Nearly everyone who watches TV has a program they consider a guilty pleasure. Most of them aren’t even that guilty. And chances are, if you admit to it, someone nearby will sheepishly cop to watching as well. This is what keeps VH1 afloat these days.
TV is my entertainment of choice. I would much rather snuggle into my couch, remote in hand, than head out to a movie theater (seeing as most movies come to television some time or another, I just have to be a little patient to get the best of both worlds). I can usually find something to occupy my time, even at 3 AM. TV has gotten me through some rough times, including the extremely long night when I was on a business trip and my gall bladder decided to stage a revolt. Infomercials saved me that night.
And my love of television began with what many would call the guiltiest of guilty TV pleasures: soap operas. I think I watched my first episode at age 6, after my last day of kindergarten, eating lunch with my mom over Days of Our Lives. (I think it was one of Doug and Julie’s weddings.) That’s when my relationship with The Stories began.
Or maybe it was destined. I was named after the Julie of said show.
Over the years, I’ve watched just about every soap that’s been on the air at one time or another. I’ll tune into a wedding on any show, whether I’m actively watching or have never seen an episode (I’m a sucker for the corn, I have to say). I’ve had a subscription to Soap Opera Digest for as long as I can remember, just so I have the means to know what’s going on when I’m not able to tune in every day (which is pretty much all of the time). I considered getting the Soapnet channel a Mother’s Day 2007 gift.
Some of you are rolling their eyes at me right now. Why waste brain cells on such bottom rung entertainment? Don’t actors leave soaps for better opportunities? Don’t viewers? And yes, there have been many ludicrous plot lines, wooden actors, and pathetic lines of dialogue that can send even the most loyal viewer to change the channel (myself included).
But I have great respect for the medium. I see it as yeoman’s work in the entertainment industry. It’s not finite. I’m sure there are technically seasons, but I have no idea when one finishes and one starts, because they go on and on, year after year. There is no intended ending. So it’s very easy to establish a relationship with a soap. Even though they do some outrageous things, there are elements or characters or moments with which you can identify, that you can admire, that can infuriate, that get a reaction. I don’t think soaps were ever meant to truly reflect reality (I mean, come on, there are not that many evil twins out there), but an alternate world where the crazy, along with everything else, is heightened. And, if you really think about it, some of the crazy would be great if it could really happen, wouldn’t it?
How many times have you watched a movie, and at the end, really wanted to know what happened next? Or better yet, after watching the last episode of your favorite program for the season, that feeling that makes you want to throw your TV across the room because you have to wait X number of months to find out what’s next? The most I have to wait is a weekend. Excuse me while I go see who’s getting a new face this week.
No comments:
Post a Comment