Tips about TV marathons
Now, I’m not going to pretend to be talking about marathons of ALL television shows in the whole wide world right now, just about the one I just attempted.
As I always said, my aim at the beginning of this week had always been to watch all of Lost by the time the last season started: the typing my way through them too was just an added plan once I decided a whole site to write about TV just for the pure love of writing and of TV, and of writing about tv.
And as I mentioned, I’d always liked the idea of Lost – I just knew my patience wouldn’t stretch enough for a show that posed a lot of questions, but didn’t promise a lot of answers, being strung along over an indefinite number of years… So I knew I wanted to wait until there was an end date, and aim for that. Just – next time, I’ll allow myself longer aim. The time was too short, the subject too complex. There’s no way to think roundly about the things you’re watching when you’re still trying to explain the 48th inexplicable thing from two episodes ago. Not in the time I allowed myself.
Anyway. Yes – I now love Lost. And, in a watching party, I can now answer questions about ‘that bit’ longstanding viewers might have forgotten over the last five years. (Mainly because I saw that bit 3 DAYS AGO). And I have a lot of reservations about the overriding themes and inconsistencies in tone and character between (and within) seasons, yes, of course: and more than I might have had if I’d been someone else watching it 43 minutes a week over a long period.
But I didn’t. Because a lot of us don’t watch television that way any. How ever, that is the way I’m going to be watching Lost for the last season. So I’ll blog each episode the next day for those – and because a lot the lovely people who have subscribed are in the UK (hello!) I’ll be cutting my RSS feed to an extract so there can’t be any misery over spoilers. But with other series? Other ones I haven’t seen? Oh, there is so much to catch up on.
So I’ll carry on binging. But perhaps not quite so bingishly. Maybe my next series, I’ll do one season a week. Or less – But I’ll happily take ideas on which other TV might be fun to catch up with, with pictures and other fun things? Any idea, if anyone is out there, gratefully received. In the meantime, I’ll come back and expand on the season5 finale tomorrow, hopefully, as well as the season 6 opener – but as I say, they’ll be slightly differently laid out to avoid spoilers.
For my part, I have to say: thanks. I have achieved what I have wanted to achieve for this week:
a) I wanted to set myself a stupid deadline and stick to it.
b) I wanted to show myself I could promote myself or my work like a regular confident person and not cry.
I’ve proved I can write 50,000+ completely readble words. In less than a week.
So now I just have to plan, right?
And a new Box Set. Anyone have any ideas?
(and while you’re thinking about it, here are the old Lostinson family trees)…
WHY?!? | SEASON ONE | SEASON TWO | SEASON THREE | SEASON FOUR | SEASON FIVE
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tellywonk is currently dressed in Thunderbolt by Hell Yeah Dude.
Thoroughly enjoyed the Lostathon. How about the West Wing?
Comment by JamesRB — February 3, 2010 @ 3:12 am
A new box set suggestion? Personally, I can’t wait to get stuck into the massive box set of Poirot that I got for Christmas. “Running Time: 4195 mins approx” of art deco cosy Belgian-ness. Although the Americans might not be so interested – do they have Poirot over there??
Comment by FlossieT — February 3, 2010 @ 4:39 am
I got Murder One box set for Christmas, I’ll be watching it after S6 of LOST. I watched it back in the 90s and loved it, I’m just hoping it doesn’t disappoint this time round. I loved your marathon, I laughed aloud over and over. WELL DONE!
Comment by NickyB — February 3, 2010 @ 12:20 pm
It’s got to be Battlestar Galactica – 4.5 seasons of pure telly joy. And robots.
Lots of Daddy issues though…
Comment by mike — February 4, 2010 @ 1:30 am
Totally agree with Mike – it’s got to be Battlestar Galactica. After watching the first episodes of Caprica, I’ve got a hankering for a Galactica binge myself.
Loved the Lostathon, by the way.
Comment by Jael — February 4, 2010 @ 5:25 am
Consider Buffy. There’s lots of beasties and some British accents – both real and incredibly fake. And there;s still a surprisingly active fanbase, with comic books and podcasts and fanfic, oh my.
Comment by Joy — February 4, 2010 @ 7:25 pm
I watched all of The Sopranos during January, excellent, really absorbing. And possibly the only show that should have an accompanying eating game, rather than drinking game. Planning to start on The West Wing in a couple of weeks.
Comment by Kath — February 5, 2010 @ 4:08 am
I’m currently going through Buffy, as and when I get the time, and it’s as amazing as it ever was. So, I second Joy on that one.
Alternatively, Battlestar Galactica is an epic, I thoroughly recommend it if you haven’t seen it.
Comment by Anna F — February 6, 2010 @ 3:51 am
I think you should choose something particularly American while you’re still here. Maybe Gilmore Girls? Twin Peaks? True Blood (or have you already tackled that)?
Comment by Kathy — February 9, 2010 @ 11:43 pm
I watched my way through The West Wing and Friends last year (and all of Hitchcock’s films from his silents through to Family Plot but that doesn’t count). The experience of watching them so closely was that my expectation and original experience of them both losing steam late on turned out to be incorrect. Both have a mid series lull them bounce right back again with an influx of new writers in their later seasons.
Comment by Stuart Ian Burns — February 10, 2010 @ 3:12 pm
Interesting you should say that, Stuart. I was considering doing Friends, purely in a statto kind of way, racking up how many jokes recurred and inconsistencies were ignored etc.
But I did know it dipped and got better – I felt that very strongly the first time through watching it. It was almost as if, once they’d set an end date, the writers were given license to make everyone fully into the stereotypes they’d been pushing at all along.
I might actually do that sometime. I honestly don’t care if anyone reads it, so it might work out ok!…
Comment by Anna — February 10, 2010 @ 5:02 pm