The Best SciFi on Television

Having spent my formative years during a time when Star Trek had multiple shows running, my view of scifi was significantly influenced by it. For me, the future was supposed to be filled with humans and aliens working side by side while computers would take care of all the mundane paperwork. In fact, I can't recall seeing a single sheet of paper in any of the post Star Trek: TNG shows.

Standing in stark contrast is the future painted by the television show Battlestar Galactica. The Cylons, a race of humanoid robots created by Man, are the arch-nemesis of humanity and given the nature of their creation have a knack for messing with computer systems. Thus, paper abounds and even the most basic computer systems are treated with suspicion.

Being a fan of scifi television I'd heard many things about the show and had even tried watching a few episodes, albeit without any knowledge of the characters or their back story. It never caught my interest. But after starting work at Revolution, I quickly discovered that many of my geek colleagues were not only fans of the show, but downright passionate about it with some even downloading it to their iPods and watching it during their daily Metro commute.

On a leap of faith, I asked for season one on DVD for Christmas and by the time New Years rolled around I had finished it. This was an addiction I was not prepared for. Season two followed a few weeks later and then season three and finally Razor. In just a little over a month, season four will finally be debuting and I for one can hardly wait.

'Drawn Together' is filthy, disgusting and absolutely hilarious

Having been an avid watcher of South Park for some time, I am surprised I did not stumble across this show earlier. I had always considered South Park to be somewhat of a guilty pleasure, especially with episodes like Fat Butt and Pancake Head and Bloody Mary. But upon my first viewing of Drawn Together I knew that I had never seen anything quite like this.

First, the cast of characters is quite diverse. In terms of animation styles, they range from the 1920s black and white cartoons to the two-dimensional graphics common to Flash videos. And as for personality types, they range from uber-gay to uber-conservative. Inspired by the mind numbing reality shows on TV, this production violates every taboo of modern society (and not just American society) in garnering its laughs.

Last night's episode was about Clara's hentai-ish vagina and her desire to get an "extreme makeover" ala Ty Pennington's show on ABC. Disgusting as this may sound, last week's show about Xandir coming out to his parents and how they would respond was even worse. While play-acting the possible consequences of his decision, he ends up in a house of ill repute servicing perverted Japanese businessmen, eventually killing one by accident that was underneath the shitting table he was squatting over. If you don't understand the last part of that sentence then please, don't concern yourself with it. It is a revolting thought.

But it's also damned funny. Not gay cartoon characters killing people with shattering shitting tables but the fact that traditional celluloid animation has been used to convey such a perverted act. By some small miracle, the same medium that entertained me as a child with shows like Transformers can still keep my attention, albeit with productions of a more depraved nature. Here's to many more seasons of Drawn Together and their lewd form of humor.

Edward Murrow's dream fulfilled

Having recently seen a viewing of Good Night, and Good Luck I was impressed by the passion and diligence with which Edward R. Murrow, host of the show See It Now which is often credited with helping to bring down Joseph McCarthy, approached his job. After revolutionizing radio broadcast journalism during WWII, he went on to develop CBS's television news services. But it was during the McCarthy hearings that Murrow's genius really shined.

Nearly every school age child in this country knows of the dangers of "McCarthy-ism". It is synonymous with the Salem witch trials yet even today people of influence make unabashed accusations against those who they disagree with. They do this without even a shred of evidence yet they have audiences numbering in the millions and it is this blind faith in that bright box that sits in our living room that Edward Murrow warned us about.

In one of his most famous speeches, Mr. Murrow told the members of the RTNDA convention in Chicago in 1958 about the dangers of filling the airwaves with simple minded programming. His show, though not the highest in the ratings, nevertheless performed a valuable duty by giving Americans a larger view of the world around them. People might forget what the question was a few hours after watching The $64,000 Question but it would be hard to erase the memory of Joseph McCarthy publicly humiliating innocent Americans to satisfy his own personal lust for power. Education and enlightenment were Murrow's goals and he achieved them beautifully.

