It’s that time of year again. The new shows are here, and [most of] the old shows are back. There are new “experiments” in programming to be watched and evaluated, and new garbage to make fun of. This is generally one of my favorite times of year, since I worship at the alter of the television gods.
Here’s my take on this year’s new season: EXCELLENT. The new TV out for this 2009-2010 season beats the pants of the last 
five years. I’ve been super excited for GLEE since the sneak peak FOX showed during Idol finale week. Now that I’ve seen the second
episode, I’m definitely hooked; Matthew Morrisson is so HOT, and I’m going to love having new musical acts to watch every week. I’m also looking forward to Accidentally On Purpose (gotta give new multi-cam comedies a chance!) and The Good Wife from the Tiffany Network and am curious to see Eastwick and Cougar Town from the Alphabet. And to bring up the rear in my new TV picks is Stargate: Universe airing on the newly re-branded SyFy.
Returning series I love and can’t wait for are Ugly Betty, Desperate Housewives, The Big Bang Theory, Fringe, and 30 Rock. I’ve also been slightly tempted by the promos for Survivor: Samoa, but we’ll see about that. If I actually watch all of these programs, that 10 hours of primetime programming a week, which gets me to the point of this particular post.
Americans watch a lot of television. And when I say a lot, I mean a LOT; according to Nielsen, the average American watches 151 hours of television per month. That’s about 5 hours per day, or somewhere between 25-35% of a person’s waking day. Ridiculous, right? But, as a television professional, I say, THANKS AMERICA!!! 
Anyway, what is it about TV that makes us so attached to it? Is it the wonderful programming? No, I don’t think so. Most of it is 
crap. (Yes, Jay Leno, I’m talking about you.) Is it to have something easy, cheap, and noisy so we’re not alone and bored in our living rooms? Very possibly, but that’s not all of it. People want their stories, and more importantly, they want the characters. These fictional creatures- be they animated, shot on film, or staged in multi-camera, come into our homes on a weekly or sometimes daily basis, and are part of our lives. We learn from them, laugh with them, cry with them. Television characters are the friends that we can have over when we feel like it, and we can never upset them, insult them, or hurt them. They are our constant, our rock in this ever-changing world.
I don’t write this facetiously; I really do feel that TV is like that to me and to many others. Is it wrong? Maybe, but it’s not hurting anyone, and it certainly keeps me gainfully employed, so why not?
For now, just keep on watching! There’s good stuff coming…