Monday, November 06, 2006

IT TOOK ME AWHILE BUT...

IT TOOK ME AWHILE, BUT …
     
I am a TV snob.  I have been known to decide whether a show is good or not before it ever airs and rarely do I change my mind.  Most of the time I will just ignore the show, some of the time I will give it a try, and only one try before I write it off.
     Occasionally I will watch more than one episode of a show I am determined not to like and come to the conclusion that I don’t like it at all, but at least I gave it a good college try.  (Hello “Soprano’s”.)
     Then sometimes I will be forced to watch a show, usually by my wife, and become hooked.  I’m thinking “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”
     On the odd occasion a friend will hook me on a show I wrote off.  That would be “Arrested Development.”
     And then, once in a very long while, I will give a show a second try and hook myself.
     And that bring me to what I believe may be the best show on television right now, and probably the best sci-fi show ever.
     Battlestar Galactica.
     I was a huge fan of both the original show and its spin off “Galactica 1980” back when I was a kid, and when Richard Hatch (he original Apollo) wanted to resurrect the show I was 100% behind him.  Especially when a second group decided it would be better to “re-imagine” the show for a modern audience.
     I was shocked and angry when the second group won.  I decided then and there to hate the new show.  And I hated it with an anger I usually hold for Oprah.
     And yet I was curious.  So when the original mini-series came out on DVD I purchased it.  Not at first, mind you.  It took the better part of a year and a major price cut before I committed this act of heresy.
     Even then it took me several more months before I dared watch it.
     And, probably to no one’s surprise, I hated it.
     In fact, I still hate it.
     While some of the mini grew on me, like to space battles that are filmed like they were done by newscasters, a lot of it still hits me wrong.  Why?  Because there were a hell of a lot of idea’s in there that needed the series to be realized, but since there was no commitment for a series when it was filmed it had to get shoved in to a four hour format.
     But now, having watched to series I get it.  I see the seeds that were planted have turned into beautiful flowers and I now cannot wait for the next episode to come.
     The characters, mere caricatures in the mini, are now fully realized.  The conflict, between the Cylons and themselves, is real and palpable.  Three seasons in and I no longer care about the original show.  I am now a convert.
     I could go into a lot of detail about the characters that I hated and now realize the point behind (Number Six, which in the mini acted like nothing more than a fantasy toy) and the additions that give it depth (politics, politics, politics), but that would take too long.  Just take it from me; Battlestar Galactica is most probably the best show on TV today.
     I still miss the robotic dog, though.

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?