My TV Addictions

Right now, there are five shows that I watch all the time on cable:

1. Dollhouse
2. Dexter
3. Law and Order: Criminal Intent
4. Law and Order: Special Victims Unit
5. Jeopardy

My favorite show of all time, however, is Buffy, the Vampire Slayer. I like anything that's going to push the envelope and either be interesting visually or stylistically. There's only so far that plot can take a show; I want something original. That's why I liked the really short-lived Pushing Daisies (thanks, writer's strike). Was the writing or concept the best in the world? No, but I'd watch that show all the time to see what it was going to look like (reminded me a lot of the style of the movie Down With Love). I like sardonic humor and good writing, so I'm in for a Dead Like Me, Scrubs, or anything by Joss Whedon. I also like high camp (if it's mixed with aforementioned taste, humor, and good writing).

Which brings me to a show that I stumbled across while reviewing The Daily Beast today. A new show came out on Fox this past Tuesday. It's called Glee. I remember vaguely seeing a trailer for it in the last few months, but I totally had forgotten that it was coming out. It follows a Spanish teacher who is trying to not only start a family but also to revitalize his high school's Glee club. Mixed with a pretty standard mix of characters (the gay guy, the wheelchair kid, the diva, the entitled girl, and the jock who is also artistic), the show has great potential to flop. But, I think it might just make a go of it. Here's why:

Formulas like this happen because they're successful. We've seen this movie before, but that doesn't mean we're not open to seeing it in a new way. This show is CAMP-Y! In the first episode, we've got a teacher fired for flirting with a student, that same teacher becoming a drug dealer, a guidance counselor with OCD and a germ disorder, a rival glee club singing "Rehab," and they always fabulous Jane Lynch as the cheerleading coach spouting one liners like "You think this is hard? Waterboarding is hard!" and "You want to know about pain? I've got herpes!" while coaching her girls.

The show makes high school out to be a caste system with some wiggle room. Sure, the characters are two dimensional, but they're still fun. And if the writing stays good, I'm going to stay with it. Sure, it's not the best show I've ever seen, but it was good enough that my theatre training can't let go of a campy rendition of an Asian girl with a stutter singing "I Kissed a Girl" or the talented girl screaming "There is nothing ironic about show choir!"

And maybe there isn't, but I hope this show remains detached enough to stay true to what it is: entertaining fluff, not soul-wrenching fare. And Fox, having both Dollhouse and Glee has moved in my mind from the white trash network (which it still is with its American Idol 3000 and whatnot) to being semi-respectable for being willing to take a chance.

Update: Wtf, Fox? So, this was just the pilot teaser and Glee doesn't actually premiere until September? That's so...gay!