(no subject)

[deckardcanine]

The popularity of "Downton Abbey" has been about as mysterious to me as the brony phenomenon is to outsiders. A PBS soap set in a British mansion long ago, appealing that much to Americans? Why aren't they bored stiff? Even the title makes me feel like spitting tea. Sure, the same writer's work on Gosford Park wasn't bad, but it wasn't a runaway success, and he had to share it with Robert Altman among others.

So I finally watched the pilot episode and... came out just as baffled. I kept reminding myself that it was only a little more than an hour; I wouldn't be there long. To be generous, I then browsed Netflix's summaries of the following, somewhat shorter episodes, but nothing captured my interest.

Then it occurred to me that "The West Wing" is the only TV drama series I recall ever liking (miniseries like "John Adams" don't count). All my other favored series involve comedy, action/adventure, sci-fi/fantasy, mystery, and/or suspense. Heck, TWW probably wouldn't work for me if not for its many witty moments. It's not that I don't like drama at all; I can even love dramas set in old-time Britain, as shown by my LJ cheers for The King's Speech. But whether mellow or melo-, dramatic stories tend to try my patience before long, hence my strong preferences for movies and plays of the genre. Yes, the DA pilot ran shorter than the average dramatic movie, but in setting up for an entire season or so, it took its time and didn't bother to get to anything really juicy yet.

At least I serendipitously picked a good week to check it out. Nobody told me it began in April 1912. Now, thanks to a recent centennial, I could readily guess what headliner caught the characters' attention.

Comments

[dhlawrence.livejournal.com]

More than caught their attention. The heir to the titular estate went down with the ship, causing a succession crisis because the current owner has no sons. They have to find a suitable male relative (or husband) to take the place over so it doesn't pass to strangers.

[deckardcanine.livejournal.com]

Well, yes, but I was talking about the very beginning, before they indicated how personal the news was.