I don't watch Glee, and I don't plan to. Musical theater in general doesn't appeal to me; I like my drama and my music on different channels, I guess. Don't misunderstand - I'm not saying Glee is a bad show! Plenty of people (2, maybe 3) have told me they enjoy it and I'm willing to take them at their word, but it's just not my cup of Glee.
But I can't stay out of the newest Glee-sip about the show's creator Ryan Murphy telling the band Kings of Leon to go f--- themselves. Apparently, the Kings declined an offer to have one of their popular songs performed on Glee, and Mr. Murphy took that as a signal that the band's members hate children and want to destroy music education in this country. Sadly, I'm not exaggerating.
Most of you have heard me rant about our nascent narcissism epidemic (I realize that's ironic coming from someone who blogs), but even I was shocked by the outright self-importance of this fracas. I will admit it's possible Glee encourages kids to join a choral group, and maybe it even helps those groups with their fundraisers. But seriously ... if an artist isn't interested in being Glee-mourized, does that make him/her an enemy of music education? Let's bring it down a bit, shall we Mr. Murphy? You produce a campy show on Fox. Until President Obama appoints you Secretary of Education, I have a song suggestion for your show ... Harvey Danger's "Humility."
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
When It's Okay to Say Ho
I thought we had dipped the '80's television remake well' dry when I read that NBC went even further back and picked up David Kelley's remake of the 70's camp show, Wonder Woman. Apparently I was wrong!
Cartoon Network has released some concept art for their upcoming remake of the classic 80's cartoon Thundercats. It seems to have more anime influence this time around (witness the spiky hair on Lion-o and giant cat cleavage on Cheetara), which may help make this update watchable. CN's propensity for injecting adult themes into their cartoons may also help snag the 30-somethings who grew up with the original.
When it airs, I'll give it a glance and let you know what I think. For now, I'll just say ... "Thundercats! Ho!!!!"
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Cartoon Network has released some concept art for their upcoming remake of the classic 80's cartoon Thundercats. It seems to have more anime influence this time around (witness the spiky hair on Lion-o and giant cat cleavage on Cheetara), which may help make this update watchable. CN's propensity for injecting adult themes into their cartoons may also help snag the 30-somethings who grew up with the original.
When it airs, I'll give it a glance and let you know what I think. For now, I'll just say ... "Thundercats! Ho!!!!"
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Who Cares About Jurisdiction
On February 9th, the FX series Justified returns for its second season. Although it could never replace Deadwood as the best neo-western drama of all time, it's still extremely entertaining; thus I will definitely put it in my Tivo rotation, and I recommend you do the same.
If you didn't catch the first season, don't sweat it: Timothy Olyphant plays a trigger-happy U.S. Marshal who gets transferred to the Lexington, Kentucky field office after gunning down a Miami thug in a Marshal-Dillon-style hip draw. Resisting the urge to see Mr. Olyphant as typecast here is difficult to say the least, but he does an admirable job of differentiating his character, Marshal Raylan Givens, from his iconic portrayal of Seth Bullock (another trigger-happy lawman) in Deadwood.
The character development is a little shallow, and the relationship between Marshal Givens and his ex-wife is a bit sloppy, but you can't beat Justified for pure testosterone. In that arena, it has more complexity than Rescue Me, and better suspense than other cop shows like Southland. The writers also do a great job of playing out the action and suspense without having to rely on explosions and countdown clocks (a la 24). This is where Timothy Olyphant shines ... as one character in the first season notes: "you got ice water runnin' through your veins, dontcha?" He clearly does, and on screen that translates into unadulterated bad-assery.
Of course, this one has the typical annoyances that all cop and lawyer shows have: why the heck is a U.S. Federal Marshal investigating local murders and handling confidential informants? Sometimes I hate my law degree. The writers throw us the standard bone, a one-line explanation about why Marshal Givens is needed to help bring down a group of white supremacists, etc. And they actually attempt to put the Marshal in real-life U.S. Marshal situations (prisoner transfer, fugitive pursuit), so I'll suspend disbelief before the second season premiere in February. Not because I'm naturally forgiving ... but because I really enjoy watching Timothy Olyphant use his freakishly long arms to administer a beat-down. Have Gun Will Travel!
