Television In Small Doses

I don't watch as much television as I used to but I probably still watch too much. There are, however, a lot of valuable lessons to be learned from watching television and some can be of the life saving variety. For instance, if the police or any law enforcement entity say they are going to place you in a "Safe House", don't go! That is the kiss of death. It's like there is a real estate listing for mobsters for "Safe Houses".

I've also learned from years of TV watching, if you walk into a dark room, the light switch won't work and then spooky music starts playing, haul ass! Don't walk into the room saying, "Who's there?" It doesn't matter who is there, there is spooky music playing for a reason.

Then there is the scene where about fifty law enforcement types are closing in on the bad guy standing out on the street corner shooting the bull with a bunch of other derelicts. He has no idea what's going on and then the good guy or gal, still standing fifty feet away on the other side of a busy street hollers, "Police! Don't move!" Then the chase is on down allies, over fences, up stairs, through a restaurant kitchen or two and finally across the roof of a half a dozen buildings. The show could be twenty minutes shorter if they would have just walked up behind him and slapped the cuffs on and then said, "Police! Don't move!"

Finally, when was it determined that music was necessary on TV and in movies to steer and play games with our emotions? Even the silent movies were not all silent, music was vital in keeping the observers in the rhythm of the show. I'm certainly not knocking the use of music in television or movies, there have been many presentations in which the music was the only thing worthwhile.