Monday, June 29, 2009

Television and Sports

So, I was stuck somewhere in between a Braves rain delay and the NBA Finals...

While I do enjoy the occasional hoops matchup, I just didn't find Magic-Lakers to be all that intriguing. Despite all the talk about how this was a huge series for Phil and Kobe, I just couldn't get into it. I just couldn't get excited. That all being said, because it was basketball's world championship...I'll took the Lakers in five...they ended up nailling things down in six.

Because of the my lack of interest in Naismith's Game, and Mother Nature's denial of baseball, I was left sifting through the DV-R (which I once described on this very blog as one of the best inventions of my lifetime). This great machine captures all my favorite shows - and a lot of the crap that I really shouln't waste my time with - but it got me thinking. What kinds of shows am I watching? What kinds of shows are you watching? And, frankly, how can I make some sort of sports comparison?

That's when I started jotting down a list of some of the shows that you can find on TV right now and tried to figure out who their athletic counterpart would be. Let me know what you think about this:

30 Rock = Manny Ramirez
They might both be the best out there. People under the age of about 35 LOVE them...people over the age of 35 don't really get them. The "oldies" find them both obnoxious and hard to relate to. You can't argue with the production though. They consistantly give you what you came to get - a couple of awkward moments and bunch of laughs. And sure, an occiasional steriods/female-fertility drug scandal.

The Office = Phil Mikkelson
What's interesting about these two pudgers is that they each have some of the best and worst moments on television. Plus, they need to just do what they do best...rely on the short game. Hour-long episodes of The Office that are "story-driven" just don't work as well as the half-hour episodes that have Jim and Dwight picking on each other. Just put it on the tee, knock it out there, then just give me short little pitches from afew of the tertiary characters and you have yourself a winner.

Heroes = Dontrelle Willis
Nothing has ever started out so hot only to take such a turn for the worse. Both are borderline unwatchable at this point but you gotta keep them in the rotation because you never know when they might catch fire again.
Quick side note: I just don't know if I am okay with Hayden Panettiere being 19 years old...it just makes me feel creepy. Can't she go back to being that little 5-year old girl who draws up high school football plays for her father in Remember The Titans?!

Seinfeld = Ken Griffey Jr.
This is a comparison that I just recently came to terms with. Both, in there time, were unquestionably the best in the business. Both had a long career and have been beloved by almost everyone. Both have become a little dated in the last year or so. Hear me out. I'm not saying that Seinfeld (or Junior for that matter) is done. I'm just saying that neither can really stand with the current players. Sure, every once in a while The Kid goes yard and every now and again you get "The Opposite" and you get that old warm, fuzzy feeling.




That's at least a start...

1 comment:

Joe said...

Now, that is poignant. Some seriously good comparisons (especially "Heroes")!