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
If you didn't catch the first season, don't sweat it: Timothy Olyphant plays a trigger-happy U.S. Marshal who gets transferred to the Lexington, Kentucky field office after gunning down a Miami thug in a Marshal-Dillon-style hip draw. Resisting the urge to see Mr. Olyphant as typecast here is difficult to say the least, but he does an admirable job of differentiating his character, Marshal Raylan Givens, from his iconic portrayal of Seth Bullock (another trigger-happy lawman) in Deadwood.
The character development is a little shallow, and the relationship between Marshal Givens and his ex-wife is a bit sloppy, but you can't beat Justified for pure testosterone. In that arena, it has more complexity than Rescue Me, and better suspense than other cop shows like Southland. The writers also do a great job of playing out the action and suspense without having to rely on explosions and countdown clocks (a la 24). This is where Timothy Olyphant shines ... as one character in the first season notes: "you got ice water runnin' through your veins, dontcha?" He clearly does, and on screen that translates into unadulterated bad-assery.
Of course, this one has the typical annoyances that all cop and lawyer shows have: why the heck is a U.S. Federal Marshal investigating local murders and handling confidential informants? Sometimes I hate my law degree. The writers throw us the standard bone, a one-line explanation about why Marshal Givens is needed to help bring down a group of white supremacists, etc. And they actually attempt to put the Marshal in real-life U.S. Marshal situations (prisoner transfer, fugitive pursuit), so I'll suspend disbelief before the second season premiere in February. Not because I'm naturally forgiving ... but because I really enjoy watching Timothy Olyphant use his freakishly long arms to administer a beat-down. Have Gun Will Travel!
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
When I'm Ahead of the Curve
Um ... try always? Not only did they steal my headline, they re-hashed my content too! Fine, fine I'm not the most original thinker when it comes to Castle. And no, they probably don't read my blog, but someone over at TV.com thinks just like I do ... and probably gets paid for it. The one thing missing from TV. com articles is a catchy (some might say "creepy") tagline ...
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
How to Properly Quote "The Karate Kid"
Castle has demonstrated the one quality that most one-hour dramas lack. The magic ingredient, whose absence usually leads to a sub-4-season run: improvement. Said another way, Castle keeps getting better instead of fading into drama obscurity like most shows. True to its strength, last night's episode "Knockdown" was the best of an already great third season - and we're only halfway done!
The show rests on a basic crime/mystery format, but the excellent writing and casting separate it from this already overpopulated genre. The show is also blessed with a subtlety of wit that dramas like CSI and Without a Trace can only aspire to. Of course, without Nathan Fillion the well-written witty dialog would grow stale after a few seasons (witness Pushing Daisies). Mr. Fillion's delivery and charm, not to mention his uncanny ability to rocket from levity to panic in a single expression, will almost (almost) make you forget the network sponsored murder of his first show Firefly.
Last night, in "Knockdown", Castle gave audiences a teaser of things to come for Rick Castle and Kate Beckett - the show's protagonists. Clearly they are made for each other, and in the real world these two would have consummated the relationship before the end of the fourth episode, but who wants to watch characters either settle into an every day relationship or explode in a fury of recrimination and de-friending on Facebook? We can get that in our own lives. No, the writers of great drama have to keep the two right on the edge of relationship bliss without the prospect of a stodgy, boring, committed relationship. At least not until the series wraps up after the tenth season.
Lucky for us, Castle has very clever writers. Last night we got to squeal like tweens (I'm man enough to admit it) as Castle and Beckett burned up the celluloid (what do they burn digital prints on these days?) with a wicked-hot kiss. Without ruining the suspense of the relationship, and totally seamless with the plot, I hasten to add!
