Television is overrated - but not this week

I grew up on television. I watched hours of TV everyday from the time I got home from school (3ish) to the time I had to go to bed (9ish - yeah, I had strict parents when it came to bedtime). My shows ranged from cartoons such as Tale Spin, Darkwing Duck, Duck Tales and Chip n' Dale; to reruns such as Saved by the Bell, The Cosby Show and Roseanne; to nighttime sitcoms such as Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Full House, Boy Meets World, even Dawson's Creek and such shows from WB. That was the 90's. How I miss it.

A bad habit is hard to break - especially one as mind-numbing as watching TV. I could just sit there for hours and not get bored. Shows after shows, the only times I ever got bored was when commercials came on. And back then, commercials weren't on all that much. We see a lot more commercials now than ever which means less actual air time (and less acting) and more moolah for the networks.

Since then, I've stopped watching TV as much. Mostly due to burnout and boredom. I only watch a few select shows and well, maybe some others if I'm really bored.

Anyway... this week is pretty much known as "finale week" in the world of television. A bunch of shows are showing their finales and attempting to surprise the viewers with cliffhangers so they'd return next season. So I figured I'd watch a few of them to entertain myself. And I have to say, I am impressed with what I've seen so far, I think.

I am not among the thousands of well-equipped people that own a DVR so for shows that are on at the same time, I have to painfully choose which show I'll watch in each time slot. For instance, I wanted to catch Gossip Girl but it was either that or The Big Bang Theory/How I Met Your Mother. I caught Gossip Girl when they were doing reruns during the writer's strike. Contrary to popular discussion, Gossip Girl is actually an entertaining show filled with typical high-school bickering. Lame, yes but entertaining nonetheless. The cast isn't too hard to look at either.

I loved the finale to The Big Bang Theory. I've been an avid watcher for the entire first season so of course, the outcome of the finale wasn't crucial. I would have kept on watching next season anyway if it sucked. For those of you who hasn't seen the finale, I won't ruin it for you. I will just say that it's equally hilarious as past episodes and my, what a mighty nice cliffhanger. You can bet that I'll be tuning in next season to find out what happened.

As thrilling as The Big Bang Theory was, I was a bit disappointed in How I Met Your Mother. I felt cheated. I felt that CBS built us up on such a great finale only to let us down on the next one. Oh well.

As for Tuesday and Wednesday, I didn't feel that TV was worth my time so I didn't watch any of the finales. Nothing special happened on these nights anyway. Well, there's Dancing With The Stars but I was never a fan. I did try to check out CSI and some others but I just couldn't get interested. I'm a fan of crime, forensic science and law, but I don't like CSI. It's just too.... unrealistic, the way they are capable of solving each and every crime - and quickly, I might add.

BUT - I am SO looking forward to tonight. I only plan to watch one show though - Grey's Anatomy. Yep, I've fallen victim to the show. I've only started watching the show a couple weeks ago. I have a friend who's an avid viewer of Grey's Anatomy and started watching Private Practice when they made a spin-off. She kept telling me about the shows but I never expressed interest in watching it. Then one day - I was out of town for my certification testing and caught an episode on TV. And boy, that episode impressed me. I had long regarded Grey's Anatomy as another "ER" - not worth my time. I was wrong... way wrong. The drama is a lot more interesting and a lot more realistic as realistic goes in sitcoms. The cases are interesting and well, the injuries are a lot more fascinating.

So, tomorrow night, I'll be joining the millions of others who will be camping out in front of the television for 2 hours to find out what's happening with the cast of Grey's Anatomy. That'll be the last finale for me - until next week. Next week is the 2-hour finale of Lost. THAT is the one I've been waiting for all season.