MrTerrific

I can watch stuff at work.

If a show is good...I can watch for a long time. I've completely caught up on How I Met Your Mother and I'm still jonesing for more!

davidh777

Hope you're feeling better, MinLShaw. I have a friend with Crohn's and it's pretty tough.

jmsmath

I finished up Gilligan's Island: Season One yesterday and it really struck me how much things have changed. This season consisted of 36 episodes and the average episode length was probably 25 1/2 minutes. A network broadcast half hour season today usually contains 20-24 episodes that are 20-22 minutes long.

I also watched the unaired lost pilot which had a completely different feel to it. A different theme song (good but not the classic), a different professor, a different Ginger and Bunny instead of Mary Ann. Not a bad show, but I think the changes were made for the better.

Travis McClain

Thanks. I'm gettin' there.

Last call for Trivia Questions, Round Two answers!

Drawing will be conducted soon.

Travis McClain

The second post in the list thread is now dedicated to compiling the trivia questions and answers. Which reminds me...

The Math Goodies Random Number Generator has smiled upon tarfrimmer as the winner of Amazing Stories - The Complete First Season. Congratulations!

The answers, incidentally:

1. L.A. Law was the first television series to feature a kiss between two women.
2. Johnny Olson was the announcer for the pilot episode of Family Feud. Gene Wood was the first regular series announcer. I accepted either answer.
3. Brad Bird wrote and directed the Amazing Stories episode, "Family Dog."

Round Three to follow soon!

tarfrimmer

Awesome! Thank you!

I really loved Amazing Stories when it first aired and I'm quite looking forward to revisiting it.

Fist of Doom

Lost again.

Congrats, tarfrimmer, that's a really cool prize.

Travis McClain

Yesterday, my wife and I flaked out with Psych The Complete Fourth Season. We made it through the first two discs in what seemed like no time, plus the assorted deleted scenes, gag reel and "Psychouts." After coming from House, M.D. Season Five, which featured a singular audio commentary, I was stunned to discover video commentaries for all four episodes on Disc One, plus a pair of audio commentaries, as well. That's six commentaries for four episodes! Disc Two wasn't as generous (two video, one audio), but still exceeds the House set for bonus material.

GoldenWheels

Your prize went out priority mail this afternoon, I expect you will see it this week. Congrats!...I have fond memories of this series myself.

Rich

BobO'Link

I took a break from the Sci-Fi 150 ep. box set yesterday to complete S3 of Twilight Zone - 13 episodes. Yeah... it's not *too* much of a break...

I'm currently watching the last disk of that set. It has the serial "Radar Men from the Moon" and 3 episodes from "Captain Fathom". "Captain Fathom" is another of those "Syncro-Vox" cartoons like "Clutch Cargo" and "Space Angel". It, too, has Alex Toth designs/artwork so it should be fairly watchable. Unlike others, I somewhat enjoyed "Clutch Cargo". "Space Angel" is one I watched as a kid and I had a "Space Angel" coloring book, so it holds a special nostalgic place. I thought it held up very well considering the limited animation and "Syncro-Vox" technique. Of course, there are those Alex Toth designs/artwork...

Travis McClain

Just went back for the lone commentary track on House, M.D. Season Five (the episode, "Locked In"). I wonder why they even bothered, as it is dull and unenlightening. I expected, coming from the writers, more story insight. It opens promisingly enough, with a discussion of how an episode of M*A*S*H discouraged them from bothering with a story told from the patient's perspective. Then it quickly devolves into what amounts to a private conversation awkwardly constructed to give the listeners way into it. It doesn't really work, and the nearly monotonous tones of the three(!) voices doesn't help at all.

At least I can definitively mark off that box set from my "to watch" list!

kstublen

It's funny just how much TV you can watch without having to worry about commercials. Granted, I woke up really early this morning, but I've watched 20 "TV Hours" today. In "Normal Hours" though, it's only about 13. When you think about it, it's actually kind of funny...7 hours worth of commercials. Sounds pretty bad when you hear it like that.

Travis McClain

I also find it interesting to see an episode without all the channel graphics all over the screen. TV episodes seem more dramatic, more urgent this way. Seeing an episode on DVD really illustrates how conventional TV advertising detracts from and even demeans the artistic merits.

To wit, I just finished watching the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, "I Borg" from the Fan Collective - Borg compilation. I've always known it to be a poignant--if a bit heavy-handed--episode, but wow. Seeing it without being inundated with car ads and alerts for what's coming on next let me really get sucked into it.

tonyc3742

Agreed. By the time you take out commercials, credits, and opening/closing themes, watching TV on DVD is a much more efficient process.

I hope no one was offended by my question - I certainly understand how employment or health issues [hope you're feeling better, MinL] can free up lots of time and create a reason for wanting to immerse yourself in a series [or more than one] [and I definitely understand the demoralizing job search - my wife has been looking for full time work for a couple of years now]. I was just curious about other people's situations.

I do find, quite often, that one episode usually turns into at least two, unless I'm just outright falling asleep. For unrealistic shows or cartoons, I'm settled into the universe and have suspended disbelief; for arcing shows, I want to see what's coming next. It's really difficult to believe "Stay tuned next week for the conclusion" was the way we used to watch all these things.

This is a good point: "If the episodes don't really have a connection, the binge watching can get tedious" - with hindsight, I agree. If they're connected, it's actually more difficult to stop watching, but if they're not connected, after 2 or maybe 3 episodes [of a half hour show] I'm done, and feel a little guilty about having watched them, whereas that's not the case with connected shows.