Will Beall, who wrote this episode, deserves uber praise for this one. Nicely done, Mr. Beall. And props to Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic for rocking the make-out. I'm sure it took 40 takes, but who would turn down that job?!
If you're not watching Castle, go out ... Netflix the first two seasons ... and put this one in Tivo rotation. It's a keeper.
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
and P.P.S. -
The "I almost missed it" quote from The Karate Kid? "Fear! Does not exist in this Dojo!"
The show rests on a basic crime/mystery format, but the excellent writing and casting separate it from this already overpopulated genre. The show is also blessed with a subtlety of wit that dramas like CSI and Without a Trace can only aspire to. Of course, without Nathan Fillion the well-written witty dialog would grow stale after a few seasons (witness Pushing Daisies). Mr. Fillion's delivery and charm, not to mention his uncanny ability to rocket from levity to panic in a single expression, will almost (almost) make you forget the network sponsored murder of his first show Firefly.
Last night, in "Knockdown", Castle gave audiences a teaser of things to come for Rick Castle and Kate Beckett - the show's protagonists. Clearly they are made for each other, and in the real world these two would have consummated the relationship before the end of the fourth episode, but who wants to watch characters either settle into an every day relationship or explode in a fury of recrimination and de-friending on Facebook? We can get that in our own lives. No, the writers of great drama have to keep the two right on the edge of relationship bliss without the prospect of a stodgy, boring, committed relationship. At least not until the series wraps up after the tenth season.
Lucky for us, Castle has very clever writers. Last night we got to squeal like tweens (I'm man enough to admit it) as Castle and Beckett burned up the celluloid (what do they burn digital prints on these days?) with a wicked-hot kiss. Without ruining the suspense of the relationship, and totally seamless with the plot, I hasten to add!
Will Beall, who wrote this episode, deserves uber praise for this one. Nicely done, Mr. Beall. And props to Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic for rocking the make-out. I'm sure it took 40 takes, but who would turn down that job?!
If you're not watching Castle, go out ... Netflix the first two seasons ... and put this one in Tivo rotation. It's a keeper.
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
and P.P.S. -
The "I almost missed it" quote from The Karate Kid? "Fear! Does not exist in this Dojo!"
When BluRay Will Die
I know many of you are big BluRay believers, and I've been telling you for a while now that BluRay is a dead technology. It was dead before it even debuted, in my opinion, because it is tied to physical media. Well now I have some muscle to back up my claim. Check out this short CNet video about the top 5 dead technologies. First one? Yep ... BluRay. Am I proud of myself for saying this almost a year in front of CNet? Nah! Well ... maybe a little.
Something not mentioned in the video that I believe will be a side-effect is the rise of Microsoft's XBox 360 over the Sony PS3. I think 2011 will be a big year for the XBox.
Stock picks? Microsoft, and ... of course ... Netflix.
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Something not mentioned in the video that I believe will be a side-effect is the rise of Microsoft's XBox 360 over the Sony PS3. I think 2011 will be a big year for the XBox.
Stock picks? Microsoft, and ... of course ... Netflix.
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Why I Can't Stop Being Critical
I want to say good things about NBC. Truly! Yes, NBC is frequently the target of my poop sling, and no, I don't have a single NBC show in my Tivo rotation (30 Rock doesn't count since I watch it through Netflix and since NBC tried to cancel it ... twice!). But NBC was my first television romance. Night Court? Family Ties? [Swoon].
Unfortunately for NBC they just can't get anything right, even when I'm ready and willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Well, that's not strictly true; they're doing well with football, but I don't watch football on TV. I get all my stats through www.espn.go.com.
So here's the sin I can't forgive ...the itch I can't scratch (completely unrelated to my ass being planted in an office chair all day) ... the reason I can't stop being critical: NBC can't stop putting talented actors in crap shows! I've said it before. This time, they've put Summer Glau (one of my faves) in The Cape. I'll save the criticism of the show itself for later; for now I'll just say that since I'm incapable of thinking bad thoughts about Summer Glau I'm going to blame this show completely on NBC. You already screwed up Heroes ... stop messing with the superhero genre! You're not helping!
