On my gravestone, it will read “Andrew Steckling, killed by the second ‘golden age’ of television.”
Now, it’s nothing to be alarmed about. As much as I love the era we have entered, particularly due to my fascination with TV and movies, it is going to end up killing me.
Mostly because it requires time I do not have. Time I want to dedicate to getting caught up on these shows but cannot.
One of my weaknesses is that I am easily influenced. To clarify, not a “go jump off that bridge” influenced, but a “hey, you should check this out.”
Entering college, I maybe had three or four TV shows in my arsenal that I watched regularly. By my senior year four years later, that grew to double digits.
College did provide that freedom to spend a weekend sitting around and watching TV shows. Add in a circle of friends who each had their own unique taste, and I became a sponge.
“This show is hilarious.” Well, then I have to watch it.
“Jon Hamm does wonders in this role.” Alright, count me in.
“You haven’t seen ‘The Office?!?’” I’m sorry, I’ll remedy that right away.
Before judging, I still managed to work a full-time job and earn a degree. I just seemed to have more freedom then. Not so much anymore, which is why I’m upset over this new era of television.
I have maybe 10-15 shows in my arsenal now that I watch weekly. These include daily comedy talk shows, weekly serials, and sitcoms that I watch with my parents.
That number may be a bit high. I haven’t really tallied what I currently watch, nor am I really sure whether I can count some shows as “shows I currently watch.”
But I want more. With options expanding of how to watch these shows (cable, HBO Now/Go, Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, On Demand, Hulu), I now realize I have essentially the world at my fingertips. And I must watch them all.
Okay, not all of them. But my personality does not help in this regard. If I see a trailer for something interesting, I’ll have to check it out. If I read a review for a new show that marks how it’s cool, I know I’ll have to add it to my list.
Case in point: Last week, as I traveled to St. Louis for a bachelor party, I stayed at a friend’s house the night before. As we sat around and talked, waiting for the last two in our party to arrive, he clicked on his Apple TV. We got to talking about what shows we had been watching, bonded over our love of Netflix’s “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” and even threw on a couple episodes of “Bob’s Burgers.”
It was only then he mentioned HBO’s “Silicon Valley,” and was surprised I had never watched an episode. I have heard of the series, but having it be on HBO and my already extensive list of TV shows, I just hadn’t gotten around to seeing it.
So we watched one episode. And then that led to another. And another. I’m now officially hooked on the series.
I don’t need an intervention. I don’t have a problem. I know there are limits to what I can watch and how long I can watch things for. I think I just miss the ability to watch it. The free time I had in college to just sit down, start a season of a TV show, and spend that weekend binge-watching it.
This era, while helping me amass a list of shows to watch, fuels my love of TV and movies. I’ll get caught up one day, and I know I’ll fall behind on some shows, but man do I love being a part of this.
