Chateau Lloyd

Long-tine readers know that I've been intermittently acquiring vintage TV shows, which are a nice way to fill a bit of an evening before bed.  They don't require much engagement, have a nice nostalgic flavor and many of them have held up surprisingly well.

However, just about every TV series has its low points, and it was only recently that long-form plot arc were introduced to American productions.  This lends it self to high-grading the shows, watching only the best portions of the best seasons.

Typically, this is found in the second season, when the cast, crew and writers have found their rhythm.  I've been watching the second season of Miami Vice for this reason and it is outstanding.  This was the peak of the show, where its music, style, and action all achieved perfection.

The nice thing about having a library is that one has options.  I streamed Remington Steele and am thinking of adding that and Moonlighting to my collection.  One of my kids asked for all of MASH and I may dip into that as well.  Again, only the best years.

One of the themes of my criticism of modern entertainment is that while we may make fun of old shows and their tropes, they still had much better production values, acting and were more entertaining than what we have today.  Yes, the TV audience of the 1980s had less options, but competition was fierce to get those big numbers.  A #1 rated show would draw a minimum of 40 million eyeballs, which was a huge commercial opportunity.  It's interesting to see that with far more views, "hit" shows have half of that viewership.

As I pointed out during the Bleeding Fool Battlestar Galactica Wars, for all the critical acclaim of the reboot, its numbers were objectively terrible.  It would not have survived to a second season in the broadcast television era.