Wonderful, Terrible Things...

I have recently been introduced to a new addiction. Of course the item for which I have developed this dependency has been taken away: Carnivale. Sure this humble little blog is hardly the place to persuade the powers-that-be to bring it back, but maybe the 3 people who stumble upon this site randomly will go out and rent it and watch it and love it. That's good enough for me. But, the main thrust of this post was to highlight Carnivale as an incredible work of art in a medium that has become predominantly dry and boring.

Television is a medium with so much potential, but so many directors/producers/TV execs simply crank out more Joeys or ERs. Sure they have some value as a source of entertainment, but we also need a balance of shows that press the limits of television and stretch it to new and interesting levels. Shows like The Prisoner and Twin Peaks help to lay the foundation for more great shows like the X-files and Battlestar Galactica (the new series). Once you start stripping away these types of programs from television you end up with the kind of TV you fall asleep watching. No thank you. I don't need a story tied up in 30 minutes. If I did there is ample sources to fill that need (see NBC, CBS, and ABCs entire line-up...with a few minor exceptions). I want a show that keeps my interest running beyond that time-slot and leaves me anticipating the next episode. A story that unfolds slowly and makes my mind race contemplating the countless directions the story can take. Not simply another "who will hook up with whom" mixed in with some medical terminology and a few shootings. Let's explore some of the wild questions that dance in so many of our heads every night. Let's put these questions in the public eye and enjoy the uncertainty that they bring.

I'm not writing this to simply rag on network television, nor am I excited about revealing my endless list of nerd-a-vision programming that I watch/love. No, my goal is to simply state that, we need shows like Carnivale to help keep TV from becoming stagnant. If we keep trying to rehash the same stories over and over, using the same methods of story-telling, then why do I need to even watch TV. So we've seen the cop drama done ad nauseum, why do we keep coming back to shows like NYPD Blue and CSI if Hill Street Blues did it first. Because it's about the storyteller and the way he/she tells the story. Good and evil has been done, yes, but not like this. Not like Carnivale. To create an atmosphere that absorbs you, a story that leaves you waiting eagerly for the next episode, and actors that are absorbed by their characters...that is what TV is about.

Just go check it out, kids. I know one of you already has watched this show (hell, you got me hooked on it) but the rest of you that accidentally find me...go watch it. You will be left wanting more...think that's torture, yes. So fight for it's return: Save Carnivale. Not possible, you say. Look at Family Guy...fans can bring a show back. So become a fan already, damnit.