Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Our Current Obsession
We're adults. When did that happen?
And how do we make it stop?
--Dr. Meredith Grey on "Grey's Anatomy"
And how do we make it stop?
--Dr. Meredith Grey on "Grey's Anatomy"
It started several months back when I was stuck in the hospital, forced to endure late nights in an uncomfortable, narrow bed, and only a television (bolted to the wall at an incredibly obscure angle) to pass the time between fits of insomnia. I happened across a show on ABC called "Grey's Anatomy" and have been hooked ever since. I had never really been a fan of hospital drama shows--they all seemed too intense. Besides, why watch a show about hospitals when I was right in the middle of one? "Scrubs" was probably what eased me into this particular genre.
Grey's Anatomy lies somewhere closer to "ER" on the intensity scale, but more on the humanity side of things like "Scrubs". Of course, there's enough scandal and back-biting competition taking place on the show to make it appealing to viewers of "Desperate Housewives" (which airs in the hour immediately preceding Grey's Anatomy.) Throw in some phenomenal actors, a very attractive cast, and you've got the makings of our current television obsession.
One website for the show sums it up as follows:
"Grey's Anatomy focuses on young people struggling to be doctors and doctors struggling to stay human. It's the drama and intensity of medical training mixed with the funny, sexy, painful lives of interns who are about to discover that neither medicine nor relationships can be defined in black and white. Real life only comes in shades of grey."
I think what really won me over was the show that had a Cystic Fibrosis patient who was an adult. Very rarely do you see CF anywhere on primetime, let alone have it be displayed by someone older than 16. The show's official website contains links to additional information about the diseases and diagnoses on the show, and I was pleased to see a link to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. A big round of applause to ABC for that one.
Like most shows on television, "Grey's Anatomy" has relatively no moral compass, if any. Some of the characters are continually conflicted and anguished because of their bad decisions. Unfortunately, the conflict arises from their professional ambition rather than any moral obligations, but at least the show doesn't sugar-coat the reality of consequences and danger of foolish behavior.
The show is something of a guilty pleasure for me and my husband in that respect, but mostly we enjoy the tamer, down-to-earth aspects of it. Personally, I like the frequent use of medical terminology and the fact that I can follow it without needing to reach for a dictionary. I don't think I'll ever want to own a boxed set of DVDs of the show, but for now it's nice to have found something to watch together on one of the only 2 channels our antenna receives in our neck of the woods.
Grey's Anatomy lies somewhere closer to "ER" on the intensity scale, but more on the humanity side of things like "Scrubs". Of course, there's enough scandal and back-biting competition taking place on the show to make it appealing to viewers of "Desperate Housewives" (which airs in the hour immediately preceding Grey's Anatomy.) Throw in some phenomenal actors, a very attractive cast, and you've got the makings of our current television obsession.
One website for the show sums it up as follows:
"Grey's Anatomy focuses on young people struggling to be doctors and doctors struggling to stay human. It's the drama and intensity of medical training mixed with the funny, sexy, painful lives of interns who are about to discover that neither medicine nor relationships can be defined in black and white. Real life only comes in shades of grey."
I think what really won me over was the show that had a Cystic Fibrosis patient who was an adult. Very rarely do you see CF anywhere on primetime, let alone have it be displayed by someone older than 16. The show's official website contains links to additional information about the diseases and diagnoses on the show, and I was pleased to see a link to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. A big round of applause to ABC for that one.
Like most shows on television, "Grey's Anatomy" has relatively no moral compass, if any. Some of the characters are continually conflicted and anguished because of their bad decisions. Unfortunately, the conflict arises from their professional ambition rather than any moral obligations, but at least the show doesn't sugar-coat the reality of consequences and danger of foolish behavior.
The show is something of a guilty pleasure for me and my husband in that respect, but mostly we enjoy the tamer, down-to-earth aspects of it. Personally, I like the frequent use of medical terminology and the fact that I can follow it without needing to reach for a dictionary. I don't think I'll ever want to own a boxed set of DVDs of the show, but for now it's nice to have found something to watch together on one of the only 2 channels our antenna receives in our neck of the woods.
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Lauren,
Danielle and I watched that episode about CF too... But, I hate how all the hospital shows always "kill off" the CF patient. I thought it would be different on Gray's Anatomy since most of the time the patients survive. Why not let the CF patient go in for a tune-up, have the procedure and go home? Still, I loved the fact that the character with CF was really living life. Everyone I know with CF lives life that way and I admire that greatly.
Love and Light,
Christy
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Danielle and I watched that episode about CF too... But, I hate how all the hospital shows always "kill off" the CF patient. I thought it would be different on Gray's Anatomy since most of the time the patients survive. Why not let the CF patient go in for a tune-up, have the procedure and go home? Still, I loved the fact that the character with CF was really living life. Everyone I know with CF lives life that way and I admire that greatly.
Love and Light,
Christy
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