Collegiate Times

Image: 2012-11-08 23:11:26

He said

Before this past year, I never would have considered myself a big TV guy. For the first 20 or so years of my life, I had always enjoyed reading and movies much more than television show, which you have to watch week in and week out to make sure you don’t miss any major happenings. That phase of my life ended when I started watching the show Dexter.

I was gripped by its dark humor and plot twists. Soon came Game of Thrones, followed by Sons of Anarchy and now Grimm. I was pleasantly surprised by the number of great stories that were so readily available at the click of a button.

I’ve got to admit, though, it is exhausting watching all those shows. Trying to keep up with that many characters on a personal level is tough. Because of Hulu, I usually just wait and watch my shows in a one day stretch on Friday, back to back to back. I laugh, I cry. It’s an emotional roller coaster. But it’s a good emotional roller coaster because all of those shows are intriguing and (somewhat) thought provoking.

At this point I like to consider myself as something of a TV aficionado. Hopefully, my familiarity will spare you having to experience miserable 30-minute segments of your life whenever you want to try a new show.

Alas, with good comes evil, and along with my discovery of great television, I’ve also discovered some shows that are less than satisfactory. This summer, my roommates got in the habit of watching “House Hunters” and “Property Brothers” on HGTV. I don’t know what drove grown men  to watch young couples visit different houses along the East Coast, but I hope it never affects me.

Every time HGTV comes on, I feel like I’m at my grandmas house, because that was literally the only channel she ever watched. I’m not sure if the shows are bad, or if it is still a negative connotation from when I was seven, but if HGTV is on I have to leave the room.

I’m going to go ahead and be judgmental and say that both Pretty Little Liars and Gossip Girl are bad. I’ve never seen either (thankfully), and I’m sure my esteemed she said counterpart will probably write an expose on how watching these two shows should be mandatory and I’m a sexist pig, but I stand by my comment. If the commercials are annoying, the show is bound to be (i.e. the recent Presidential election).

That’s really all I’ve got. All shows are still stories, and stories aren’t automatically bad if they aren’t Harry Potter; they’re just mediocre. The same is true with television; not every show is going to be a Sons of Anarchy, but that doesn’t make it a Gossip Girl. But now, armed with the knowledge of the very best and worst shows on television, grab the remote, kickback and watch a story unfold before your very eyes.

Who knows, you may end up being pleasantly surprised.

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A version of this article appeared in the Nov 9 issue of the Collegiate Times.