Lovin' the Drama

I was sitting in the law clinic today when a fellow intern came into my office to discuss one of her cases.  While I obviously cannot divulge any information, let's just say we're lovin' the drama. 

There's just something about other people's drama that can be really entertaining.  Now I'm not saying that people deserve to have bad things happen or anything like that, it' just that some people insist on continually creating drama, and this particular family is full of those people.

Unfortunately, my clinic duty days are pretty much over.  That means I'm going to have to find another place to get my daily dose.  I'm open to suggestions -- soap operas, reality TV, or Jerry Springer?  Decisions, decisions.....

Movie Suggestions

If you have Netflix, then you know that they suggest movies based on what you've watched in the past.  Occasionally there's actually one I'm interested in watching, but usually I've never heard of them.  I recently noticed that Netflix has started inventing new movie categories/genres.  Based on what I've watched in the past, Netflix has generated the following movie/TV categories/genres for me:

• Sentimental Romantic Movies
• Critically-Acclaimed Thrillers
• Feel-Good Comedies
• Workplace TV Dramas
• Witty TV Drama
• Romantic Comedies with Strong Female Lead

Whatever happened to categories like dramas, comedies, or action and adventure?

I also think it's funny that some movies/TV shows created multiple categories.  Apparently liking "The Office" means I like both feel-good comedies and witty TV dramas.  I'm not sure how it's a drama, but apparently Netflix thinks it is.

TV Guide

I stopped reading TV Guide many, many years ago, but have found myself checking it online quite regularly since moving to FTW.  Apparently they've gotten a few new writers.  I've noticed a few changes in their style, especially the movie descriptions.  They used to just give a quick description of the film, but now they've added a little something extra.  Here are actual descriptions for some of the movies playing this weekend:

• Suspenseful and well-acted, but occassionally defies logic.
• Family-friendly but forgettable.
• Implausible but exciting.
• Dizzying martial-arts action and car chases can't make up for an incoherent plot.

When did Siskel and Ebert start working for TV Guide?  Actually, it makes me wonder whether they got that information from movie reviewers, or if someone was just having a bad day and took it out on innocent movies.

TV Justice

Since moving to FTW, I've realized that there are A LOT of court shows on TV.  At first I thought it was a FTW thing.  Now I think they've always been there, but I've never noticed since I was always at work.  And in case you're wondering how many, a quick glance at the TV Guide for today shows the following schedule: Judge Alex (three times), Divorce Court (three times), Judge Jeanine Pirro (twice), Judge Mathis (twice), People's Court, Street Court (twice), Judge Hatchett (twice), Judge Joe Brown (twice), Judge Judy (twice).  And all of these shows are scheduled before 5:00 pm.  On a typical weekday there would be more, but there's a baseball game scheduled for the middle of the afternoon, so that knocks out three hours.  I know there's normally at least one more episode of People's Court.

I watch a couple of these shows.  Some are good, some are not.  People's Court is pretty good; Judge Mathis is one step above Jerry Springer.  I can't believe some of the stuff people try to get away with!  And what's the deal with parents suing their kids?  I know I would never sue my parents, but watching these shows makes me think they would have no problem suing me!  (No, they wouldn't.)  I especially like watching people try to justify their actions when they know they're wrong.  For example, a lady today admitted she was stealing money from her mom, but said it wasn't really stealing, it was "borrowing."  Of course, she borrowed the money by withdrawing it directly from her mother's account without her permission or knowledge and had no intention of returning it.  Not only was she dumb enough to do this, she was dumb enough to admit it!  News flash -- stealing is stealing regardless of what you call it.

Now I know I said in another post that I don't watch reality TV, but that's what's great about being a law student -- you can watch something like this and call it "research," "educational material," or "training."

Reality TV

In honor of tonight's season premier of Dancing with the Stars, here are my thoughts on reality TV.  Generally speaking, I'm not a fan.  How much not a fan am I?  Well, there's a House rerun on that I've already seen at least 3 times, but I'm watching that and writing this blog instead of watching Dancing with the Stars.  I admit that I used to watch some reality TV shows, but I tend to get tired of them pretty quickly.  A quick glance below tells me that is not the case with the general TV watching public.

According to TV.com, the top 10 most popular reality TV shows are:

1. Survivor
2. America's Next Top Model
3. American Idol
4. The Amazing Race
5. Undercover Boss
6. Bad Girls Club
7. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
8. Mythbusters
9. Keeping up with the Kardashians
10. America's Funniest Home Videos

While I'm not surprised by most of the top shows, the list does have some surprises mixed in.  There are shows that I can't believe people watch, shows that I can't believe people still watch, and even shows that I didn't know were considered reality TV.

I didn't know America's Funniest Home Videos was still on the air.  Seeing as how it came in at #10, I might be the only person in America who didn't know that.  While The Bachelor comes in at #42, The Bachelorette only managed to get to #96.  I guess watching women fight over a man is more interesting than watching men fight over a woman.  Jon and Kate Plus 8 managed to come in at #89, which I found surprising because I thought that show no longer existed after Jon and Kate split up (maybe I should read more tabloid news).  And then there are the shows that I didn't know were even considered reality TV, namely 20/20 (#57) and Dateline NBC (#61). 

Some of the shows I used to watch managed to make decent showings: Kitchen Nightmares (#18), Deadliest Catch (#27), So You Think You Can Dance (#34), Hell's Kitchen (#36), What Not to Wear (#45), and Top Chef (#82).  I also admit that I've watched a couple of episodes of Undercover Boss.  One was good, one was not.  I haven't decided whether I'll be watching any more episodes, but considering I've missed the last two weeks, I'm leaning towards no.

And in case anyone is wondering, Dancing with the Stars comes in at #11.

For TV.com's full list of most popular reality TV shows, click here.