By Helen Lacey
I don't get to watch much television. With my writing, my day job, a husband, three horses, three dogs, two cats and an elderly parent (plus a sizable extended family), time often seems to be in short supply and if I do have any I generally prefer to read or spend as much time writing as I can. But there are a few shows I love....
- Big Bang Theory....I love the banter between the characters and it always makes me smile, much like Frasier or MASH have done in the past.
- Supernatural....okay, I'm a girl and a huge Dean Winchester fan. And because there's often a humorous element to the storylines, it really can't be taken all that seriously.
- Air Crash Investigation....yeah, I have a somewhat morbid curiosity about this show, but can't seem to help myself listen as they go through the clues to find out the how's and the why's of the crashes.
- Bold And The Beautiful....half an hour of tossing hair and deep sighs and cued pauses....what's not to love? But I don't get to see this much as it's on during the day, so I catch maybe one episode a week (and can still follow the storylines....go figure)
- Downtown Abbey.... I did watch this until they killed off poor Matthew Crawley...my heart it seems is forever broken and I haven't quite summoned the heart to try again. So it probably shouldn't be on the list, but I liked it enough to give it a plug.
Now, a week ago I gave in to all the hype and peer pressure and watched the first two episodes of Game Of Thrones....then I made a teeny comment on Facebook and people came out of the woodwork to tell how wonderful it was. Alas, I didn't find it so. The murder, rape, incest, betrayal, animal mutilation....to name just a few things....well, they kind of disturbed me and I felt like I was having a minor panic attack the whole time I watched the show. I was on edge and uncomfortable for the entre duration. And yes, I've never been one for graphic violence - I'd much rather watch When Harry Met Sally than The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. And I read mostly contemporary romance or biographies, although I love Austen and devour any BBC adaption of any of her books. Murder and mayhem aren't generally my cup of tea - unless is wrapped up in a Sci-Fi movie, al-la Terminator or Start Trek. But as a writer I am interested in plot and characters and storytelling. So I tried with this show. And failed in spectacular fashion. Much to the despair and outrage of several of my friends. I was looking for a hero in the two episodes I watched, and couldn't find one - someone redeemable - but he or she never came. And the violence put me off because it seemed unrelenting.
So, did I bail too soon after just two episodes? Probably. And since my husband just bought the first couple of seasons of Sons Of Anarchy, I think I'm about to do the same thing again.
Have you ever bailed on a TV show or a book? Or walked out on a movie at the cinema?
Love to hear about it if you have.
But I love the total immersion and can see why series are popular both in TV form and now, latterly, in book form. It's nice these days not to have to wait until next week for the next episode, although it can mean a few late nights when you stay up for 'just one more episode' (Yeah, we do that a lot).
