Not going to talk about anything high brow today. Whoops, just realized I never have, so no surprise there. Not even going to talk low brow entertainment either. I'm going to talk the most basic form of mindless fun out there. I'm talking about Yahoo Games.
I work in a library and frequently see people using their Internet time playing games. No, not online poker or gambling (though there are some of those too), but the games with the bouncy balls that make boing boing noices or the many colored squares that steadily fill the screen. I used to think they were nuts. Why use their alotted 90 minutes to play some game? Couldn't their time be better spent making inane conversation in a chat room or exchanging emails with their potential mail-order brides? What's the appeal?
I've since learned the lesson. When all else fails in my office - can't get stupid iTunes to work no matter how fool-proof it's supposed to be (they never met me apparently!), can't figure what to write in my blog, can't figure out what to write for a review or in my book - abandon them all and head for Yahoo games! Mindless and just competitive enough to be interesting and yet totally meaningless and harmless. Doesn't matter how badly I do. I can play until I get a crick in my neck and there's no harm, no foul. As much as I get into the game while I play it, I walk away relaxed. I've been able to shut my brain down to all else while I played and that's saying something.
So the next time you're feeling like you're about to smash the computer or toss the monitor out the window visit Yahoo Games. I recommend Super Bounce Out and Cubis if you're wondering.
The replies to my last post got me thinking about tv shows that were all too short-lived. It's scary to commit to a television show, 'cause chances are, you'll grow to love it and then it will be yanked from the screen. Or it will hop from night to night like a manic frog. No telling where it will land. Some shows are doomed at the start by their timeslot. Firefly was one such show. I think it's time slot was 7 pm on Fridays? For a clever, but hard to qualify, science fiction show? What were they thinking? And though I still can get a bit of the clever Joss Whedon on his blog, that doesn't help me.
Other shows are killed by lack of promotion. The one I mentioned in the comments on my last post with the cop named Rose Phillips was Under Suspicion. The show came out in 1994, lasted less then a season and I could remember tonight that the female lead's name was Rose "Phil" Phillips. She was played stupendously by Karen Sillas as the only female on an all male police squad (with an early appearance by Eric LaSalle of ER fame). Here's a bit from a review at the time: When one co-worker asks if she's a lesbian. Phil doesn't miss a beat. "That depends," she says in withering deadpan. "Are you the alternative?" When another wonders what it's like being a woman with all these men, she replies: "The toilet seat's always up." Her conflicted love interest was in Internal Affairs and played by a favorite of mine, Phillip Casnoff. Good, good stuff. And come to think of it, I think this one was killed not only by lack of promotion but also by a Friday night time slot.
From this season Commander in Chief had a lot of promise. Though I was sceptical, Geena Davis was very convincing as the first woman president. The dynamic of her taking office and having a family was interesting initially. But it suffered the demented frog effect both in scheduling and writing. In one season it was seen on three nights and had three writer teams. Not good. What started out as a show about a strong, capable, intelligent woman thrust into the job of a lifetime became just another melodramatic spectacle. It became less about what impact a woman would have on the job of president and more about how a female would be so conflicted by the job. Not nearly as interesting.
Any show's you've taken a chance on? Any networks grab you and then stab you?