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An illustrated regular |
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Wednesday, April 30, 2008
An observation about sitcoms.
You know how you never want your favourite sitcom to end? You get all depressed when the producers announce that the season AFTER the next one will be the last? I'm like that - I was like that when Friends ended. 10 YEARS of Friends! Endless funniness. And yet it had to end!
But now I've realised WHY it had to end. Well, apart from the fact that it was getting kinda old, jokes were being recycled and the actors not only wanted but NEEDED to do other things.
The reason sitcoms eventually have to end - preferrably within 10 years! - is that the longer a period we observe characters on a TV-show, even though it's supposed to be all light and funny, the more serious it gets. Ergo, not as funny anymore - and if it is, then it's probably inappropriate in some way.
Take Friends for example. We see Ross with his lesbian wife - haha - and his on-off relationship with Rachel - haha - but then he gets married! And divorced, preceded and followed by a lot of drama (and cliffhangers. We all HATE cliffhangers, don't we? Unless we've got the DVD box-set, that is). The idea of Ross being married and divorced three times might seem funny to Americans, but really, it's not that funny when you SEE it. Even if it IS just a TV-show.
Chandler and Monica - the most unlikely couple of the world of sitcoms (I'm guessing...). They hook up at Ross's second wedding, and before you know it they're living together, getting married and wanting to start a family! All rather serious stuff, and it comes with lots of corniness, which really isn't what you're watching sitcoms for.
Even Phoebe - PHOEBE - gets serious with a man! And marries him! But, of course, not without an intermittent break-up-and-Phoebe-almost-getting-married-to-old-flame-David-but-Mike-romantically-bursts-in-and-saves-his-and-Phoebe's-happiness. CORNYYYYYYYYYY.
And then it's Joey. Poor Joey. He's got nothing going for himself, so he's the one we relied on for comic relief. And yet, even I, after a few years, got bored of him. It was always the same thing - eating, girls, messed-up acting jobs, girls, eating, FAMILY DRAMA! - and I actually was more of a Chandler-girl. Except for his corny moments with Monica. Those were just not funny!
The reason I watch TV is to get away from reality for 30-50 minutes. (Or more, if I'm watching online or DVDs...) Sitcoms, especially, are supposed to brighten up your day, make you laugh and all that. But when they have been running for some years, and the characters are developing and becoming, well, grown-up, it's not that different from reality anymore (OK, depends on the series, but you know what I mean!) and therefore doesn't serve its purpose.
My conclusion is this: We mustn't be sad, angry, devastated or anything like that when a favourite sitcom is cancelled. Really, the producers are just saving us from the big disappoinment we'll experience later on, when the show would become too dramatic and boring. Then the ratings would drop and the producers themselves would lose money... actually, I think that's the reason shows get cancelled in the first place. Anyway - don't cry! It's all for the best!
The reason for this post? Well, my first exam was today. I've got three more to go and 2/3 of an essay to write (due Thursday next week!). Usually, during exams, I find some good way to procrastinate. Traditionally I either clean my room more than it needs to be cleaned, or I get addicted to new TV-series that I watch online while I'm supposed to be doing research for essays and whatnot. This year, I'm doing both! :S
Yes, I have scrubbed the sink and the shower floor in my bathroom, watched the entire third season of How I Met Your Mother, and... written 574 words. But at least I've gathered lots of good quotes and sources! Now I've just got to use them... Oh, and I also hoovered the corridors of my floor, washed the kitchen floor and the foyer. But that's just because it's my cleaning week - I'll do it again on Friday. I'll clean the living room on Sunday (no point in doing that before the weekend!).
QotD: "Lily: Hey, nice shirt, Ted. Is it yesterday already?" - How I Met Your Mother |
Monday, April 28, 2008
Goodbye :(
It's weird. Everybody's leaving! I've already missed saying goodbye to two people, and just now I met one guy who's leaving today with his girlfriend. I said goodbye in case I don't see them before they leave - but it's so weird! The two of them have been living in the room across the hall from me since I moved in here. The guy is one of the people who sometimes call me Nicole!
Somebody put up a calendar with the days when people leave marked, on the front door, and I briefly glanced at it, but then somebody took it down so all I know is that the last one of this year's exchange students leaves on my birthday! Everyday I'm wondering if there's someone leaving...
I don't know when I'm leaving - either at the beginning of June or July. Hopefully I'll find out before I leave for Germany, so I'll get a chance to start packing my stuff beforehand (we return from Poland on May 28th). I kinda hope I won't have to leave until July - I love you mum, but I like being my own provider (well, mostly. Sometimes I only provide instant noodles...)! |
Thursday, April 24, 2008
A couple of observations about American Idol
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Þá er komið að því aftur
Já, prófin eru að byrja, og það þýðir aðeins eitt (ja, fyrir utan svakastress og lærdóm og lestur og allt það):
KÓRTÓNLEIKAR!
Háskólakórinn heldur vortónleika sunnudaginn 27. apríl 2008 í Neskirkju, klukkan 17:00. Flutt verða m.a. verkin Agnus Dei eftir Pólska tónskáldið Krzystof Penderecki (borið fram "penderetski"), Shakespeare-söngvar eftir William Vaughan, Lorca-svíta, auk fullt af íslenskum þjóðlögum (sem eru að mínu mati miklu skemmtilegri en hin ;) ).
500 krónur inn fyrir nema og börn í forsölu, og 1000 krónur fyrir aðra. Við dyrnar kostar 1000 kr fyrir nema og börn, 1500 kr fyrir aðra. Hvet sem flesta til að koma - þetta verður frábært og tilvalin leið til að taka sér pásu frá lestrinum (ég held að Bókhlaðan loki klukkan 18:00 - þið læðist bara út klukkutíma fyrr og farið beint í kirkjuna; bara 2-3 mínútna labb!). |
Monday, April 14, 2008
A large picture of the melon was on the mantlepiece.
There are so many things you can do with that sentence^! |
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Ill
I have study/exam-syndrome. Feel free to interpret that any way you want.
QotD: "Many of them ('mother-women') were delicious in the role; one of them was the embodiment of every womanly grace and charm. If her husband did not adore her, he was a brute, deserving of death by slow torture." - from The Awakening, by Kate Chopin |
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