I make TV for a living. Here's my list for you (Off-Topic)

by Kahzgul, Monday, January 22, 2018, 12:14 (2495 days ago) @ Coaxkez

How far back do you want to go? I'll break this down into precursor shows, and then what I consider our "modern age":

Prologue:

The "Golden Age of Television" that we live in didn't happen overnight and was a slow burn at the beginning. Did you catch when the X-Files made the first non-soap-opera continuing narrative dramatic storyline in order to cover for the fact that Gillian Anderson was pregnant? That was the catalyst, and it happened way back in the 1990's.

Lost was a seminal point for these narrative dramas as it garnered a cult-like fanbase that watched the show religiously. It had several strong seasons, but the ending disappointed many, and the vast majority of plot points never paid off. Similarly, the behind the scenes drama of the show led to several high profile firings of the cast, resulting in dropped threads and many plot dead-ends. Still, this is an important show for understanding how we got to where we are today.

24 (season 2 is the best by a MILE) came out at the same time as the Lord of the Rings movies were making their way to DVD. The result was that fans of both took to binge watching. A 24-hour 24 marathon aired on TV, and many people had parties where they watched all 9 hours of the extended edition Lord of the Rings movies in a row. Thus, binge-watching became a Thing.

Finally, Mad Men showed that fans valued quality writing and production over all else. It stormed the awards shows and put AMC on the map, driving viewers to cable for the first time in years. It's brilliant writing and willingness to take risks that big-budget movie studios refused, combined with all of the accolades and awards, drew Hollywood's top talent away from film and into the small screen. If you wanted to write a compelling narrative with complicated characters and unusual topics, television was now the place to be. Film became nothing but a bastion of blockbuster action films and hack jobs of known quantities: sequels, prequels, and remakes galore. Safe investments only. Television was now willing to take risks, especially cable television, as they saw how audiences flocked to them. In fact, broadcast TV *sued* the FCC because they weren't legally allowed to use the same language or graphic violence of cable shows. That's how much cable took over television: Broadcast networks had to resort to legal battles because they could not compete with actual content.

End of prologue.

Welcome to the modern age of television!

Breaking Bad. It's 10 years old now, but if you haven't seen it, this is the shepherd that ushered in the current age of television, good and bad. There are some rough patches (notably the first few episodes of both seasons 2 and 3), but everything ultimately pays off in spades. From a purely academic standpoint, this show is a must-see. Almost every other show made since has been a gritty, realistic drama with dark characters, loose morals, and a penchant for the anti-heroes only sort of storytelling that Breaking Bad made famous.

Game of Thrones. Take Breaking Bad and add a lot of sex, normalization of male genitalia on screen, and writing good enough to trick the entire world into thinking that a show about talking is actually a show about dragons. The major add to the entertainment world here is George RR Martin's writing. He is not precious with any of his characters, and is willing to end their lives for the sake of plot, rather than contriving elaborate means of escape found in almost every other previous form of entertainment. Borrowing largely from the War of the Roses and other historic battles of conquest, GoT delivers political intrigue on a grand scale, backing the wills of tyrants with the force of armies, all under a backdrop of looming existential danger to the entire human race. It's fantastic on many levels, but may be jarring to viewers who are not prepared for the narrative dissonance brought about by the last twenty years of television history.

Empire. This is a trashy TV prime-time soap opera done right, and it marks Broadcast TV's first major success in the new era of hard-hitting and impactful shows. By fully embracing a minority demographic as central characters, broadcast TV discovered wide-ranging appeal and this show drew a path forward for their future success. I'm not sure it's worth watching (I'm not into soap-style shows, really), but its impact cannot be denied.

This is Us. Here is broadcast TV's new juggernaut. Eschewing the grit and violence of cable television, This is Us tells human stories with heartbreaking compassion. Finally, broadcast has found an answer to the Breaking Bads of Cable, and that answer is to tell emotional and heart-wrenching dramas where, in lieu of anti-heroes, everyone is a true hero who is struggling against the every day life and death struggles of living in our modern world. Beautiful and emotionally manipulative, this show will, I predict, be the vanguard of a new breed of high drama shows about ordinary people dealing with everyday problems.

Netflix. There are too many shows to list, but against this backdrop of cable vs. broadcast tv, Netflix emerged with viewer-driven analytics, creating and renewing shows that people wanted to watch. They are unafraid of risk, airing many pilots or one-off films in order to see what sticks, and then creating feature quality shows with top talent in order to capitalize on the viewing habits of their subscribers. Netflix marks the business model of the future, and today, Disney (via Hulu), CBS, HBO, and many others are attempting to enter the same entertainment space that Netflix rules. Expect more and stronger online programming in the future as these shows compete tooth and nail for subscribers and awards.

End of history lesson.

So here we stand in this breaking bad vs. this is us battle of cable vs. broadcast, with netflix showing that the very concept of "typical" tv service is a dinosaur. The only real lessons to be taken away from this is that your eyes are valuable and many different companies are producing top programming in order to lure your gaze. There are quality offerings on many fronts, so I can't possibly name them all, but I will point to a few of my favorites not already mentioned:

- Parks and Rec. Brilliant comedy well worth viewing. Originally on broadcast TV, now on netflix.

- Broadchurch. BBC detective drama where a failed big-city cop comes to a small town to solve a gruesome murder. Incredible storytelling, beautifully shot. Now on netflix.

- GLOW. I flippin' loved this show and I can't wait for season 2. It's masterful, with both comedy and drama delivered in spades. Netflix.

- Stranger Things. How can I not mention this genius of an '80's throwback? Wildly popular and very entertaining. On Netflix.

- The Crown. Massive budget brought to the small screen. Incredibly well produced, written, acted, and artfully delivered. Netflix strikes again.

Enjoy!!!