Part of my job with the Army involves analyzing messages, but not the coded kind that most people think of. No, I get to look at marketing messages (for lack of a better term), usually sent by the enemy, and figure out what makes them work; what makes them effective.
That skill, it seems, has spilled over into my TV watching. I cannot watch a commercial these days without trying to dissect every little bit, from the actors used to how the words used are arranged.
I find this ironic because, as a kid, I avoided any sense of commercialism. I never had to have the Air Jordans or whatever else was popular back then. I work plain clothes without labels or markings. But it wasn’t because I knew about target audiences or anything like that, I just never had the desire to “fit in” that way. As I grew older, some of the idealism went away and I find myself sporting symbols like the Nike Swoosh over other brands, or even the plain (and cheaper) versions.
So even though I much better at reading through the marketing BS, I’m apparently more susceptible to it. I’m not sure what that says about me, but it can’t be good.
I might turn this into a regular thing here, where I take apart a popular commercial. Or not. I can’t give away all of my secrets on here, can I?
Just got done watching the latest episode of Leverage on TNT. I’m glad they didn’t try to stick with the theme of the whole team quitting every week, and that the bickering is kept to a minimum. It really helps add some realism to the idea that these people would continue to work together. I just wonder how many more “friends” out there will need help.
For those that have no idea what I’m talking about, the show is about three professional theves that are brought together for a job. A retired insurance investigator is also brought in to watch over the team and the job. They get double-crossed and decide to work together to get even, bringing in a grifter to complete the team. Bonding ensues and they decide to continue to work together to right wrongs and help the less fortunate. (It doesn’t hurt that they get a massive payout from their initial payback.)
Given that it’s on TNT, I don’t think it is going to be cancelled anytime soon. TNT has taken over for FX as the chief supplier of critically acclaimed, low ratings (relative to the big 3 networks) shows, now that The Shield is done with. In fact, TNT has a new show premiering next month from the same guys who produced Nip/Tuck for FX.
If you haven’t checked it out yet, I recommend that you TiVo it or something. There isn’t much on for the next few weeks (something I’m sure they are banking on), and it really is worth the hour of your TV-watching time. Plus, with a DVR you can skip through all of the Hyundai ads. (They sponsored the commercial-free premier.)
Today was Portland’s first snowfall. By 8 am, everything shut down: highways, schools (it was announced even though it’s Sunday), etc.
For all of my faults, I seem to have impecable timing. Today would have been a work day, and I would have had to drive all of the way to Oregon City at 6 am, if I hadn’t quit last week. Instead, I spent the entire day in bed doing absolutely nothing. Right now I’m in-between watching reruns of Cupid on YouTube. The Unit doesn’t come on tonight (damn you Survivor!) so I think I’ll just keep watching Cupid.
Tomorrow I have to take the car in for the body repairs (assuming I can get out of the parking lot) and put the deposit down on my new place (yay!). Not so sure I want to move stuff next weekend, but it beats sleeping on the floor. And it’ll be nice to have my books and DVDs again.
I was considering writing another recap, this one for the final 10 episodes of Battlestar Galactica. Then I found this on Hulu and I think it does the job far better than I would have.
According to Wiki, there was a comic book for Fringe released around the time the show started. It was supposed to be a 6-issue mini, but they shelved it after the first issue because they wanted to integrate it better into the show’s mythology. It’s supposed to be re-released in January.
I’m so far gone from the comic scene, it’s kinda sad. (Or maybe not, depending on your point of view about comic-book nerds.) Normally, I would have been all over this when it came out, and I’d be bugging Richard (my old dealer) about it every week. Lately, though, I’ve been getting my books from either Fred Meyer (think somewhere between Wal-Mart and and Target) or Barnes & Noble (think somewhere between… nevermind).
I’m sure that I’m missing quite a bit. And once I get back on my feet and back into a routine, I don’t know if I’ll be able to catch back up without putting myself back in serious debt (both time and money-wise).
Back to Fringe… I watched last week’s ep last night and I was a little miffed by the way the “tank” scene turned out. If Olivia and Walter’s intention was to bring John’s memories to her concious mind, why did Olivia stop it at the first “lead” she gets on the current case. Woudn’t it have made more sense to continue and get all of the answers before jumping out of the tank. Yes, I understand that if she gets all of the answers, the show won’t be as interesting, but I can only suspend so much disbelief.
Also, William Bell needs to make an appearance and soon. At this point I’m expecting him to be nothing more than Massive Dynamic’s AI program in the basement. The real Bell, Walter’s lab partner, having died in a freak accident. The AI Bell is using the pattern to find a way into a human body, or some such nonsense.
You would think that a guy with Bill Gates money and power, and 10-times the IQ, would be more of a public figure.
