Welcome!

This blog is a combination of my deep belief in TV's artistic legitimacy and broad societal relevance as well as my self-centered desire to justify just how damn much of it I watch*. Sure, I'll go into the extent to which quickly-shifting power dynamics form the compelling backbone of modern televised drama, but my psyche also craves the comfort that comes with being able to call the 11 episodes of Game of Thrones I re-watched yesterday "research."

Anyone paying attention will recognize the extent to which TV is usurping film in the minds of serious watchers. Hollywood's seemingly never been more risk-averse in its movie output, leading to consistent slates of drivel that--unless you're a serious cinephile actively seeking non-mainstream content--often fails to satisfy savvy viewers or take us on serious emotional journeys. Meanwhile, TV is coming into its own in its second-ish decade of lessened content restrictions and increasingly convenient access. The streaming era has enabled nearly all of us to consume previously unheard of amounts of media. Because of this, and because it now means we consume on our own rather than predetermined timelines, often we miss out on the "water-cooler" moments around which so much TV-based bonding has traditionally occurred.

Yes, Reddit (as one example) houses many tremendous crowd-sourced information hubs, and for those who can't get enough of their favorite fictional worlds the 24-7 discussions they offer can be engrossing. But the lack of wholly thought-out writing--as opposed to mere comments, links, or unbacked theories--by contributors themselves can be disheartening. Not that I don't enjoy them for what they are, I simply crave a little more in my discussion. I long for the depth and intensity I get from the face-to-face convos I have with my biggest TV-nerd friends. I expect perspectives to be interesting and opinions to be thoughtfully backed. Since I currently lack a roving band of TV-nerds with whom to discuss these things at my whim, I'm hoping this space can function as something of a next-best-thing.

Above all this whole process is intended as a social venture, and that requires the input of readers like you. Please share posts you like, comment on any piece you see here with your thoughts, and MOST IMPORTANTLY feel free to submit content of your own! Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay informed of updates. You're already spending too much time watching shows, why not do it with us?


Jeff Neuman


* - Series I've marathoned in the last year-plus:

Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, Deadwood, Mad Men, House of Cards (most), Orange is the New Black, Game of Thrones, True Detective, Boardwalk Empire, Walking Dead (most), Arrested Development, Archer, Trailer Park Boys... more than a few others.

http://tiii.me/ - For the morbidly curious, this site will help you calculate how much of your life you've committed to television. I only counted shows I've watched as an adult and I stopped adding when I reached 93 days, 5 hours, and 34 minutes.