As a TV blogger, I feel an obligation to post and comment on the winners from Sunday night’s fabulous Golden Globes press conference. There is a small problem with that plan, however: I don’t regularly watch any of the winning shows. There’s something very wrong with that, isn’t there?
The winners:
Drama
Best Drama: Mad Men (AMC)
Best Actor: Jon Hamm (Mad Men)
Best Actress: Glenn Close (Damages)
Comedy
Best Comedy: Extras (HBO)
Best Actor: David Duchovny (Californication)
Best Actress: Tina Fey (30 Rock)
The supporting award for best actor went to Jeremy Piven (Entourage) and for best actress to Samantha Morton (for the TV movie Longford).
Oh, dear. This is bad. I thought I was well-viewed, able to converse fluently on all things televisual, and I have failed miserably. Really, couldn’t they at least have thrown a bone to the Dexter folks? It would have made me look a whole lot better.
So far, I’ve seen and enjoyed the first season of 30 Rock, but was also happy to wait till the second season wrapped before watching it all over the summer (now that the strike shows no sign of ending, I suspect I could bump that plan to February). I watched the first half of Mad Men before being distracted by various shiny objects and forgot to return. I know it’s very good, but the fact that I forgot to watch the end made me suspect that it wasn’t a particularly memorable show. Apparently, I was wrong.
I’ve never seen Damages, Extras, or Californication, and I refuse to ever watch Entourage. I must acknowledge the sad truth: I am a bad, bad TV blogger. No biscuit for me.
There’s only one thing to do. It is my job — nay, my duty — to watch as much television as I possibly can. Clearly, I’ve been a lightweight up till now. From here on, I’m going at this like a pro. There will be spreadsheets of viewing schedules, box sets stacked to the ceiling and pizza delivery on speed dial. I don’t have time to cook anymore, people! I’m not giving up till my sofa has permanently molded itself around my body and I can tell you what, exactly, a Longford is. Wish me luck.
Where should I start? I’d love to hear from any fans of these shows that can tell me what I’ve been missing.
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January 15th, 2008 at 10:34 am
I didn’t see Longford, but my sister, who admittedly works for the TV channel that produced it, said it was absolutely amazing, one of the best things on TV last year. In defence of her impartiality, she doesn’t say that about, say, Big Brother. I might be able to get a DVD of it from her, which I could lend you - I’d like to
Oh, and the Longford in question is Lord Longford, the anglo-Irish peer who campaigned for Myra Hindley’s rehabilitation! Morton was playing Hindley - not exactly the most sympathetic of roles, seeing as she’s probably the most reviled woman in 20th century Britain.
January 15th, 2008 at 10:39 am
Watch Californication! It is BRILLIANT! And I would say that even if I wasn’t hopelessly in love with David Duchovny (which, full disclosure: I totally am). But it is wonderful and heart-warming and funny and real and even though at first you think ‘who is the womanising bastard and why should I care what happens to him?’ you quickly see that there is much more subtlety to the show than that. Hank is actually a lovely guy who has just hopelessly screwed up his life and is trying to get it right again, and you want him to get it right so badly, but he keeps getting it wrong. I RECOMMEND.
January 15th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
Damages held the hubby and I in thrall through the whole season. The thriller-esqe season-long plot was above average, but the acting is what really sold it. Glenn Close is SCARY. It also did an stellar job of setting up a compelling second season premise, which is rare.
January 15th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
… and also, I thought Mad Men built up steam in the second half of the season. Loved it.
January 15th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Okay, I’m convinced. Fortunately, there is a strike-sized hole in my viewing schedule, and I have time to catch up on an awful lot of shows. It’s that or watch the American Idol results show, and some quality TV sounds like a much better choice.
January 15th, 2008 at 7:50 pm
It’s only Extras that I’m missing out on, but of COURSE I was just waiting for the just released DVD set. That’s my excuse, and I’m sticking to it.
As for the remaining shows, go with Mad Men. If you were distracted by shiny objects in the middle of it, you’ll be like a chipmunk during Damages’ mid-season lull. Mad Men totally picks up steam at the end with the brilliant handling of Draper’s past, Nixon vs. Kennedy, and then the finale…egads, the finale is just amazing.
You should also watch the first two seasons of Entourage (3rd and 4th…take ‘em or leave ‘em), and MAYBE Californication…but I remain skeptical. And get to 30 Rock sooner rather than later - a brilliant first half to the second season that signals greatness is strong with this one.
January 15th, 2008 at 8:06 pm
I don’t consider you a bad TV blogger, I will still give you biscuits (or candy corn, your choice). You don’t watch any of the winning shows because 99% of them are crap. 30 Rock is great, congratulations to Tina Fey on her win. Other than that, I think the Golden Globes chose poorly. But to be honest, I usually think awards shows choose poorly. Mad Men is okay, not fabulous. Bright shiny things would grab my attention away from it too.
January 16th, 2008 at 5:58 pm
Longford is available to download for free from the Channel 4 website:
http://www.channel4.com/4od/index.html
It’s a one-off and is 88 minutes long, so it won’t take much to catch up with it.
January 16th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
Matthew, that looks great, though it’s sadly not available for Mac yet. Thanks for the link.