A Geek’s Guide to Television
I wrote about Smallville in an earlier post. This post is about what else is on television this season.
First of all, now is great time in television for geeks. Most of the major networks are coming out with shows that focus on science fiction, fantasy, or technology. These are high quality, well-crafted shows that should stick around for awhile. Let’s start with the returning shows.
Heroes: Heroes is starting its second season, and already has a large following. The reason is clear: the show is phenomenal. The writing and the acting are exceptional, the filming is clean, the special effects are good. The premise of the show is interesting, if not terribly unique. The show has a wide cast of interesting characters, each of whom has their own story and their own motivations. The heroes, even the ones we like and care about the most, often don’t agree about their purpose or their methods. As good as the show is, it isn’t without it’s flaws. Mostly as a result of the large cast, the show is a bit slow. It takes awhile for individual plots to develop, and the show can go for weeks without any of the major plotlines being resolved. Also, the writers don’t seem to trust their ability to come up with a new villain for the season. Sylar was last seasons villain, and he should have remained dead. This season is already introducing new bad guys for the heroes to take on. Sylar isn’t necessary. I’m also not a big fan of Maya and her brother. The writers need to give us some information about these two soon, or I’ll stop caring about them altogether.
The Office: The Office may not seem like a geeky TV show at first, but it’s definitely comedy that geeks will enjoy. It’s smart comedy that expects its viewers to keep up with the jokes. Sure, occasionally it will fall back on more farcical, simpler humor, but there interesting bits that you aren’t even going to catch if you aren’t looking for them.
Scrubs: Maybe Scrubs doesn’t qualify as geeky, but it’s one of the best comedies currently on television. Part of the glory of Scrubs is that it’s just so strange. Zach Braff’s character is quirky, needy, and sensitive. I’m sure I’d hate him in real life, but on the show, he works perfectly.
There are plenty of other shows returning this year. I haven’t gotten a chance to watch all of them, but I’ve heard great things about Supernatural, Jericho, Eureka, Kyle XY, and various other shows that qualify as geeky. (I suppose some people would consider Lost a geeky show, but for me, the show lost its spark about half way through the second season.)
One of the great things about this season is the large number of geeky shows coming out. Partly due to the success of Heroes, networks have really embraced television that deals with the extraordinary, or the supernatural.
Reaper: Reaper is a highly original, good quality show. Sam, an underachiever, learns that his parent’s sold his soul to the devil. He’s obligated to serve as the devil’s bounty hunter, returning escaped souls to hell. The show is partly comedy. Between the unusual tools Sam is required to use (a Dirt Devil and a remote control car) and the incompetence of Sam and his friends as they pursue the escaped souls, there’s a lot to laugh about, but that’s not all their is to the show. Sam’s life is actually at risk with every job, and the souls are killing innocent people. Sam’s job matters, and as he learns this, it starts to bring meaning to his previously uneventful life.
Chuck: Chuck is a Nerd Herd employee who accidentally has the sole copy of important government records transfered into his mind. He has to work with competing agents from both the NSA and CIA to stop the bad guys, while still trying to do his job. It’s a comedy, and it does a great job of keeping fresh and interesting.
There are several other new geeky shows that have started this season, most notably Bionic Woman and Journeyman. I haven’t gotten a check them out yet, but I hope to soon. Right now is a great time for geeky television. These shows are only the tip of the iceberg, and there are plenty more that I could talk about. People need to tune into these shows to let the networks know that we’re interested in this sort of programming. Otherwise, these shows might go the way of Firefly and Drive.
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