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Unfortunately for NBC they just can't get anything right, even when I'm ready and willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Well, that's not strictly true; they're doing well with football, but I don't watch football on TV. I get all my stats through www.espn.go.com.
So here's the sin I can't forgive ...the itch I can't scratch (completely unrelated to my ass being planted in an office chair all day) ... the reason I can't stop being critical: NBC can't stop putting talented actors in crap shows! I've said it before. This time, they've put Summer Glau (one of my faves) in The Cape. I'll save the criticism of the show itself for later; for now I'll just say that since I'm incapable of thinking bad thoughts about Summer Glau I'm going to blame this show completely on NBC. You already screwed up Heroes ... stop messing with the superhero genre! You're not helping!
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
When Brian Roberts Should Expect a Vacation
Comcast and NBC aren't even officially hitched yet and the bloodbath has already begun. So far, the carnage is all on the NBC side, but that won't last long.
My prediction: after the takeover is official, Comcast will be riding the publicity wave for 4-6 months, and will use it to implement their plan for NBC Universal. Within 12-15 months they'll figure out they just paid $30B for last place in an uphill marathon. First response? Management change ...
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
My prediction: after the takeover is official, Comcast will be riding the publicity wave for 4-6 months, and will use it to implement their plan for NBC Universal. Within 12-15 months they'll figure out they just paid $30B for last place in an uphill marathon. First response? Management change ...
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
How They Pulled Me Back In
I don't usually watch sitcoms, and my excuse has always been that I would rather invest my TV time in dramas that have a longer story arc and focus more on character development (ideally that's what a drama should do anyway). As I start to add a few sitcoms to my regular rotation however, I am re-thinking my original reasons for abandoning the 21-minute, live studio audience, cardboard backdrop format.
In essence, now that I've started watching Modern Family, 30 Rock, and The Big Bang Theory I am forced to conclude that I stopped watching sitcoms somewhere around 2002 because all of them sucked scrote. But these three gems, as with the iconic 5 families, have pulled me back in like Don Corleone.
I just finished the first season of Modern Family on DVD (through Netflix as always) and my abs are still sore from laughing hysterically. This show has the holy grail mixture: fantastic writing/dialog, and absolutely perfect casting. Eric Stonestreet as Cam and Ty Burrell as Phil are my favorites, though everyone in the cast deserves the highest praise. As a standout moment, Cam's soliloquy about Sophie's Choice during the mock interview has left an indelible giggle print on me.
30 Rock has always been in my Netflix streaming queue, and as with Modern Family I am a season behind. No matter ... it is still one of my favorites, as I've previously stated. Since my last soft-clap to 30 Rock I've grown much more fond of Tracy Morgan's performance on the show, and I'm convinced he's been robbed of the Emmy for best-supporting actor in a comedy series. Although I can't complain too much about the winner this year ... yep, it was Eric Stonestreet.
While we're on the Emmys, let's hit The Big Bang Theory. Jim Parsons, who not only portrays a native Texan ... he is a native Texan (all the best talent comes from Texas, folks ... witness Summer Glau, amen!), won the Emmy this year for best actor in a comedy and the Emmy was well-deserved. Some people don't like this show because they can't relate to the characters, but the resounding success of the series overall should give you some indication of how many uber-nerds are really out there. And, by the way advertisers, we nerds have a disproportionate slice of the disposable income in this world. This show has explosive dialog that sneaks up on you and sucker-punches your frontal lobe with its dragon style comedy-fu. If you haven't given it a shot, DVR an episode and tell me what you think.
Thanks to these three shows, I'm ready to make my grand re-entrance into the sitcom world and try a few others like Parks & Recreation and How I Met Your Mother. I'm not saying the sitcom quality drought of 20-aughts is necessarily past, but the recent drizzle of stellar comedy has me optimistic about the forecast.
