Things I saw on TV.
I’ve been watching a lot of Food Network lately, just to pass the time while I’m knitting after Sami has gone to bed. And I think that their current programming really reflects the impact of the writers’ strike.
Granted, I don’t know to what extent Food Network employs writers at all. But they are re-running a lot of old competitions, Iron Chefs, Good Eats, and these new Holiday specials.
The Holiday specials are at once intriguing and excruciating. The All-Star Holiday Party involved the biggest FN stars making their favorite dishes, with “help” from another FN star. I especially found the idea that any one of those cooks would need an assistant to be contrived, since every one of them handles everything just fine on their own shows. But whatever. The entire shows are full of interesting ideas, but shot and edited oddly. There are normal cooking-show scenes, with cutaways a la reality show, with a FN personality talking in front of a white background about what’s going on in that kitchen scene.
I think this is what happens when the personalities all pitch in together to create a time kill sans writers. It’s not awful, but it’s not exactly enjoyable either.
In other TV news, I saw possbily one of the most touching things ever. A Charmin commercial that was for the most part NOT a Charmin toilet paper commercial, but a tribute to the actor who played Mr. Whipple since the 50s. I found it endearing that the company recognized him as not only an essential part of their brand over time, but as a personality that many consumers would feel nostalgic about. I refuse to believe that the whole thing was simply a marketing ploy; this may be naive, but I’ve never seen a commercial whose main purpose was to say that a spokesperson or character would be missed. So I was touched.
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