend with prying studios, and I highly doubt book publishers have no say whatsoever.
Admittedly, a lot of television shows are terrible.
For every “Friday Night Lights” there are seven shows inspired by Tila Tequila. Animal Planet is the FOX News of nature programming, and MTV gives 16-year-old girls the chance to exploit their own pregnancies. But does anybody really think that all books are good? A quick search through my grandmother’s bookshelf will yield enough reinterpretations of the classic “Fabio Bones a Maiden” story to make Paris Hilton’s “My New BFF” seem like a thematically rich and intellectually stimulating rumination on modern living.
A lot of television is bad, but so is a lot of everything.
Television has a lot to offer. Television programming brings together serialization with cinematic techniques in a relatively cheap and easily accessible way. Stories can be told over multiple years, with characters and story lines developing in unexpected ways. Actors get to know their characters, and creators get to know their audiences. Teams of writers work together, allowing more creativity and surprises and less stagnation.
So don’t write off television. If you haven’t already, allow it the same opportunity to blow your mind that you give other art forms.