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
In essence, now that I've started watching Modern Family, 30 Rock, and The Big Bang Theory I am forced to conclude that I stopped watching sitcoms somewhere around 2002 because all of them sucked scrote. But these three gems, as with the iconic 5 families, have pulled me back in like Don Corleone.
I just finished the first season of Modern Family on DVD (through Netflix as always) and my abs are still sore from laughing hysterically. This show has the holy grail mixture: fantastic writing/dialog, and absolutely perfect casting. Eric Stonestreet as Cam and Ty Burrell as Phil are my favorites, though everyone in the cast deserves the highest praise. As a standout moment, Cam's soliloquy about Sophie's Choice during the mock interview has left an indelible giggle print on me.
30 Rock has always been in my Netflix streaming queue, and as with Modern Family I am a season behind. No matter ... it is still one of my favorites, as I've previously stated. Since my last soft-clap to 30 Rock I've grown much more fond of Tracy Morgan's performance on the show, and I'm convinced he's been robbed of the Emmy for best-supporting actor in a comedy series. Although I can't complain too much about the winner this year ... yep, it was Eric Stonestreet.
While we're on the Emmys, let's hit The Big Bang Theory. Jim Parsons, who not only portrays a native Texan ... he is a native Texan (all the best talent comes from Texas, folks ... witness Summer Glau, amen!), won the Emmy this year for best actor in a comedy and the Emmy was well-deserved. Some people don't like this show because they can't relate to the characters, but the resounding success of the series overall should give you some indication of how many uber-nerds are really out there. And, by the way advertisers, we nerds have a disproportionate slice of the disposable income in this world. This show has explosive dialog that sneaks up on you and sucker-punches your frontal lobe with its dragon style comedy-fu. If you haven't given it a shot, DVR an episode and tell me what you think.
Thanks to these three shows, I'm ready to make my grand re-entrance into the sitcom world and try a few others like Parks & Recreation and How I Met Your Mother. I'm not saying the sitcom quality drought of 20-aughts is necessarily past, but the recent drizzle of stellar comedy has me optimistic about the forecast.
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Why It's All My Fault
I am frequently snappish about the cancellation of quality programming. I've written before about shows like Farscape and Deadwood and why they should never have been canceled, and I love to lay the blame on short-sighted entertainment executives who are no longer interested in building entertainment brands. I've also railed against seemingly anaesthetized audiences who would rather watch "please look at me!" abortions like American Idol or Dancing With the Stars than quality scripted television.
Today, however, I will take responsibility for the cancellation of a great television show. Yes people, it is my fault that Veronica Mars was canceled.
If you now have sqwunched up (I said it) eyebrows and the duck-face "I just read something stupid" expression, then it's your fault too.
Veronica Mars was a UPN/CW show that ran for three seasons between 2004-2007 about a 17-year old girl who follows in her private detective father's footsteps by solving mysteries and dispensing justice in her high school. The premise is not unfamiliar ... see Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, Scooby Doo, and Brenda Bly for the classic progenitors of the genre.
Yet Veronica Mars brought something to the detective format that most of the classics lacked: deep and complex character interaction. As with all great drama, the premise of Veronica Mars served primarily as a backdrop for the growth and development of the relationships on the show. While it can be fun and satisfying to see a mystery twisted around and wrapped-up in 42 minutes, if you're not invested in the characters then you're just watching average television. Kristen Bell, Enrico Colantoni, and Francis Capra in particular laid out some fantastic performances on the show. The fact that Kristen Bell never got an Emmy nomination after the first season finale is, frankly, evidence of fraud at the Emmys.
