Like: Gen-u-ine Police.

This may sound inanely stupid, but I’ve actually rediscovered a sense of respect for police officers.

Many people have grown up with that sense of respect, but a good deal more fall into juvenile sentiment I Illustrated in the post below. It’s the typical suburban thing where they don’t see the actual service that Police provide the community. Kids just see annoying old jerks who are trying stop them from having fun. These kids also don’t see that they’re pretty lame… Of course, I was once one of those kids.

The other thing is we’ve lost what it truly means to be a police officer in the myriad of bullshit cop shows where you have to be psychic, or a genius, or a complete antagonistic retard, or David Caruso. They are all fake identities that has no bearing on real life and give no insight into what it means to be a good police officer. And people look at real gen-u-ine police and see them as not measuring up.

Being a true police officer, is a dignified position if there ever was one. It’s a genuine public service and one that suburban America has completely forgotten about.

Of course, the distractions for police officers are well-documented: the shift of focus from service to stat busting, bullshit drug rips, career-first thinking, racism, etc (and that’s what they are, distractions from doing the job right). The corruption of urban police forces is indeed a reality, but one that is vastly over-represented and over-suspected within the community. A suspicion that often can overshadow and even put limits on the effectiveness of said Police. (quick note, statistically/IA, the best police officers are African-American).

But to all the Gen-u-ine POlice who protect and serve and do their jobs to the best of their abilities, I thank ya kindly.

Like: That Consummate Young Bad-Ass Michael From The Wire was just cast in the new 90210

I will never be able to watch the new 90210 coming out and not think of Michael. They could have him dressed up and acting like Carlton from “Fresh Prince” and he’ll still be the little badass from the Wire with one of the most interesting, heartbreaking storylines I’ve ever seen.

But I’m glad he’s going on to do more work, even if he is going to be the token black actor on a show about rich white kids. He is a talented actor and should get more work. I love how the actors from The Wire are finally getting their due elsewhere. Maybe even earning a decent paycheck. Way to go kid.

Don’t Like: Law and Order/CSI

I have a pretty low tolerance for bad writing.

Like almost all shows of this nature, the first few seasons of this episodic were reasonably decent. The problem is the success of the cop/lawyer shows are almost entirely dependent on a continuation of effort otherwise the procedural gets way too repetitive. No matter how talented a writer you may be, if you don’t strive for something with authenticity (or as a backup, originality) then you’re doomed to inevitable boredom.

And Law and Order is doomed. I caught an episode recently while I was waiting for the Celtics game to start and my god, what an awful show. The whole “generic cop talk” stuff was mind-numbing. We’ve raised a generation of writers whose entire knowledge of police come from previous police television. It really shows. But due to the high volume of cop shows (and spin-offs) that do this, the stuff actually gets a pass. It’s inexcusable. God forbid you observe reality and get at something remotely interesting. I understand you have to contribute to the drama, but when has making no sense “added to the drama”? Seriously CSI could basically patent the non-sensical double twist.

Even worse, the CSI effect has had an awful effect on juries. They now expect dna and microfiber evidence in EVERY single case. This trend is rather well documented and police/prosecutors are absolutely furious. Not only are these shows annoying to watch, they’re crippling our justice system.

Fuck you bad writers.

And fuck you producers. You green-lighted a Law and Order spin off people simply refer to as “the rape show”.

… sigh

Oh well. I always have Homicide and The Wire.

Love: The Simpsons, Seasons 3-6

I’m not sure if there is anything, and I mean anything, better than the Simpsons Seasons 3-6.  The only things that might give competition are Season 4 of The Wire and Bacon.

Given the extreme difficulty of churning out a quality television product throughout a season, it’s really an extraordinary accomplishment. I love all the seasons for different reasons. Just recently I’ve gone back and watched Season 3 which I consider the height of the show in it’s orignal form. Great storytelling, sharp lines, and an emotional core. My girlfriend, who hadn’t seen any of the episodes from this season, cried at the end of every single one.  Repeat, every single episode. That’s the sign of sweet and touching series right there. Season 4 is often considered the greatest season and I’m not so sure. It’s certainly the funniest. Jaw-droppingly funny in every style of humor imaginable. But it was definitely when the show took off in a new direction. The references became more obscure and random, the grounding reality of the series was lost a bit, and the emotional core gave way to more humor. You can credit the new writers like Conan O’Brien with that turn. After that, David Mirkin came in to be the show runner for seasons 5 and 6 and kept the quality strong, blending the relative effectiveness of the seasons before.

Seasons 7-10 were still good. Quite good in fact. “Still the best show on Television” good. But, there was a noticable drop in quality. Homer was too willing to be a jerk. Narratives were pretty much done away with. When it was good, it was at marx brothers level, but when it wasn’t perfect it just seemed disjointed.

I’m also not going to jump on the bandwagon and say The Simpsons sucks now. Far from it. It’s still a very, very good television show (especially since Al Jean and Mike Reiss came back to run it). It’s just that most people’s sense of humor has evolved with time. It’s inevitable really. The geniuses of yesteryear become tired in comparison to the “new”. Look at all the people claiming that Family Guy is better than The Simpsons. That’s ridiculous, because it just seems more fresh. Family Guy had one good season and a few decent jokes, but you can barely consider it a show. It’s just a bunch of random animation centered around tangents. The Simpsons did cutaway jokes more effectively over a decade ago then got tired of them. Meanwhile Family Guy keeps trotting them out. It’s never even come close to the quality of the “golden age” of The Simpsons.

Then again, what is?

Love: The Wire

Best show in the history of Television. Hands down. (or at least from everything I’ve ever seen… which is a lot) I cannot recommend to you enough that you rent/buy/watch the first season. Don’t come in during the middle of it or god forbid the series finale which airs on Sunday. It’s the most enriching experience I’ve ever had as a viewer in my life. Please. Please watch the first season of the wire and give it 4 episodes. I promise you won’t be sorry. Thank you.