Steven O. wrote:
> I think you have a really interesting point here, but its
> applicability varies from show to show.
Many things I say vary in applicability. <g>
> -- X-Files clearly had a thread . . .
Times I watched it I always thought the style worked, but I did want
more results than it ever delivered.
> want to keep dragging on the show to make more money.
And the problem extends as the more "successful" shows go on longer.
> However, many, many dramas exist simply as a vehicle for telling
> good stories each week, without needing an overall, series-spanning
> thread. Most cop shows, lawyer shows, doctor shows are like that.
The situations are inherently continuous there -- the cops at the
station; the doctors in the ER &c. change, but there are always crimes
to solve and patients to treat. Times when <NYPD Blue> was only about
the crimes though got kinda boring after a while. We may also argue that
some of the replacement characters are not as compelling as the original
characters (and note that only the first two seasons of <Blue> are out
on DVD).
> West Wing ... episodes would often do a good job of picking
> up on the aftermath of earlier events (like the effects of Zoe's
> kidnapping on the Bartlett family).
And they actually are considering the consequences of the end of one
administration and the beginning of another (though by my count they may
be doing it a year early).
> "God must have had a solid reason to talk to Joan." I think it's a
> really penetrating point, and something that the show never fully
> addressed -- it was an implied question all along.
(Thanks) -- I figured the point was that she was being trained for some
situation to come. But as you go on to point out the situation which
arose at the end of this season seemed to come out of nowhere with
inadequate preparation (perhaps the loss of a friend was to say that
more would be lost in the upcoming fight -- but we'll never know).
> Joan is somehow incredibly gifted in affecting
> people, reaching them, touching them, kind of an Uber Social Worker.
> Actually what she is supposed to fix in this world... is up to her,
> not God.
Good point -- and again, unfortunately, we'll never know.
> sorry for being so long-winded about this
Reminds me about talks over fictional works I used to have in days
before internet access (now >I< date >my<self -- at least have someone n
Saturday nights . . .). I've always said that successful works are
worthy of extended discussion and this I think hold to that.
> show ultimately could have been, and should have been, about Joan's
> spiritual growth; whereas, the way the last episode played out, it
> looked like JOA was about to about become a shadow of Buffy The
> Vampire Slayer.
We'd come back in the fall to find that she'd taken a summer kung-fu
course? <g>
> but rather about a teenage girl discovering that she matters, and can
> move mountains with her spirit.
>
> It would have been much more subtle, but much more beautiful. It
> would also, I think, have been hopelessly beyond the comprehension of
> network executives. But I think it would have held the audience.
Can't add anything to this.
--
Jonathan Roberts * guitar, keyboards, vocals * North River Preservation
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To reach me reverse: moc(dot)xobop(at)ggestran
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