It disappoints me that average television seems to be so popular these days (CSI anyone?), but that's a natural byproduct of taking all the risk out of entertainment production. But ... mea culpa ... I never actually watched Veronica Mars during its primary run on UPN/CW. I've never been a great fan of the detective/mystery genre, so I never gave it a chance. Apparently, I was in popular company because the show never performed very well, especially in its third season when ratings fell precipitously after Veronica went off to college. Remarkably, I even had a trusted friend tell me specifically that I should watch the show because of the witty dialogue (which I luu uhh uuuuv), and I ignored him.
Now that I've discovered all three seasons of the show in my streaming Netflix queue (which I watch through my XBox 360 ... have I mentioned you should get a Netflix subscription?), I'm kicking myself. Veronica Mars was an amazing show and if I (and half a million of my friends) had watched it in 2006-2007, we might have gotten a few more seasons ... or at least one more season to wrap up the loose plot threads. For a while, there was talk of a movie but that rumor has been tearing up the fanboy/girl blogs for 3 years without much traction. I doubt it will happen.
Therefore, I will step out of my vitriolic shoes today and stop blaming the black helicopters. The truth is that it's my fault Veronica Mars was canceled. If by some miracle this post makes it to the ears (or eyes) of the show's creator Rob Thomas ... please accept my sincere apologies. Had I known!! Had I only known!!
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Today, however, I will take responsibility for the cancellation of a great television show. Yes people, it is my fault that Veronica Mars was canceled.
If you now have sqwunched up (I said it) eyebrows and the duck-face "I just read something stupid" expression, then it's your fault too.
Veronica Mars was a UPN/CW show that ran for three seasons between 2004-2007 about a 17-year old girl who follows in her private detective father's footsteps by solving mysteries and dispensing justice in her high school. The premise is not unfamiliar ... see Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, Scooby Doo, and Brenda Bly for the classic progenitors of the genre.
Yet Veronica Mars brought something to the detective format that most of the classics lacked: deep and complex character interaction. As with all great drama, the premise of Veronica Mars served primarily as a backdrop for the growth and development of the relationships on the show. While it can be fun and satisfying to see a mystery twisted around and wrapped-up in 42 minutes, if you're not invested in the characters then you're just watching average television. Kristen Bell, Enrico Colantoni, and Francis Capra in particular laid out some fantastic performances on the show. The fact that Kristen Bell never got an Emmy nomination after the first season finale is, frankly, evidence of fraud at the Emmys.
It disappoints me that average television seems to be so popular these days (CSI anyone?), but that's a natural byproduct of taking all the risk out of entertainment production. But ... mea culpa ... I never actually watched Veronica Mars during its primary run on UPN/CW. I've never been a great fan of the detective/mystery genre, so I never gave it a chance. Apparently, I was in popular company because the show never performed very well, especially in its third season when ratings fell precipitously after Veronica went off to college. Remarkably, I even had a trusted friend tell me specifically that I should watch the show because of the witty dialogue (which I luu uhh uuuuv), and I ignored him.
Now that I've discovered all three seasons of the show in my streaming Netflix queue (which I watch through my XBox 360 ... have I mentioned you should get a Netflix subscription?), I'm kicking myself. Veronica Mars was an amazing show and if I (and half a million of my friends) had watched it in 2006-2007, we might have gotten a few more seasons ... or at least one more season to wrap up the loose plot threads. For a while, there was talk of a movie but that rumor has been tearing up the fanboy/girl blogs for 3 years without much traction. I doubt it will happen.
Therefore, I will step out of my vitriolic shoes today and stop blaming the black helicopters. The truth is that it's my fault Veronica Mars was canceled. If by some miracle this post makes it to the ears (or eyes) of the show's creator Rob Thomas ... please accept my sincere apologies. Had I known!! Had I only known!!
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Why the Comcast/NBC Universal Merger is a Terrible Idea ... for Comcast
Everyone seems to be freaking out about Comcast potentially buying NBC Universal, especially now that the FCC has voted to approve the marriage. Check out this LA Times article as an example of the mewling. Apparently this merger will destroy competition on television, increase cable subscriber prices, and likely pre-select all first-born male children for sacrifice in the name of idolatry. I remember the same corporate conspiracy paranoia when AOL and Time Warner merged back in 2000. How quickly we have forgotten that the only losers in that deal were AOL and Time Warner stock holders; entertainment media marched right past the merger without so much as a "yo, sup." Time Warner spun off AOL in 2009 ... anyone see that headline? Yeah, me neither.