Unfortunately the major networks were not along for the ride. They preferred the moneymaking shows, the sure bets, the kinds of shows that didn't strain Americans' comfort levels or push them intellectually. Fortunately for Americans, technology doesn't stand still. In 1985, the Discovery Channel first aired and since then television hasn't been the same. It has been joined by other educational channels such as the History Channel, the National Geographic Channel and my personal favorite for world issues, the Discovery Times Channel.

On the future of television Edward Murrow had this to say:

"This instrument can teach, it can illuminate; yes, and it can even inspire. But it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is merely wires and lights in a box. There is a great and perhaps decisive battle to be fought against ignorance, intolerance and indifference. This weapon of television could be useful."

But before enlightening television can be appreciated, it first requires the use of Man's greatest tool, his brain. So even if all three networks were to air educational and political shows 24/7 I don't think it would do much good unless people actually wanted to see it. Thankfully in today's age we now have that choice.

Detective Robert Goren, modern-day superhero

Superheroes amaze our senses and make us question what's possible. Detective Robert Goren, the star character of Law & Order: Criminal Intent is no different. He makes intellectually Herculean tasks look like child's play. From the very first episode where he connected a suspect's sexual habits to their need for control to his colossal battles with arch-nemesis Nicole Wallace, Goren is constantly observing and putting together the puzzle that will eventually solve the crime.

But with this highly developed ability comes some peculiar habits. For one, there is the famous "head-cock" which is employed in nearly every episode and to great effect. It allows him to get in the suspect's face without having to come down to their level. And his penchant for stopping mid-sentence while digesting a new piece of evidence causes everyone to look in his direction in an attempt to glean any information from whatever new insight has just come across. These habits may put off those unfamiliar with his style but to his immediate colleagues they have become endearing.

The famous Goren "head-cock"

There is no doubt that the fictional streets of New York are safer thanks to this police detective's hard work and dedication. But without that uncanny instinct for deciphering a case, the sense that guides him down the true path to solving a crime, he would be just another member of the Major Case Squad. Hats off to Dick Wolf for creating a superhero that lives and breathes as we do.

Close Encounters of the Third Post

I remember reading somewhere a few years ago when blogging was all the rage that on average a blogger only posted twice before losing interest and moving onto something else. Twice is precisely the number of posts I made at my previous blog attempt before losing interest. But I am determined that this time will be different. It seems that I'm thinking about this blog all the time. Whether I am at work, driving or at home playing Counter Strike, I am thinking about what I could write about in my blog. Tonight I got some real inspiration so here goes nothing.

First off, I love the DVR. Some might know this technology better as TiVo but for all intents and purposes, DVR is a step ahead. It works interchangeably with your cable provider so that the same box you record shows on is the same one you can order movies from. I've taken advantage of this fact several times and my cable company has proven to be an excellent provider.

So knowing that I use the DVR for everything I'm going to also let you in on the fact that I never watch commercials. If I have to wait an extra 20 minutes to watch a show without interruption then I'll do it. I've come to absolutely despise commericals. Most of them lack any value whatsoever and I figure that I get bombarded with enough commercials as it is surfing the web.

Tonight I saw the two-hour Law and Order: Criminal Intent movie and was absolutely blown away. It had suspense, storyline and more. And just when I thought it couldn't get any better, guess who walks in: Colm Meaney. In case you aren't a huge Star Trek fan like myself, that's Miles O'Brien of TNG/DS9 fame. But my obsession for Star Trek can be saved for another blog entry.

Anyways, so Colm Meaney walks in and his character is a complete 180° from those that I remember him in. He is a salacious and repulsive character, absolutely disgusting. But he played it so well that after the show, it was difficult to imagine him as the mild-mannered Chief Engineer of Deep Space Nine. But without giving too much away, let me just say that it was a great episode and that without DVR I would have a lot more time on my hands to write in my blog.