TV

I have noticed that there is a rise on television shows becoming more cinematic. Certain networks, like the popular HBO, has been making their shows with long running series and episodes. These shows have great detail and time put into creating them. Does it keep audiences interested to keep long running shows on their network rather than showing one or a series of movies? Or is the only thing that matters their popularity and fanbase?

Last night I watched the series premiere of Minority Report, based off the film with Tom Cruise from 2002. Tonight I watched the series premiere of Limitless, based off the film with Bradley Cooper from 2011. I have to say that Limitless is better, but that still doesn't change the fact that suddenly all these films are becoming shows. What is up with that? They cancel great shows after a season or less just so they can make shows based off movies that were only semi-successful? Not to mention I heard that The Mortal Instruments failed movie is becoming a show called Shadowhunters to premiere next year.

Is it the content? Both films turned shows that aired this week are futuristic about either preventing crimes before they happen or taking a pill that opens up a person's entire brain. What is it about these two ideas that the entertainment world feels the need to bring them back and expand? Or is it more to do with the idea of reboots? Taking a failed idea and revitalizing it? Or taking a premise that has been forgotten and rediscovering it? Are there any original ideas left? Were there ever or are all stories pieced together from past projects?

Discuss the pros and cons of 20 episode seasons of classic sitcoms like Friends, New Girl, and Brooklyn Nine Nine, and compare them to 10 episode seasons with concise arcs, like Silicon Valley and Veep. Do you like your sitcoms fluffy or real? Fun filler episodes or side-splitting cliffhangers?

After recently finishing Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and being a long time fan of shows like Supernatural, Smallville, True Blood, and Grimm, I think it'd be really interesting to see how much these shows borrow from one another. Smallville feels very heavily Buffy inspired, while Supernatural and Angel share a lot of similar plot lines and character traits. These thriller/horror genre'd shows also feature many of the same writers, producers, and actors. I guess these shows can only produce so much original content.

With the rise of awareness of transgendered individuals, a wide look at transgender representation on television could show how the definition of their cultural identity has changed, and how it can still improve. Consider to what extent "freak show" portrayals (a trans person as an oddity or comic relief) have been the bulk of trans portrayal in the past and how that is evolving.

Possible inclusions: Denise Bryson (Twin Peaks character), RuPaul's Drag Race, the media coverage of Caitlin Jenner, the new trans character on Sens8, Jazz Jennings (a young trans model doing a national ad campaign for Clean & Clear).

This could also be done with examples from movies, and be a topic for the Movie section. Buffalo Bill (Silence of the Lambs), The Crying Game, and Better Than Chocolate come to mind.

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Many sitcoms are driven by characters with strong personalities, stronger so than might be encountered in real life. These characters are often faced with difficulties episode to episode that deal with them conquering or at least examining said personalities. Pride in oneself and wanting to retain one's unique personality is an interesting concept to explore in the leads of sitcoms. An examination of how pride drives main characters, from Sheldon on "Big Bang Theory" to Jerry on "Seinfeld", would be a most interesting article. Specifically focusing on how much pride is apparent in sitcoms, and how characters, while retaining a general personality learn lessons about themselves and are or are not willing to change would be interesting in a broader look at deconstructing sitcoms as a genre, and perhaps looking too at how Hollywood presents these characters which have stereotypically been associated with the film/tv industry, even in its own works. In short, how does pride affect sitcom leads, how do they struggle with it, is there a message about it that is being constantly presented by the show creators, and is its prevalence unique in these kinds of shows? Looking at different sitcoms, the specific situations within each and the similarities based on the character stories per episode or over a period of time will all be helpful in exploring this idea. Is the sitcom all about prideful characters learning humility and/or the aspect of pride in themselves and how to deal with it when faced with alternate scenarios where their way of thinking isn't the best option?

I'm curious as to what others think about some of these popular paranormal type shows that air on T.V. Some would be Ghost Hunters, Long Island Medium, Ghost Adventures, The Haunting Of…, etc. Personally, I enjoy these shows whether or not they're legitimate, mostly because of the very human aspects included. For example, the cast of Ghost Adventures are entertaining simply because of their personalities. But the questions I have are, how much is real, and does it even matter?

MJ will always be greater than Kobe and Lebron, even if they became 1 super player. True detective season 1 was way better than season 2. It seems that no matter what subject is being discussed, whatever happened first will always seem better, and as a loophole if your losing the argument, the original was groundbreaking and a trailblazer to everything else. How can we learn to enjoy the newest experience like the older ones?