Consumer Culture

Going to a business school has its ups and downs. Sometimes, it makes me wonder how much my perception of the world has changed since I started my college career at Bentley University. For one thing, I never think that anything that could possibly be accidental when it comes to consumer culture and how it is portrayed in the media. A few things have significantly contributed to my skepticism of American media*:

• Business school. Like I said, starting at Bentley just made me realize how stereotypically corporate every aspect of life can potentially be. Everybody is out to make money, one way or another. Or at least, that's what I've heard in most of my economics courses and a handful of my General Business courses. It's a crazy viewpoint to have, and for now I'm stuck with it.
• COM311- Money, Power & Communication. This is my favorite class this semester, and it's well on its way to being my favorite of my college career. It's one of the first classes that has made everything *click* in my head. Through readings about media, images and consumer behavior, we've touched on aspects of society that I've been exposed to through my economics, communications and business courses! Since television is one of the media I've chosen to expose myself the most to, when I read about how images in the mass-media influence culture and the economy, I try finding relevant examples in the television shows I've watched.
• Being a minimalist. I've never felt the need to own a lot of things. Quite the opposite, in fact. Clutter, out in the open or hidden away in desk drawers and cabinets, has always bothered me. The annoyance I feel when commercial breaks start (except during the Super Bowl) works well together with the fact that there's rarely a product that I've bought because I saw a television commercial for it.
• Let me clarify. I'm by no means saying that I don't like television commercials, because they are entertaining by themselves. But that's it. I don't agree with the idea that every product on the market needs to have a television spot. 

It's alarming how normalized we are to the fact that everywhere we go, someone is trying to sell us something. Even on television shows! As the semester progresses, I am hoping to learn more language that will enable me to have a productive conversation about how consumer culture is so strongly portrayed in television shows. My next post will be focusing on a couple different shows, juxtaposing this idea.

* I say American media because it's what I've been opposed to. I'm sure I could draw conclusions to television programs in the UK, India, and other countries, if I was given the chance.

My Pick: Archer

This series will feature one show every month in which I will pick my favorite character, or the one that I relate to most.

One of my go-to shows is Archer, an animated comedy show on FX. The show, named for the central character, Sterling Archer, revolves around the staff of a spy agency called ISIS. Even though it's a cartoon, it has more than enough to keep an adult audience thoroughly entertained. However, appreciating Archer requires the viewer to suspend reality an incredible amount.

I started watching Archer not really knowing what to expect. Seriously, doesn't an adult cartoon spy show ridiculous? Well, obviously I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. Archer manages to allow for enough long-term character arcs through side stories, but each episode has the ability to stand by itself as a piece of unique and tasteful humor. Each character in the show has its own flaw, but in a way it humanizes what would otherwise be a run-of-the-mill spy show full of egotistical superhumans. Sterling and his mother, Mallory, share the same twisted manner of showing love for each other and watching the other characters navigate their relationships is one of my favorite things. None of the characters are "normal" by any means, which makes the show even funnier to watch.

My favorite character is Cheryl Tunt. (In some episodes she goes by Carol or Cristal.) When one thinks of a spy agency, or really any corporate office environment, we would think that the people who work there are highly-trained, well-qualified adults. Cheryl, seems to be none of those things. As the show progresses, we learn that Cheryl is a descendant of the Tunt family, related to Cornelius Tunt who was a railroad tycoon. My fascination with her is that the audience often times sees her as a filler character who doesn't deserve to be at ISIS, but she is a character that I can, sometimes, relate to. Having a privileged childhood, Cheryl's sense of money is skewed and she often has no sense of what large amounts of money mean to people who don't have a rich family. She seems kind of innocent about how the world works, yet she has an abundance of wild sexual fetishes. The juxtaposition of her naivete against her impulsive nature to set things on fire and be turned on by pain makes for a hilarious character.

As I watch shows, often times I look for recurring themes regarding gender and race. There is an episode called "Diversity Hire" in the first season, where Mallory needs to hire someone to meet a diversity quota. After watching all the episodes of the show, going back and watching that made me realize that there is a high imbalance between the portrayal of white characters and non-white characters. Mallory's referring to Conway Stern, a black Jew, as a "diversity double-whammy!" made me cringe a little bit. On the other end of the equity spectrum, there's a strong and healthy portrayal of women in the show. It's obvious Mallory has made sacrifices for Archer's benefit, but she still ends up as the CEO of ISIS. Even the sexual freedom that Cheryl and Pam Poovey continually display parallels that of Archer and Cyril Figgis, all these characters being equally comfortable with objectifying the other gender.

Archer is an over-the-top satirical show, and each character's extreme quirk has made me fall in love with it time and again.

Behind the Camera

I'm starting this blog for my IDCC350 Journalism for the Web course. However, I'm also taking it as a chance to explore a topic that I've always been interested in, but never formally written about.

Some people have hobbies like drawing and writing, and others play sports. In my down time, I, on the other hand, prefer to curl up with a cup of coffee and watch one of my many favorite television shows! (One of my upcoming posts will definitely be a list of all the shows I've ever watched. I can't wait to write that!) Being able to see how a character develops throughout the show, how the cinematography evolves as the show gets more complicated and even keeping all the plots straight is thrilling! Some of my best memories with friends are nights when we have stayed in and watched TV all night, immersing ourselves in the world of animation (Archer) or government conspiracy cover-ups (House of Cards, Scandal). 

I hope this blog can serve as my way of keeping all of my shows straight, practicing writing, and figuring out why I like the shows I do!

Here are some blogs that I read about TV shows: Sometimes I will model my posts based on these, but I will use them mostly as inspiration for topics to write about.

• HuffPost TV- While many TV blogs base their posts on recaps and spoilers, HuffPost TV has a good mix of news about TV shows themselves. Of course, there is celebrity gossip and updates about TV shows, but there's pretty much something for everyone who is interested in any television program.
• Television Without Pity- I recently found this TV news website, and what caught my eye was the tagline "Spare the Snark, Spoil the Networks." The ruthless and casual tone of  the writing is a refreshing breath of air compared to many standard TV review websites that I have read.
• Rotten Tomatoes TV Zone- Rotten Tomatoes is a very well-known site for movie reviews and ratings. When I heard that they started a TV Zone, I was curious, and although there isn't much variety on their site, I'm supporting their endeavor because they have a pre-established reputation and I'm excited to see them grow.

So, whether you're a closeted couch potato like myself, or you just stumbled upon my blog, welcome! I look forward to hearing your thoughts.