Ramblings of a TV Addict

By Josh Brown

May Sweeps - Yays or Weeps

May sweeps are approaching at a rapid pace and that can bring mixed feelings to the surface. On one hand, almost all the shows on television will be new. Not only will they be new, they'll filled with great stuff in order to drive the ratings through the roof. Twists, turns, wild and crazy things that'll blow your mind, these are the things one can look forward to in any show anymore. This is, of course, a great thing for the viewers.

The down side to May sweeps, however, poses a more serious threat to the viewers of television. May sweeps also mark the end of the television season. Season finale after season finale will take place along with a large number of series finales. The ever-popular season finale cliffhangers will no doubt be out in full force this year.

Personally, I find a cliffhanger a major turn-off. Why would anyone want to force their loyal fans to sit through three agonizing months of waiting to find out what happens next? I find a season finale that wraps up the season as a whole and that plants seeds for the season to come much more satisfying.

What's worse is that movies are also starting to do this. With the Lord of the Rings trilogy I can understand this, since that was how the books were written. A year in between each movie is a long, long time though. How many people will go legally insane before the next movie comes out? Anyone want to wager?

The idea for the next two Matrix movies (last I heard) was to end the second one with a cliffhanger and release the third one a couple months later. This is a little better but I'd much rather have a movie 'left open' for sequels than set up with cliffhanger endings.

Random Observations

Angel the series is on fire this season. They've found their groove and they have done a tremendous job of telling a huge story over an entire season. With only five more episodes left there's a lot of buzz going around wondering what could possibly happen next. The last scene of the episode last Monday left millions of people across the United States staring at their television screen with jaws dropped.
Smallville has impressed me. I was worried about it in the beginning, but now I've heard they will be making it more continuous than episodic and they will be doing away with the weekly kryptonite monsters. This is something to hold on to for next season for sure.
The episodic format of CSI is great for me. This is a show that I truly do enjoy. The show comes on at a bad time for me, since I'm watching Charmed on a different channel. Anyone at any time could tune into this show and enjoy an episode without worrying about being lost. This is where I am when Charmed is a repeat.
Any Buffy fans out there? This has been one of the slowest seasons for Buffy the Vampire Slayer but things are about to turn around in some big ways. Tuesday the 23rd is the start of the final five episodes. Be sure to check them out.

That's all for me this week. If anyone has any shows they want me to ramble about or you have some topic recommendations, feel free to email me and let me know. I'll ramble on about any show or any topic. If there's something about the good-old boob tube that you were always curious about, let me know. And if I don't know the answers, I'll find them cause there's no doubt I'll want to know too!

Have fun and watch television!

Quote of the Week:

Giles (ruminating on why books are better than computers): "Smell is the most powerful trigger to the memory there is. A certain flower or a whiff of smoke can bring up experiences long forgotten. Books smell... musty and rich. The knowledge gained from a computer is... it has no texture, no context. It's there and then it's gone. If it's to last, then the getting of knowledge should be tangible. It should be, um... smelly."
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Season 1 - I Robot, You Jane