It was about a month ago that Brent Bozell wrote a column about the shows on FX where we as viewers root for the anti-heroes. In The Americans for example, I would be sympathetic as a viewer to the Russian spies and hope that they will accomplish their missions.
I don’t have to agree with the views of Bozell or the views of TV guide. As an example, during the second episode of The Americans, one of the spies told the maid that if she didn’t plant a bug in Casper Weinberger’s office, then they would kill her son.
At one point, they nearly did it. Then there was the third episode when they found out that one of the Russian spies married an an American and had a baby. By the end of the episode, the Russian spies promised to help the woman and her child after her husband was killed. In the end of the third episode, the mother was murdered and the baby would be brought back to Russia.
Yet, as Bozell and TV Guide put it, I should be rooting for the Russians. To be quite frank, from the outset, I was rooting for the Americans and I hope they capture these spies. I don’t see why anyone else wouldn’t feel the same way. They’re not sympathetic characters.
It’s not the first time one of Brent Bozell’s columns have been exaggerated. In The Shield, he claims that the character, Michael Chiklis, who plays the corrupt cop, is a sympathetic character and we root for him to continue to be a corrupt cop. Based on the show that I saw, I was rooting for the chief of police to bring Chiklis down for among other things, killing a fellow cop in the first episode. I think that at the end of the series, Chiklis would get away but would have to be unhappy spending time behind a desk at the FBI.
Maybe there is some merit to Bozell’s claims that the motorcycle gang in The Sons of Anarchy is brutal. In one episode, Bozell claims that there were close ups of one of the gang members mutilating a child molester. Based on the episode I saw, there were no close ups. Just punching and kicking and the camera moving away from anything else that happened so we could use our imagination.
Interpretations can be made and maybe people can have different opinions. I have no problem in agreeing that violence has gotten out of hand on TV especially after TV shows like Criminal Minds and The Following.
The difference is that I don’t have to exaggerate or make things up. They’re hit shows. They’re very disturbing. If you’re going to focus on violence and TV shows, then it seems to me that you can take the time to watch a TV show and draw an opinion based on that.
My answer is that if you’re going to attack a TV show Mr. Bozell, do it and back it up with the right evidence. There are TV shows out that that you can attack and prove your point. Don’t make it a habit of attacking shows and putting your own spin on it.
Rick Holman
I don’t have to agree with the views of Bozell or the views of TV guide. As an example, during the second episode of The Americans, one of the spies told the maid that if she didn’t plant a bug in Casper Weinberger’s office, then they would kill her son.
At one point, they nearly did it. Then there was the third episode when they found out that one of the Russian spies married an an American and had a baby. By the end of the episode, the Russian spies promised to help the woman and her child after her husband was killed. In the end of the third episode, the mother was murdered and the baby would be brought back to Russia.
Yet, as Bozell and TV Guide put it, I should be rooting for the Russians. To be quite frank, from the outset, I was rooting for the Americans and I hope they capture these spies. I don’t see why anyone else wouldn’t feel the same way. They’re not sympathetic characters.
It’s not the first time one of Brent Bozell’s columns have been exaggerated. In The Shield, he claims that the character, Michael Chiklis, who plays the corrupt cop, is a sympathetic character and we root for him to continue to be a corrupt cop. Based on the show that I saw, I was rooting for the chief of police to bring Chiklis down for among other things, killing a fellow cop in the first episode. I think that at the end of the series, Chiklis would get away but would have to be unhappy spending time behind a desk at the FBI.
Maybe there is some merit to Bozell’s claims that the motorcycle gang in The Sons of Anarchy is brutal. In one episode, Bozell claims that there were close ups of one of the gang members mutilating a child molester. Based on the episode I saw, there were no close ups. Just punching and kicking and the camera moving away from anything else that happened so we could use our imagination.
Interpretations can be made and maybe people can have different opinions. I have no problem in agreeing that violence has gotten out of hand on TV especially after TV shows like Criminal Minds and The Following.
The difference is that I don’t have to exaggerate or make things up. They’re hit shows. They’re very disturbing. If you’re going to focus on violence and TV shows, then it seems to me that you can take the time to watch a TV show and draw an opinion based on that.
My answer is that if you’re going to attack a TV show Mr. Bozell, do it and back it up with the right evidence. There are TV shows out that that you can attack and prove your point. Don’t make it a habit of attacking shows and putting your own spin on it.
Rick Holman