From the Busy Basement

Friends, I have a problem. A middle class, first world nerd problem, but a problem nonetheless. This fall, for the first time in who knows how long, there are several science fiction/fantasy offerings on the major broadcast networks. Rejoice, nerd viewers! We've got time travel, fantasy-procedural mash-up, fairy tales In Real Life, alternate universes, demons and angels....and dinosaurs! There are going to be dinosaurs. on my television.

This is Steven Spielberg, directing a dinosaur for Fox's Terra Nova. How am I supposed to resist this?

But, while I find myself totally stoked for the nerdy action bursting out on my television screen this season, I was distraught when I looked at the Friday night schedule. For some reason, Fox, NBC, and CW decided to schedule Grimm, Fringe, and Supernatural against each other on Fridays nights at 9/8c.  Now, instead of pulling in a population that might be less than excited by other network fare (like Fox might do on Mondays by pitting Terra Nova against Dancing with the Stars and The Sing-Off), it splits the demographic. Terra Nova might not be a ratings blockbuster against mainstream competition reality programming, but it has a chance to forge a strong fan following with a different demographic.  Perhaps there just wasn't enough space on the schedules for every network to schedule its science fiction/fantasy programming this way, perhaps the networks don't really care about these programs.  Perhaps the networks think no one but the nerds is home on Fridays to watch television.  Whatever the case, it puts myself and my fellow nerds in a tricky situation: what do you watch live, what do you DVR, and what do you stream later?


Personally, I will almost certainly watch Fringe live (as I encourage you all to do!). It has been increasing in creativity and quality at a steady pace and the cast has been throwing out phenomenal (if sadly under-recognized) performances.  Also, it almost always seems to be in peril come renewal time.

John Noble, how do you still have no awards or nominations for Fringe?!

I'm a bit behind on Supernatural, so I don't have to wreck my head too much about that.  It has a pretty dedicated & solid fan following, so it's probably not hurting for my viewership anyway. Grimm, however, poses a serious problem.  It's a new program and has an interesting premise, and it filmed in Portland, OR (supporting the local economy where part of my family lives).  If the pilot lives up to the premise and its buzz, I'll probably want it to stick around a while.  But what do I do, then?  For a new show, live viewing figures are extremely important. I don't want to give up Fringe, though!  There was some suggestion that Fringe's DVR figures boosted it to renewal at the end of last season but, even if that's so, there's no guarantee they will do so again.


I realize that everyone has these issues with their tv viewing, but (with the high cost of high-concept/effects-heavy shows) these kinds of scheduling/viewing issues can be a sci-fi/fantasy program's death-knell.  For an expensive program that struggles in viewership early on, networks have two choices: cut their losses (and the program) early on or throw their full weight behind them.  Hopefully, the fact their networks have scheduled Grimm and Fringe on Fridays isn't a hint at which approach they might take.




What do you think? Should you support a promising new show by watching it live and DVRing/streaming returning shows? Does your tactic change if your returning show came through on the skin of its teeth?

I've stocked my queue with all manner of films from the Criterion Collection in an effort to justify my Hulu Plus subscription while unemployed, but somehow I've mostly just taken advantage of every free wi-fi connection to re-watch Green Wing on my iPod. In my defense, it is a rather brilliant British comedy.  Imagine a more absurdist, uncensored Scrubs with very little moral compass and you'll begin to enter the ballpark of the wonderful craziness that is Green Wing. [Fair warning: Thar be some spoilers within this post!]


When I discovered Green Wing, I was dragged relentlessly along from episode to episode by its sheer ridiculousness and the adorable/frustrating "will they or won't they" of Dr. Caroline Todd (played by the always lovely and hysterical Tamsin Grieg) and Dr. "Mac" Macartney.   This all still holds true, but the beauty of second (or third or fourth...) viewings is that new/different aspects can come to light. While rewatching Green Wing this time, I was struck by the adept and sometimes subtle characterizations of many of the "loonies" that populate the fictional hospital.  Every actor physically embodies his or her character in such unique ways (like the weird, lumbering gait Grieg gives Dr. Todd) and there are many little shifts and aspects of characters that give them more depth than meets the eye.

Example: Mac's humor.  Dr. Macartney rarely takes anything seriously (exceptions include his reaction to a particularly cruel joke another doctor plays on an internist), preferring to twist people's words about or humorously change the subject.  At one point toward the end of season one, Dr. Todd is trying to get an honest, serious answer out of Mac and asks why he makes a joke out of everything. Mac replies that it allows him to avoid "grown up" conversations and responsibilities.  It's very nearly a throwaway line as delivered, particularly considering how quickly the episode moves on to more momentous things (one character inadvertently sleeps with his mother, Dr. Todd and Mac finally kiss, Mac and two other characters are trapped on the edge of a cliff in an ambulance).

Mac (left) is not amused....but Holly is (right)

The insight the flippant comment gives to his character isn't wasted or abandoned, though. In season 2, Mac's ex, Holly, returns four years after the messy, painful failure of their relationship - with a slightly ginger-haired child in tow.  Mac is hesitant to rekindle a relationship with Holly but wants to be a good father to his child.  He tries to communicate this to Holly one night in his apartment after the child falls asleep, but Holly will absolutely not be serious about it. She insists they speak through the kid's can-and-string "telephone" , cannot look at him, and giggles her way through the conversation.  With Mac's flippant conversation from season 1 in mind, it's really easy to see how Mac and Holly had been in a relationship for 6 years.  Holly epitomizes Mac's comment about avoiding "grown up" issues through humor and mirrors his sense of humor/behavior in season 1.  However, his frustration with her during this conversation also shows the ways his character has changed since those earlier episodes. I love it when the skillful parts of things that seem to be solely silly show themselves!