Don't get me wrong, there is definitely reason for concern with this Comcast deal, but the pain for viewers and subscribers will be temporary and will probably jump-start the golden age of streaming media options (as I've been predicting). The real pain is going to be felt at the top of the Comcast pyramid. Hey, Brian Roberts! (Comcast's CEO) You should look back at what happened to Steve Case back in 2005 ... first Time Warner quietly demoted him ... then they junked his division altogether. Hope you have a good 401k!
Here's my breakdown on why this is a horrible deal for Comcast:
1. NBC is a market laggard in prime time television. Though their ratings are up slightly this season over last season, they're still being crushed by the CW and Univision (Univision? believe it!) in the coveted 18-49 viewer bracket by market growth. I think most of that increase is due to viewer losses from ABC after "Lost" finished its run, however, so the small increase is likely to fade as ABC lurches back into action with "V" and "Detroit 1-8-7" this Spring. Comcast is unlikely to risk alienating subscribers by raising rates solely based on the strength of NBC cross-promotions. It's not like they can create some sort of NBC exclusivity, after all ... it's a broadcast network, fellas! People can still watch "The Biggest Loser" over a cheap antenna, or for that matter stream the episodes online. In other words, I don't think NBC has the market clout to bully a substantial number of cable subscribers into bigger monthly fees, so it clearly isn't the sauce for Comcast's goose here.
2. The biggest potential revenue gains for Comcast are on the Universal side with their stable of basic cable channels. Here's where the temporary pain for viewers enters: If you watch anything on Bravo, Syfy, USA, Telemundo, or a host of other basic cable networks, be prepared to pay a little extra for the privilege. I imagine this potential revenue stream is the real reason behind the merger ... I'm betting Comcast thinks it can suck massive profits out of the market by either making the Universal networks exclusive to Comcast (more subscribers), or negotiating more lucrative contracts for those networks with the other providers (more revenue). That will translate into higher prices across the board for all cable, satellite, and Fios customers, and I think it's probably inevitable. Don't be surprised if Time Warner then tries to buy its own flock of channels ... Viacom, anyone?
3. The war for channels and programming will then ensue. Fox already owns quite a few channels, so does Cablevision and Walt Disney. This Comcast deal could drive all of them to start consolidating everything we watch into just a few companies. The struggle could play out in lots of ways. My own vision is a cable model that starts to mirror the broadcast networks, with just 3 big players owning all the content, followed by a too-little-too-late DishNetwork/DirectTV merger to stop the hemorrhaging of satellite subscribers. Ok ... so how is this good for us?
4. All this time, streaming media is growing like a weed, and the traditional content providers, instead of embracing the trend, are fighting it tooth and nail: almost all of the main content producers are still clinging to DVD licensing as their follow-on revenue streams, even though DVD sales continue to decline, and though Comcast denies it both it and Time Warner have been punishing their subscribers for streaming media content by either charging them more for the bandwidth or actually throttling their internet connections to prevent the streaming. Time Warner boldly admitted this practice has been going on since 2008. It's a losing battle. Netflix and Hulu are extremely popular services, and though this Comcast deal may kill Hulu, Netflix is going to end up owning (or "pwning") the cable companies in the long run as better broadband internet options like Fios and 4G wireless networks allow us to circumvent them altogether.
Considering the pace of broadband innovation and the skyrocketing demand for streaming media, I think the revolution is closer than any of us have previously suspected. It won't be long before we can buy our content byte-by-byte, instead of with a monthly cable subscription. That will mean more options for programming, and better creativity. Unfortunately for Comcast, it also means that this NBC Universal merger is a short-sighted strategy that will only help spur the inevitable transformation of the traditional cable/broadcast model.
