IF Sheldon, THEN Kevin

I’m frustrated.

Maybe it's because we’ve been living through a global pandemic since last year. Maybe it’s the unrelenting and increasing civil unrest. Or maybe it’s just realizing that the doom-and-gloom conspiracy theorists have wasted their time prepping for a zombie apocalypse when they should’ve been readying themselves for an avalanche of insufferable stupidity.

Regardless, one thing is clear: quality entertainment is dead. Perhaps that is an overstatement. Instead, let's say it is on life support with very little hope on the horizon.

Today is my birthday. I’m now 41 years old. Depending on which sociologist you prefer, I am generally classified as the last of the Gen-Xers to grace the planet. People my age grew up with one foot in the pre-internet world, and the other in a fledgling digital age. Many of us were latchkey kids whose morality was formed by the postmodern relativism of early MTV and the humorous nihilism of Seinfeld.

I’m neither the first nor will I be the last person to speculate why we are currently facing an onslaught of entertainment options completely barren of originality or creativity.

I’ve put off my cynical skepticism as long as I can. It is time to render a verdict. Most of our entertainment options these days are total shit. With only a handful of exceptions, most of the movies and TV shows produced over the last decade are unwatchable. Plot, conflict, and character development are relics of the entertainment-past. Good writing and quality, believable acting have become a lost art.

Trust me, I take no glee in such a pronouncement. I reluctantly admit this as a broken-hearted and disappointed fan. I’m no Roger Ebert. I never forged a career as a professional critic, but confess this as one who loves the cinema and is always on the hunt for a gripping new series. But if we’re being honest with ourselves (and I doubt very seriously that I’m alone in this opinion), we’re all suffering from the abysmal void of nobility and raw humanity currently absent in our recent entertainment options.

Pablo Picasso once said “Art is the lie that enables us to see the truth.” And if you’ll forgive the crude medicinal analogy, today’s film/series options are closer to a mind-numbing Vicodin rather than a soul-enlightening trip on magic mushrooms. These stories don’t enable us to see the truth. If anything, they seem crafted in such a way so as to distract us from ever noticing what’s really going on.

I want to experience dramatic art that resonates with my humanity and makes me feel invigorated. Regrettably, such a find these days feels about as likely as a Bigfoot sighting.

There are countless examples I could use to illustrate this point, so I’ll try and prove my thesis by drawing a contrast between two television shows that embody this sad truth. Working within the parameters of this contest, I’ll frame it in a “If This, Then That” format.

IF you believe that The Big Bang Theory is one of the worst artistic atrocities ever inflicted upon mankind, THEN you desperately need to watch The Leftovers.

The Big Bang Theory debuted on CBS in the fall of 2007 and ran for a baffling 12 seasons. It centers around a couple of young, brilliant physicists in Pasadena, CA and their corresponding neighbors, roommates, and love interests. I wish I could give you a more detailed description of the general plot line but you’ll have to blame the show’s writers for not offering much more substance than that.

I’m open to correction, but in my experience I’ve never encountered a show that relied more heavily on a laugh track to carry the viewer through each episode. The video essayists over on the YouTube channel Wisecrack have devoted a significant amount of time explaining this phenomenon. They rightly point out that the bulk of the sitcom’s “jokes” rely on scientific references, rather than punchlines. In other words, rather than writing clever material they bombard you with obscure scientific, technical nomenclature in a flood of forced studio laugh track recordings.

In an attempt to highlight this fact, fellow armchair critics have published several YouTube videos, isolating clips from the show with the laugh track removed. See the video below for a gagging taste.

(I want to say “thank you” for those able to continue reading the rest of this post after watching that cringe-inducing sample. I understand if you need to take a moment to reflect on the hopelessness of our culture before moving on.)

In an attempt to pay tribute to nerd-culture, the producers of The Big Bang Theory achieved the moronification (a word that merits being coined given the circumstances) of its viewers while simultaneously contributing to the destruction of Western civilization. (I’m not bitter, I promise.) Instead of entertaining us, they managed to lobotomize the masses.

