GGM:
Yeah, me too. I look at this forum and wonder what everyone else is getting that I don't/wonder if people are watching different channels to me.
That's pretty much my experience, too, with the added factor of having a partner whose evident enjoyment of certain shows I find myself unable to share. On Barbelith, it puzzles me to find so many lo-o-o-ong threads on the various seasons/incarnations of Buffy, Smallville, Lost, etc. while the stuff I like tends to go unremarked upon. I went through a period of assiduous thread-starting (think I initiated the discussions of Bodies, No Angels, Buried, etc.) but noticed the same handful of posters - yourself included - contributing, with the threads in question quickly sinking. Which suggests to me that there isn't the same sustained interest in the stuff I like - or maybe the shorter runs don't allow for the same buzz. I dunno.
(the definite exception being The Sopranos. Oh, and in times past, Twin Peaks. How do you fare with TP?)
I've a feeling Twin Peaks began during my Year Of Living Without A Television (*shudder*), so I read about it but couldn't get reeled in. Having seen bits of it subsequently, I think I might have rather liked it.
So, basically we're maybe looking at how different cultures 'do' drama, and why that appeals/doesn't.
As, rewatching QAF recently (and loving it all over again) I was struck by how glossy and beautiful it is, how fantastical some elements of the storyline are. (oddly, I remembered it from first time round as being very 'gritty', and wasn't impressed with the ending. This time round I love the ending, fits perfectly with the unreality of parts of the narrative) Elements you are critiquing here. (on the commentary, Russell T and Nichola Shindler say that in look they were very influenced by/aiming for things like Ally Mc Beal)
But it grips me totally.
Interesting, since I loathed Ally McBeal and adored Queer As Folk. In that particular case, it was probably the delightful novelty of seeing British Queer (complete with 'gritty' regional accents) depicted in shinytwinkly 'enhanced realism' that made the show special and lovely to me.
Is it an expectation thing? Do you, or I, go to drama looking for some reflection of our culture? Are we looking for 'Britishness'?
I think maybe it is. Rather than 'pure' escapism, I must be looking for some elements which which I can identify, which stand out to me as 'real', which I recognise. For better or worse, I associated 'realism'/'authenticity' with certain styles of UK drama, and find little in its glossy US counterpart that I can get my teeth into.
(Which of course doesn't explain why I love The Sops with that obssesivness yr talking about)
I think that, as well as 'Britishness' being something I look to recognise in drama, I'm also hungry for stuff that reflects my life in other ways. I'm more likely to be intrigued by drama featuring gay characters, for example, because I can play compare 'n' contrast with my own experiences.
In the case of The Sopranos, I think a big part of the appeal is the framing device of psychotherapy. If they hadn't got this so right, particularly in the early days, I don't think I'd have stuck with the show. The other aspect of The Sopranos (and, come to think of it, Six Feet Under) which I feel is generally lacking in the titles on my hate-list is the focus on the dilemmas and dynamics of older-than-twentysomething people within a family. Being in my mid-30s myself, I'm no longer gripped by depictions of teen/twentysomething angst. I'm interested in the life experiences of thirtysomethings, fortysomethings, people balancing work, long-term relationships, social life, etc. The Sopranos also avoids too much of the 'beautiful teens' thing, which just bores me. |
