I grew up watching a lot of TV. I found it a way to see other ways of doing things, I found it a nice distraction from an often subtly dysfunctional household, and I just really liked it. Instead of curbing my creativity I believe it strengthened it and it certainly influenced my writing and teaching both but making it clear to me that visuals can be important. I'm also a terrible channel flipper, I'm the "guy" in my house in this respect and it drives the men in my family crazy not because they want to be flipping but because they'd like to pick a show and stick with it. While I'm willing to give a wide range of shows a try, I find that I'm actually fairly picky. I'm hoping you might find this interesting and be encouraged to think about why you watch the TV you do so here's what I'm watching right now in the evenings and why.
Sundays: I have an evening gaming group so I'm actually DVRing things.
"Once Upon a Time" -- I got into this because several female friends I respect said they really liked it, told me it had strong female characters without having weak male characters. Sounds like the type of stories I try to write so when the first two seasons were on Netflix I gave it a try. I have to say that Season 3 has not been as interesting to me, I find Pan annoying and I just can't relate to him or his "boys" so I hope the show either gives me a reason to care or we get past them soon or I may stop watching what I've DVRed for a few weeks.
"The Walking Dead" -- I watched episode one and was so turned off by what I felt were all too common set-ups for "zombie" types of shows. A friend of mine begged me to try the next episode and after that I've been hooked. No, I haven't read the graphic novels and don't really plan to since I've met so many "fans" who hate the show for changing things. I've also read online complaints about how slow the show is but soon those folks reveal that they really don't understand who the "walking dead" really are in the show and were just interested in kills not the plot or development of characters. The "Walking Dead Fan Rally" I hosted at a science fiction convention went well last year so I think I'll propose it again this year. My biggest complaint about the show is that there is a lack of main cast female characters especially with very recent changes. Given that we can see female (and child) characters all around what is the reason for that?
Mondays: Nothing I watch live but I do DVR things when they catch my eyes.
"The Story of Film: An Odyssey" a 15 episode series created in 2011 is currently being shown and I've been watching it since I just happened to find it one evening while channel surfing. My only complaint is the creator's voice; I wish they had another voice narrating it. I'm discovering a lot of cool films I'm not trying to find and add to my Netflix queue.
Tuesdays: Big day now for live and DVRing for me.
"Marvel: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D" is something I watch with my men and we all like it a lot. I can't say that I love it as much as "Buffy" or some of the seasons of "Angel" but I can say that I'm pleased with the general balance of male-female characters and the variety of personalities. I think the internal mysteries are not being ignored but the focus is on the weekly mission packed with TV level action. I hope there is more cross-over with the movie series, too, though I know that movie salaries probably make it difficult to have more guests than they've all ready had.
"Supernatural" became a favorite of mine again after some friends told me that they thought I'd like it. I was hesitate to watch because I worried it was a rehash of "Buffy" but with dudes to ease the bruised egos of all those boys and men out there who didn't like a girl beating up monsters. That is the one solid complaint I do have about the show -- not enough female characters. Oh, there are reoccurring characters but then they are sent off on other missions or are killed or simply recede. The stable of supporting characters though are all men for our two brothers and while these are pretty to look at and I think more developed than often given credit for, it would be nice to have two stable female characters. That the boys are pretty to look at and get beaten up or tortured from time to time is just a bonus as far as I'm concerned.
Wednesdays: Are too crowded! Move some of the shows I like around a bit more please.
"Criminal Minds" has been a regular show for my own partner and I and in the past two years we've gotten my husband to join us in watching it. I like the dual nature of "case of the week" plus plot arches of the series and the fact that the characters do change. However I find it annoying that far more female characters have come and gone on the series while the male characters stay on for the most part. I also wish they'd hire Nicholas Brendon as a regular because I found that romance believable and wish it could be a more constant side story because I adore Garcia's character on so many levels.
"CSI" is something I loved for years but now I just watch it when the guys want to do so. I haven't liked some of the one and two year characters the show has had and frankly I want more on the personal lives of some of the original characters like Greg and less on these new folks. I also find it a bit repetitives at times (seriously I just ignore the testing montages now) and I think this is more a science fiction or fantasy show than crime drama.
"Law & Order: SVU" has been a show I've watched from day one. I was into the original series on and off but this I never miss and my partner watches it with me regularly, too. Why? Olivia is a constant, strong but realistic female character I feel and I like that with Elliot leaving the strong has focused more on her, I hope she goes on to become the Captain of the department. Perhaps I like it because I am a survivor of childhood and stranger sexual assault myself and it gives me hope that some authority out there cares.
"American Horror Story Coven" is another show I watched only after a few friends urged me to do so. I had watched the first three episodes of the first season and was bored. Luckily the show picks up and you have to have a tolerance for crazy and slow development with sudden jumps in plot to appreciate it. Most seasons the show has strong female characters but I find most horror anything I like does. I do think the male characters are too weak this time around but they have time to make it more balanced. Mostly I like watching it with my friends who come over to watch it with me now.
"Ghost Hunters" on Syfy is one of my fun shows I like to watch for thrills and laughs at the same time. Like it is "Paranormal Witness" on the same date though the new episodes are not on a identical schedule. I watch these generally when I'm alone or with my husband who likes to tease the shows until he sees something that makes his eyes go wide -- I like watching him watching it!
Thursdays: We do our "cultural" things on this evening so sometimes I am simply not around these evenings but I either DVR or watch these shows.
"Big Bang Theory" was a show I came late to when an acquaintance at a convention mentioned he wonder if my house was like the show in any way since I live with two scientists turned computer geeks... I gave it a try and yup, I could see of lot of them in some parts of the characters. The show has been wonderfully surprising to me because unlike many situation comedies this has both plot and character development that continues from one season to the next. The introduction of two more stable supporting female characters has been very welcomed by me because I feel more connected now to the show, I can see myself more often now in more of the characters.
"Once Upon a Time: Wonderland" is quite different from the series it spun off from. Oh, still a strong, central female character but this time the action just kicked right off and has barely taken a break. I watched this for two reasons: Loved the original and genie... love me some genie especially when it is "male" as anyone familiar with my story "Eternal Pain" can confirm I'm sure. I also like that we getting the same level of backstory for the major characters as I love with the original. This makes even the big bads relatable to me and that's important if I'm going to invest in a show over time.
"Elementary" was a trial show for us since we liked the new BBC "Sherlock" series but were disappointed with how short the seasons were. We gave it a try as a family and fell in love with the quirky characters and the boldness of making Watson a woman, one who can stand toe-to-toe with Sherlock. The guys strongly disagree with me but I hope that an unusual, unique romance might happen between the two main characters at some point.
Fridays: Half my monthly Fridays are spent with friends -- just me and my friends while the guys stay at home on their computers... I'm the "guy" in the house if you haven't figured that out yet!
"Dracula" is currently the only show I watch or DVR on this evening. Vampires... if it has vampires I have to give it a try (or robots, I have to give that a try to but for moral reasons I won't watch anything on FOX) and I was enticed by the first episode. So far I'm not disappointed and I hope it continues to develop and we start seeing more of this vampire culture that the big bad human group is afraid of. The basic underlining premise reminds me of John Carpenter's "Dracula" which twists some common ideas about the story.
Saturdays: Right now nothing on Saturdays has my attention. Normally I'd be on Syfy or BBC America but their current shows do not appeal to me. I'm waiting for "Doctor Who" to come back and something that looks more entertaining than lame to pop up on Syfy... but I'm not holding my breath for that.
So anyone watch any of these shows, too?
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