Now for the redemption.

I’ve written elsewhere on the merits of HBO’s The Leftovers. I’ll briefly summarize for the purpose of this recommendation.

To me, The Leftovers is one of the best-written shows in the last few decades. The series was inspired by Tom Perrotta’s novel by the same name. Damon Lindelof (from the show Lost) was tapped to write and produce this expanded tale.

The premise of this 3-season series is that, on October 14th there was a rapture-like event where roughly 2% of the world’s population instantly vanished with no warning signs. The event is referred to as “The Departure,” and those who disappeared are not thought of as dead but merely departed.

The show examines the lives of those not departed, and how they make sense of the world after such an inexplicable catastrophe. Reactions congregate around different extremes. Some grow very nihilistic. Others get religious. Still others suppress their emotions and try to keep moving forward with some semblance of normalcy. A handful of cults form after the departure, most notably among them is a group known as The Guilty Remnant.

The Guilty Remnant is a movement that exists to be a living reminder to everyone of what happened. They dress only in pure white clothing. They never speak out loud, but only communicate by writing on note pads. To them words are a waste of breath and just a denial that the world already ended.

All GR members smoke cigarettes incessantly and do not fear death, because to them nothing can be more painful than a meaningless existence. They shed all signs of individuality and are determined to destroy the concepts of family, community, connection with the divine, and ultimately civilization itself. The Guilty Remnant has no problem recruiting new members as they prey on the many who are emotionally shattered after mysteriously losing their loved ones. Most are looking for answers or a way to cope, and the GR is always there.

In the show, smoking cigarettes is a motif for dealing with the hopeless chaos. Nearly every character smokes as they each wrestle with how to make sense of The Departure.

Archetypal and mythological imagery shapes this entire series. Every episode and every character seems to pull from some ancient story whether from Norse or Greek mythology, Egyptian lore, Japanese legends, or Biblical prophecies. Even if you’ve never studied those histories or sagas, you will still be able to enjoy the show. But if you are familiar with those ancient narratives, then you will be able to appreciate even more the sheer genius of this series.

For my full analysis of the show with spoilers, click here. For a preview of the Season 1 trailer, click the video below.

Allow me, if you will, a brief word about the show’s conclusion.

The final episode is a masterpiece. I mean, nearly perfect. The epic show Game of Thrones (arguably one of the greatest meta-narratives ever produced) massively disappointed its fans with an unsatisfactory ending. This was not the case in The Leftovers finale.

Watching the show in real time, I was enamored but could not remotely guess how the creators were going to wrap up such a surreal storyline. I underestimated them. The ending blew me away.

I love this show for so many reasons. It is brilliantly written and the actors' performances were phenomenal. The musical score was masterfully selected, flawlessly executed, and enhanced the experience of every episode. I’ve never watched a show filled with more surprises and twists that are so beautifully weaved together in the end.

Even though no such event like the sudden Departure has ever taken place in our reality, this show illustrates the fragility of our humanity in dealing with loss and trauma. Regrettably, those are bitter herbs we must all taste, and The Leftovers gives its viewers a chance to place themselves within the lives of these characters to test their own hearts. We’re offered an opportunity heal the fractures in our relationships and deal with our insecurities ahead of time, so that when someone we love actually *departs* from us, we know better how to bear it.

Conclusion

In the spirit of this contest, I appreciate your patience with my occasional indulgence in the hyperbolic. The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said “we have art in order not to die of the truth." I realize that in the grand scheme of things, television shows don’t matter that much. With all the grave concerns in the world today, our Netflix queue seems trivial. But life is more than the sum total of its problems. Love, beauty, and art matter.

For the sake of our survival as a species, yes I hope we can figure out the larger issues like poverty, war, climate change, race relations, and the like. But I’m also hoping that our arts & entertainment industries can likewise help change the world by elevating us with a revived quality in our shows and films. If not...bazinga, we’re all screwed.