Television

I don't watch a lot of television, so I was unfamiliar with a lot of the tv shows Steven Johnson mentions, but I agree with his argument that tv shows are more complex than the credit they receive and they require a lot of thinking on the part of the audience. I have watched most of the Sopranos episodes and part of the reason I enjoy this show so much is because of the complexity and multiple threading. I hadn't thought of this before, but it's a good point.

One thing that Johnson does not mention, but I think is worth noting, is that all of the shows he mentions have also done an outstanding job of character development. No story (on tv, in a movie or in a book) is going to be compelling or effective without its characters. Also, the characters are what drive the plot. When fans of Dallas (a show I have never seen) wrote to express the pleasure they take in the show, wasn't it the characters who they followed and possible identified with? Isn't our emotional attachement to such stories because of our love/dislike of the characters?

I think the same Sleeper Curve which Johnson referes to in reference to tv shows is also happening with movies. Look at some of the best movies to come out recently like "Crash" and "Babel." Of course then again, thank goodness for tv shows and movies which don't require a lot of thinking. There are times when I want to "plug-in" without having to use any mental energy. This is when shows like American Idol or chic flics (like "Bridget Jones's Diary") come in handy. There's a place for each kind of viewing.