Me and T.V.

It's been years since I've watched anything consistently. Oh, sure, right after high school as shows like "Beverly Hills 90210" and "Dawson's Creek" entered into syndication I found myself strangely paying a bit more attention to the goings on with the likes of Brandon, Dylan, and those crazy kids in Capeside. But, other than that, my television watching has been fairly hit and miss. Part of it has had to do with what I'd consider the total decline of quality programming on T.V. and the overt rise of reality programming. It seems all we can find now on the little box is shows detailing "real life" this, and "real life" that. It's obviously not a new trend but is something that's been on my mind this morning so, well, I'm sharing.

All that said, however, I may have found a chink in the armor that is television. They've been offering up schlock to us ever since the fine, fine shows "Seinfeld" and the Chris Elliott vehicle, "Get a Life", took their curtain call but now it seems the voices of the people have been heard. We have demanded T.V. worth watching and (again, this is not new! In fact, I'm way late on the bandwagon here!) those pesky execs have finally dug up something that I'll invest an hour of my time in to be entertained. "What are these exciting shows?" you ask. Well, I'll tell you.

The first show is a nifty little story about a man dealing with the world of karma. Having lived a hard life taking from a whole bunch of people and having them fall on hard times due to his actions, he has turned over a new leaf and is on a mission to make amends for the wrongs he's done. Entitled, "My Name is Earl", the NBC program has some very cool elements working for it. First, it's quirky enough to be different from the nine million other sitcoms optioned elsewhere. Second, it actually has a good message and a good concept. This, if you've roamed the airwaves at all, is at a premium right now.

The second show, ironically, follows "Earl" in NBC's coveted Thursday night lineup and features quickly rising star, Steven Carell. The show is "The Office", based upon a UK series that's been converted for our particular American tastes. What is so compelling about this show? I'm not really sure other than the fact that I think we can all identify with the characters therein. We've all worked with an overbearing boss who tries to be our friend and be the "woo hoo" guy in the organization. We've all had the creepy, weird guy who was second in command and really wanted to just work that power. We've all dealt with some sense of interoffice mediocrity and have wondered in futility if this is just as good as it gets. It's comedy at it's best.

So, if you're like me and have been living under a rock for longer than you'd care to admit, drag yourself out of the hole, grab a shower and a shave, and check out these shows. If anything, you'll smile for a few episodes!