Not that I was buying a lot of Comcast or Time Warner stock, anyway ...
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
Don't get me wrong, there is definitely reason for concern with this Comcast deal, but the pain for viewers and subscribers will be temporary and will probably jump-start the golden age of streaming media options (as I've been predicting). The real pain is going to be felt at the top of the Comcast pyramid. Hey, Brian Roberts! (Comcast's CEO) You should look back at what happened to Steve Case back in 2005 ... first Time Warner quietly demoted him ... then they junked his division altogether. Hope you have a good 401k!
Here's my breakdown on why this is a horrible deal for Comcast:
1. NBC is a market laggard in prime time television. Though their ratings are up slightly this season over last season, they're still being crushed by the CW and Univision (Univision? believe it!) in the coveted 18-49 viewer bracket by market growth. I think most of that increase is due to viewer losses from ABC after "Lost" finished its run, however, so the small increase is likely to fade as ABC lurches back into action with "V" and "Detroit 1-8-7" this Spring. Comcast is unlikely to risk alienating subscribers by raising rates solely based on the strength of NBC cross-promotions. It's not like they can create some sort of NBC exclusivity, after all ... it's a broadcast network, fellas! People can still watch "The Biggest Loser" over a cheap antenna, or for that matter stream the episodes online. In other words, I don't think NBC has the market clout to bully a substantial number of cable subscribers into bigger monthly fees, so it clearly isn't the sauce for Comcast's goose here.
2. The biggest potential revenue gains for Comcast are on the Universal side with their stable of basic cable channels. Here's where the temporary pain for viewers enters: If you watch anything on Bravo, Syfy, USA, Telemundo, or a host of other basic cable networks, be prepared to pay a little extra for the privilege. I imagine this potential revenue stream is the real reason behind the merger ... I'm betting Comcast thinks it can suck massive profits out of the market by either making the Universal networks exclusive to Comcast (more subscribers), or negotiating more lucrative contracts for those networks with the other providers (more revenue). That will translate into higher prices across the board for all cable, satellite, and Fios customers, and I think it's probably inevitable. Don't be surprised if Time Warner then tries to buy its own flock of channels ... Viacom, anyone?
3. The war for channels and programming will then ensue. Fox already owns quite a few channels, so does Cablevision and Walt Disney. This Comcast deal could drive all of them to start consolidating everything we watch into just a few companies. The struggle could play out in lots of ways. My own vision is a cable model that starts to mirror the broadcast networks, with just 3 big players owning all the content, followed by a too-little-too-late DishNetwork/DirectTV merger to stop the hemorrhaging of satellite subscribers. Ok ... so how is this good for us?
4. All this time, streaming media is growing like a weed, and the traditional content providers, instead of embracing the trend, are fighting it tooth and nail: almost all of the main content producers are still clinging to DVD licensing as their follow-on revenue streams, even though DVD sales continue to decline, and though Comcast denies it both it and Time Warner have been punishing their subscribers for streaming media content by either charging them more for the bandwidth or actually throttling their internet connections to prevent the streaming. Time Warner boldly admitted this practice has been going on since 2008. It's a losing battle. Netflix and Hulu are extremely popular services, and though this Comcast deal may kill Hulu, Netflix is going to end up owning (or "pwning") the cable companies in the long run as better broadband internet options like Fios and 4G wireless networks allow us to circumvent them altogether.
Considering the pace of broadband innovation and the skyrocketing demand for streaming media, I think the revolution is closer than any of us have previously suspected. It won't be long before we can buy our content byte-by-byte, instead of with a monthly cable subscription. That will mean more options for programming, and better creativity. Unfortunately for Comcast, it also means that this NBC Universal merger is a short-sighted strategy that will only help spur the inevitable transformation of the traditional cable/broadcast model.
Not that I was buying a lot of Comcast or Time Warner stock, anyway ...
P.S. -
Erica Durance, I love you.
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