Mmmm...television

January 27, 2004

Enough with the politics. It's been really cold out lately, nearly Russia cold and I have little motivation for going out. (I did go out and learn that AZ is the worst bar in NYC). Since I've been spending too much time at home, I've been getting better acquainted with my old friend, television. Actually, television is like a new friend, too, since I now actually have a TV here at AndrewRaff.com world headquarters which is larger than the screen on my laptop.

The Daily Show is still the best half-hour on television, no matter the size of the screen.

Angel is undoubtedly the most creative show on television. It's even vaguely law-related, since Angel and company are now running evil law firm Wolfram & Hart. This season of Angel is lighter than the previous seasons, so far. I don't think anything else on television even tries to meld drama, humor and the absurd or is nearly as successful as Angel.

After reading his excellent books, Kitchen Confidential and A Cook's Tour, I discovered Anthony Bourdain's TV show, A Cook's Tour. ACT is a food travel/adventure show that takes Chef Bourdain to exotic locations in order to eat local cuisine.

I never got much into the earlier seasons of American Idol, because I have little enthusiasm for the pop ethos of the show. But then, in the previous seasons, I never saw the best part of the show: the first round auditions. The contestants who can actually sing well are not all that entertaining. The contestants who can not sing, but think they legitimately have a shot at winning are fun to watch. The truly awful contestants who disagree with the judges about their talents are immensely entertaining. Ahhh, the joy of schadenfraude.