TV!

[icepixie]

I know one of you people would like to take on the task of addicting me to Gilmore Girls. See, now that I've finished rewatching all the seasons of Northern Exposure that I consider my personal canon, I'm looking for shows with similar qualities. (Yes, Twin Peaks is at the top of my Netflix queue. I don't know why I didn't watch it earlier. And I tried a couple episodes of Men In Trees, which is billed as NX-meets-Sex & the City. Yeah, well, it's way more S&C than NX, and I can't stand that show. Hence being unable to make it through a complete episode of this series without rolling my eyes and changing the channel.) The TV Tropes Wiki, a fascinating site in its own right, cites both GG and NX under the category of "Quirky Town."

My question is, how quirky? And what's the show about, besides, "Single mother in small town; massive UST with some guy named Luke"? (I know nothing about this show beyond what I've gleaned from skimming y'all's posts about it over the years. Well, that and the fact that whoever plays the daughter bears a remarkable resemblance to Sasha Cohen.) I've never been able to get into a show about high school students, so I'm wary of that angle. And I get the impression that this season took the express train to hell. Should I bother if it'll all end badly?

I'm willing to try out a variety of shows in order to find one or two to fill the NX void in my life. I'm already a fan of Wonderfalls and Ballykissangel, and neither Corner Gas nor Ed are on DVD in any way that I can access them, so in absence of those particularly good candidates, I'm looking for suggestions. Broadly, the three things I'm looking for most, singularly or in combination, are:

1.) Quirky characters/quirky town
2.) Magical realism (this can include dream sequences)
3.) Stories obviously written to make English majors happy. Basically, writing that's already excellent, but also with a penchant for metaphor, symbolism, and/or quotation from and allusion to literary/philosophical/mythological works. The ability to play games like "Spot the Jungian Archetype" can only be a plus.
...4.) Okay, the UST and ensuing 'ship doesn't hurt.

...This means I should really give Buffy a fifth try, doesn't it? I don't know what my problem is with that and Angel. I don't actively dislike them; I just can't get into them. Firefly was a near thing as well.

Anyway, if you know of something I should try, let me know. Perhaps Slings and Arrows? I've heard good things about that one...

Book and movie suggestions along these lines are welcome as well!

(Okay, now that I've actually taken steps to make use of my unemployed free time, surely I will get a dozen calls offering employment, my dead-in-the-water freelancing career will take off, and I'll start racking up volunteer hours. This is the rule of the universe.)

Comments

[alto2.livejournal.com]

GG was great until last year, IMO. This year was the final nail in the coffin for me--I watched the first episode, was bored out of my mind by the middle, and haven't turned it on again this year. I would think that the town, which is definitely quirky, and the fact that it's not exclusively focused on teenagers should help get you over that hurdle. And hey, it's on ABC Family every evening (I think--used to be on at 5pmET each night) so there's no financial investment there if you can start somewhere in the vicinity of the beginning.

I really liked it, coming to it late thanks to my crackdealing flist, but yeah, skip the last two years' worth. It's worth bothering for the stuff before then, though, which is clever and fun.

[icepixie]

I would think that the town, which is definitely quirky, and the fact that it's not exclusively focused on teenagers should help get you over that hurdle.

With any luck, yes.

And hey, it's on ABC Family every evening

Oh, fabulous. It is still airing every weeknight; TV Guide says they're at the beginning of S3 right now. I'll try it some night when I don't have choir, and Netflix the first two seasons if I like it.

*makes note to skip the last two years*

[alto2.livejournal.com]

I'll try it some night when I don't have choir, and Netflix the first two seasons if I like it.

Sounds like a plan! And yeah, definitely ixnay on the last two years. Last year was the Long Draggy Year Where Nothing Happened (where the creator quoted by someone else sorta went back on her own words) and this year just...ick. She and her husband left the show and the folks who took over are on some sort of special crack, or something. I'm not sure if there are four good years or five (I mostly watched on ABC Fam so my sense of time is compressed) but the good years are very good.