Planet Earth
There is no such thing as essential television. As much as I enjoy shows like Lost and The Office and yes, even Grey's Anatomy (the shame!), they aren't essential. But the Discovery Channel has this new show, Planet Earth, and it is about as close to essential television as we've ever gotten before.
Discovery Channel had been advertising it for a while, but I didn't really pay much attention. Most everything on the Discovery Channel is good (Mythbusters, Dirty Jobs "I can smell it nooow!", and...Mythbusters :)), so I just assumed that Planet Earth would be one of their above average every day documentaries. And because of that assumption, I decided not to make the effort to seek it out on Sunday night. Thankfully, though, it sought me out. I came across it at about ten minutes after it started and was stopped dead in my channel surfing tracks. The show was immediately captivating. I have never gotten so much of a Discovery Channel high (which happens often) as I did watching Planet Earth. The show captures and reminds us of the massiveness, complexity, and beauty of God's creation. It is a spiritual experience if you're not too cynical to allow it to be.
"Well of course its going to be captivating!" you say. "Its planet earth we're talking about here!"
Yes, yes it is. Hence the name of the show. But, trust me and trust the Discovery Channel advertisers, "Prepare to see it as never before." Seriously, prepare yourself. If you are a nature geek, strap yourself down. You may become violent with enthusiasm and inadvertently take everyone down around you. No fun for them. If watching on a hard surface, place a pillow down so that your jaw doesn't shatter upon impact. And if, just by chance, you happen to be a crack addict reading this blog (I wouldn't be a bit surprised), consider this your lucky day! I beg of you, resist the urge to shoot cocaine before watching the show, because between the crack and the show, you will OD and die. And the worst part of that is you'll miss the next week's episode. Tragedy!
...prepare yourself...
Discovery Channel
Sunday nights at 8.
5 comments:
I would argue that Lost is essential television. At least season one. I think it will go down as a classic because its so well-written and executed.
Haven't been able to catch Planet Earth, but now I'm really excited because I love that kind of stuff. I'll try to find it online.
I don't think television is necessary at all. I do, though, think that obsessively avoiding it by removing all televisions from your home is a dumb. Basically, you are saying that nothing "the world" has to offer is of value, and you thereby cut yourself off and can't have any positive influence on people. I started writing a post on this a few weeks ago, but haven't had the time to finish it. Soon though...
But I don't see how television is necessary. As much as I would love for people to watch "Lost" and learn from it, I don't see it as anything more than entertainment with only a few lessons to be learned here and there. The same goes with all the news stations. They are merely entertainment, they report on what sells, not what is actual news. I think the name "Anna Nicole Smith" sums up that argument quite well.
I took it that you meant essential to mean an important part of the canon of great television. Not essential meaning that we would die without it.
"Lost" is probably the only show this century (so far) that I would consider an essential part of that canon.
Yes, that is true. It has encouraged greatness among other shows, so it is essential in terms of the forward progression of television. But ya, I was going more along the lines of dieing without it. :)
Planet Earth has God written all over it, and anybody with the eyes to see and the ears to hear will see Him in the earth they don't otherwise get to see on a daily basis, so I consider it more holistically essential than "Lost". Eventhough "Lost" is as amazing as it is, nothing compares to greatest of God's creation, and Planet Earth captures that like no other show has before.
(The annoying part though is that the narrator will actually talk about the cool cameras they are using, which can get annoying at times. But that is a minor complaint.)
Thanks for the comments! Its nice to have someone challenge what I say; it encourages me to actually put thought into my blog posts. :)
You're welcome. Ditto for your comments as well. Thanks for the encouragement yesterday.
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