It's funny multiple people have mentioned Buffy. For some reason I paused a while back while rewatching the series, I've picked it up again today. I like the Mayor. I still like Spike, but I'm ready for Angel to leave.

Anyway, thanks for your input, I was just curious, and this is the discussion thread, right?

Travis McClain

Spot on. It's a bit jarring going from a night of House, M.D. (medical drama) to a night of Psych (comedic fake psychic detective). It's far more pronounce to leap into a handful of Star Trek: The Next Generation, where all of a sudden I'm looking at Levar Burton wearing a VISOR. By watching several episodes at a time, though, I'm fairly settled into the given milieu by the end of the second episode. It makes it easier to just "go with it."

Quite right! Thanks for the questions; they've certainly given us a running topic and one that I'd anticipated being relevant to this challenge. There was quite a lot of debate about what the nature of this challenge really was when it was first proposed--especially the role of various formats for the TV medium, including DVD. I think that committing to a season at a time of a given series really underscores what the DVD format has done for TV viewing in a lot of ways, and it's this kind of exploration that is key to this challenge.

JOKipper

It's amazing how much work was put into making a full season in those days. It was usual for a 30-minute show to have 39 episodes up to the early '60s; and as you pointed out, the episodes ran at least 25 minutes. It's hard to imagine such a schedule these days.

It's also hard to imagine that some network executives actually knew what they were doing back then (as compared to today)! Many of their post-pilot changes were for the better. I agree about Gilligan's Island pilot, and I also think the changes from the Star Trek pilot(s) were for the better.

Travis McClain

This touches on another issue that I find myself arguing regularly regarding movies and the auteur theory, and that's the collaborative nature of this kind of storytelling. I think it's easier to dissect a television series and see how many different people play a key role in shaping the final product, from the producers (Norman Lear comes to mind immediately) to actors and writers, etc.

M*A*S*H may not have been Alan Alda's creation, but who could imagine it without him? The influence he wielded on the show--especially in the later seasons--is easy to spot. It may have differed from the source material by Richard Hooker, but I think it was ultimately right for the series. How else can anyone explain a TV series set during a war being so popular at a time when anti-war sentiment ran so high? It's because the show humanized the inhumanity of war, and then used that context to really scrutinize rather than glorify the impact that combat has on people.

Travis McClain

Just wanted to give a shout-out to llandros for a great formatting job in the list thread. I've never been able to figure out how to set up a table on here before, and I hope you don't mind but I totally stole your code configuration and modified it for my own post.

BobO'Link

It's primarily those 2 reasons that I get my TV "fix" from DVD 90% of the time. The other 10% is devoted to sampling a new series or something on TLC, History, Travel, or Food Network with the occasional foray to TCM (but as it's uncut and "commercial free" I don't really count it as TV as much). Not only that but I'm a much better programmer of what I like than any one else!

lisadoris

So I just finished season 2 of Seaquest and it seems that each season was an almost completely different show. Season 1 was science fiction (emphasis on the science), season 2 was more fantasy, and season 3 was more military/shoot-em-up. Though the show got progressively worse, I still hope they release the third season on DVD eventually.

Travis McClain

I watched the show during its first run, but missed a lot of it for one reason or another. I remember sometime in the late 90s the Sci-Fi Channel (now SyFy) reran seaQuest and I gorged on it. The change in tenor from season one to two had a lot to do with Lois & Clark; it was felt that a younger, sexier cast was needed for the show to compete with ABC's soap version of Superman. Also, I remember Roy Scheider interviewed in TV Guide after the first season, talking about how he wanted to see the show place an emphasis on more adventurous, fantastic stories and not be so routine. I personally thought he was right. I missed Royce Applegate and Stacy Haiduk, though.

Also, I have to say I really liked what Michael Ironside brought to the show as Captain Hudson. Maybe it's because I grew up with Top Gun, but I totally bought him in the role and I kind of liked the contrast between his demeanor and that of the more relaxed Scheider.

Lastly, I've always wanted to ask: Did John Debney's theme rip off the original Battlestar Galactica? I never watched BSG, but I've heard the theme and it struck me as way too similar for happenstance.

llandros

No problem! I'm glad you liked it and could use it for your own!

I'm gorging on a prison theme this month - don't know what that says about me but loving it so far! Prison Break was fun if just a bit too far-fetched in places - didn't expect that ending though! And as for Oz, what a complete shift in tone!!

Travis McClain

Same rules as before: You must respond with correct answers to all three questions to be eligible for the random drawing. Previous prize winners are ineligible. I will accept responses until midnight Thursday (13 January), and draw for the winner on Friday (14 January). This time, you're trying to win:


1. Batman premiered on this day in 1966 on ABC. Who was the guest villain (actor and character)?

2. Captain Z-Ro was originally produced in 1951 at which San Francisco television station?

And, tying into the prize...

3. Which famed horror writer scripted two episodes of Tales from the Darkside?

jmsmath

I finished The Best of Arli$$ last night and throughly enjoyed it. I've never had HBO, so they were all new to me and I'm sure that along with being a huge sports fan added to my enjoyment. Well worth the $3 I spent on it at Big Lots some time ago. I was quite surprised when I learned this is the only DVD release for this series. Season sets have never been released.

Travis McClain

Just wanted to note that it's nearing 9:30 my time and I have 11 respondents to the trivia question. If you want a crack at winning Tales from the Darkside - The First Season, you'll want to PM your answers soon! If you're not on this list, then I did not receive your PM:

1. Dr. Phibes
2. jmsmath
3. That'sAllFolks
4. shellebelle
5. llandros
6. dtcarson
7. acubfaninmd
8. Mister Peepers
9. tellybox
10. Dimension X
11. Jeffy Pop