Mid-Season Evaluation (on TV)

My mother has discovered Lawrence Welk.  You know you are old when you have discovered Lawrence Welk.  Even back in the day when Lawrence Welk was on Saturday nights his music was “old”.  But curiously enough my mother made some comments that rather resonated with me when she was evaluating the difference between watching The Lawrence Welk Show and Dancing with the Stars (which she thoroughly enjoys).  She said that the people on the Welk show were very dignified and dressed lovely.  Then she said “and people in the audience listen, dance or clap in a respectful way.  There is no screaming or cheering.  It’s refreshing.”

When did society become so raucous?  When did entertainment have to be so interactive and riotous?  It becomes a slippery slope from noise, to cursing, to downright immorality.  And that is what I am noticing more and more as seasons bring on new shows.  Here goes some of things observed this season.

How to Get Away with Murder – I started to watch this series because I like Viola Davis but from the very first episode I thought “nope, not for me”.  How can I take seriously an attorney who is fornicating in her house/office with a police officer and who doesn’t lock her doors and thus her students can walk in on her doing the deed?  Really?  I should have known this was going to be an unrealistic look at “powerhouse women” when it’s from the same producer as Scandal. 

Stalker – so here’s a police officer from NYC who transfers to Los Angeles to come on the special force looking into stalkers.  Guess what, he’s a stalker himself.  Does every cop have to have a weak backbone?  [I quit Blood Blues in the first season when “Danny” started bobbing a “perp’s” head in the toilet – and he was supposed to be a good cop.]

The Mysteries of Laura – this one is supposed to be comedic but again, we have the couple divorced with the ex-husband is messing around with stray women who wander into his ex-wife’s home --- in front of  6 year old twins.

Forever – so far this one has my approval as nothing rotten has come out about the lead character (yet).

These are the only new shows I’ve watched this season.  I like bad guys to be defined from the get go.  I don’t like to see flawed heroes unless they are redeemable (think back to “Tess of the Dubervilles in high school English, remember Angel?).  For example, in Person of Interest the heroic characters are all flawed in the beginning but they are now fighting on the side of Good.  Some series I simply refuse to watch based on the commercials.  Shows like Blacklist where the lead character is a dyed in the wool bad guy.  Are we supposed to go “oh yea” when he does his nefarious worst? 

I guess what I am trying to say is that pointing out that people are flawed is not really news and glorifying these types is not adding any value to television.  I’ll continue the conversation tomorrow with a discussion on where we have come in the last 50 years of our “civilization”.