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kstate_ham
Reviews
Halt and Catch Fire (2014)
Soap Opera After 1st Season
Unlike most reviewers here, apparently I'm not a fan of soap operas. That's what Season 2-4 turned into. Season 1 had a great plot and a lot of energy and momentum even if some of the characters were extremely flawed and unlikable. But season 2 onward focused on unbelievably ridiculous character drama rather than an exciting plot. If you enjoy watching a show with characters which are self-destructive with few redeeming qualities, then seasons 2-4 might be your thing. For me, it was painful to watch such narcissistic, immature "adults" destroying their lives, their families, their friendships, their reputations, and their fortunes for the sake of ambition. Hollywood doesn't seem to be much interested in telling inspiring stories anymore, unless the message is "Hey, at least your life isn't as bad as *these* self-absorbed jerks!"
S1: 9/10 stars
S2-4: 5/10 stars
The Newsroom (2012)
Fundamentally flawed, but very entertaining
PROS: Finally a show that shoots for idealism rather than cynicism! Instead of focusing on the dark side of journalism, this show challenges the status quo and recognizes that we can and should be doing better. It's a refreshingly positive show. I love all the characters for different reasons, but there isn't a single throw away- every single character in the show brings something to the table and makes me wish they had more screen time. The characters are off-beat and interesting, not necessarily realistic though- but that's why we watch TV and read books in the first place. The dialog is witty, the workplace romantic drama is present (with Jim Harper seemingly a stand in for The Office's Jim Halpert) and while the main character, Will McAvoy, at times seems like a pompous ass, he has his moments of redemption- which I'm hoping will be an overarching theme and progression throughout the series.
CONS: The sheer hypocrisy of the show should be glaringly obvious to all. It sets out to push for higher standards in journalism in order to educate the American voters to elect the leaders America deserves. A noble goal that the writers somehow feel is achieved by simply bashing all things Republican or conservative. To mask the overt political bias, the writers made Will McAvoy a wolf in sheep's clothing by claiming he is a registered Republican and even pro-life. But Mr. McAvoy spends every minute on air criticizing Republicans, Republican politicians, candidates and legislature, conservative ideas and even Christianity- often via straw man arguments, extremely one sided monologues, character assassination and plain mischaracterization. All the while he gives Democrats, liberals and even Islam a free pass. Though McAvoy is supposed to be pro-life, he has a guest on his show who proposes abortion as a viable alternative and mercy act for children who would be born to "incapable parents" and he doesn't even engage his guest, let alone debate with her. So it is very disappointing for a show with such a challenging premise to see it fail so miserably in its goal. To properly educate American voters, you must think critically of ALL parties, politicians and ideologies, not just the ones the writers don't like. In the end, The Newsroom is certainly no better and possibly even worse than Fox News and MSNBC- entertaining, but so unbelievably biased that they're hard to take seriously. For a show that uses a critique of American journalism as its premise, it is either incredibly dense and ignorant of its hypocrisy, or worse, it is fully aware of it and is just another propaganda machine. Either way, the show challenges us to demand better and then settles for the very thing it claims to despise.
As an Independent voter, I agree with the premise of this show- the press is supposed to keep the government in check, hold politicians accountable and educate the voters so that We the People can be best represented by our elected officials. Unfortunately the writers themselves seem incapable of rising to the occasion and envisioning even a fictional world with fictional characters that can achieve this goal. It's still a very enjoyable show however. If you're a staunch Democrat, you'll revel in McAvoy's religious zeal for destroying the Republican party and smirk and nod your head in agreement with him at every turn. If you're a Independent, a Libertarian or a Republican however, you may find yourself cringing from time to time and wondering how so much fuzzy logic can be passed off as intelligent writing. Putting aside the fundamentally flawed premise and execution, the show does make for darn good entertainment though. Just don't ever think it would be a good idea to parrot Will McAvoy's political arguments in the real world- they only work because they're scripted and therefore the writers can protect Mr. McAvoy from intelligent rebuttals.