The Naked Now
When FOX allowed Joss Whedon an intellectual property blank check so that he could create Firefly, his vision was profoundly unique and decidedly un-Star Trek. The Alliance, Whedon’s Starfleet equivalent, is portrayed as unwanted big government, both bumbling and oppressive. Gene Roddenberry’s starship crews were harmonious visions of a utopian future while the crew of the Serenity must struggle to get along and to survive. No replicators there. Perhaps that’s why Firefly (and also Star Trek’s own DS9) is part of my beloved television show pantheon. It took something I understood very well, and showed me a different way to look at it, and, rather than railing against my established conventions, I embraced the new layers that allowed me to love more deeply.
Now what does that have to do with The Naked Now, a terrible episode of television that I bid you not to watch?
Encounter at Farpoint: Parts 1 & 2
Image via Wikipedia
There’s no way to pin down the exact date in time where I first saw an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Likewise, there’s no way to quantify the day I moved from seeing an episode for the first time and becoming a Star Trek fan. Twenty years ago, a nice round number and as good a guess as any, I was nine years old. I would have wrapped up fourth grade, a year of intense bullying and not entirely coincidental first signs of academic faltering—the worst year of my young life. TNG was wrapping up its fourth season and had just wrapped up arguably its best season ever. It was officially established as a worthy successor to the original and already stood on its own as one of the best science fiction shows of all time. We were meant for each other.
Like many real stories of true love TNG and I did not immediately find each other. Our start was rather auspicious in fact, like trying onion rings for the first time—it takes time to establish how great is the good and how awful is the bad. Perhaps my ability to overcome my first experience with TNG it is proof of just how drawn to the show I was.
I remember distinctly walking into the family TV room, an adult show on the TV, my father in his chair. My queries were answered patiently, I learned the show’s title, and maybe I gleaned some concept of… concept. Whatever I first learned as my dad explained Star Trek to me was short lived. My first viewing was cut very short. The episode on the screen was a repeat from season one, the infamous Conspiracy, and I had just stepped into the scene most infamous. Moments into my first viewing of Star Trek, a man was ripped apart by phaser fire, exposing an alien bug living in his exploded torso. I left the room, shaken.
That was expensive
Worth at least two looks.
We watched a full year of Conan in good ol' 525. Mikey, Chrispy, JJ, and myself. If school work wasn't done by then, tough luck grades, we had more important things to do.
Ponder This – Issue 3.0
Another One Bites The Dust: How can every show that I am a fan of be cancelled? I swear, if you are trying to start a successful show in Hollywood, don't let me know about it, because if I start to watch it and enjoy it, it will essentially be automatically cancelled. When it comes to shows and their success, I am like a black cat walking over a broken mirror on Halloween. I am the worst luck for good shows, and I usually seal their fate as a short-lived show.
I'm only complaining about this because on Friday I became aware that one of the only shows I watch, Dirty Sexy Money, is getting booted by ABC. The ratings are low for the show, which is about a lawyer and the dysfunctional family that he works for, who happen to be the richest family in New York City. It is not the coolest show I've ever watched (that distinction belongs to LOST,) but it was enjoyable, the characters were outrageous and entertaining, and that's why I watch television, to be entertained.
This is only the latest addition to the long list of shows that have been cancelled that I have been a fan of. In 2004, Life As We Know It, a show about high schoolers becoming adults and dealing with the issues that go along with that, was cancelled after 13 episodes. In 2005, Commander In Chief, a show about the first female President, was cancelled after 19 episodes. In 2007, The Black Donnellys, a show about black Irish brothers living in New York City was cancelled after 14 episodes. Also in 2007, and this one really hurts, was Journeyman, a show about a man who randomly traveled through time. Each episode he would either go back in time or forward and solve a problem that fate entrusted to him. And now, Dirty Sexy Money will be on that list in the coming weeks.
This may look like I watch a lot of shows, but when they continually get cancelled, I have to trudge along and test out new ones that possibly will replace the fallen show. I think I'll just become a poet, or a farmer, and get the hell away from television. However, that day won't come until LOST (the only bright spot in my dark history of television fandom,) stops showing up on my screen.
Heath’s Twitter
- Sports are stupid. They make me mad. And that's stupid. 4 hours ago
- Aaaaah, who am I? This is not what I do!! http://t.co/1G1wt9Rp 2 days ago
- Watching NOVA always reminds me of my dad. Half of what I know in this world was learned Tuesday nights at 9. 4 days ago
