Not All Television is a Neverending Shame

Nothing here needs to be reiterated that isn't a tacit fact. Television rolls around in the mire of its own sloppy writing, pacing, and every other attribute known to moving pictures. It's a damn shame in every way--but in every smoky ruin of dystopia there's always something that comes along and reestablishes faith in humanity. The item I'm discussing is "Downton Abbey".

Some of you may have heard of it, but chances are most have not. This television series finished airing its second season on PBS (you see? support public broadcast) just before the end of 2011 and has gathered itself a dedicated fanbase on par with any other popular series during prime time in the US. I am lucky to have my faithful Netflix account always ready to suggest a number of movies and television shows, so I decided to give in and find out what "Downton Abbey" was all about.

Mary Crawley and Matthew Crawley

Now, I've just finished watching season 1, and I'm blown away. I enjoy "Sherlock" and "Game of Thrones" for their many wonderful elements that make them shine, but even they do not excel in every category such as this show. To be quite frank, I am flabbergasted that I enjoyed it as much as I did. Not giving too much away, the premise revolves around the inheritance of Robert Crawley's (Hugh Bonneville) estate because he has no male heirs--only three daughters. The issue of class is also a major plot point/theme as both the aristocratic Grantham family and their servants are the main characters. And this is where the show really shines; every major character contributes a whole lot to the pacing, acting, drama, everything of this series. Everyone is simply superb, and best of all (a personal preference because I abhor casting directors' needs to make every major character unrealistically beautiful) this group of people feel real, which only adds greater depth to their already incredible acting abilities.

The main characters in the Crawley staff

Rather than go on with a myriad of explanations praising "Downton Abbey", I'll leave this list of the best aspects of the series, and let you, the reader, decide whether you'd like to give it a shot. In closing, the best way to describe whether you'd enjoy the series: I'll say that it is similar to watching a collection of Keira Knightley period pieces, except less overly dramatized and with tighter writing.

• Every character is incredible. Whether I hate, love, or am indifferent about one, they all aid in weaving an immense story.
• The pacing is remarkable for a series steeped in Edwardian culture, which many would find boring. 
• The cinematography is worth merit because it gathers attention. You know you're being treated to something special when you are conscious of it.
• The dynamic between the servants are some of the most pleasing scenes I've ever watched.
• The theme song explains the series better than any critic could. Music speaks to the soul, and it releases this show's soul with great effect. 
• Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall of Harry Potter fame) delivers the greatest one-liners. She is truly the most experienced actress in the series and delivers her entire performance effortlessly. 

50 Shades of Grey ≠ A Song of Ice and Fire

While at work today, I had a short conversation with one of my coworkers on books. I told her about how I spent a good portion of my day reading A Song of Storms (Book 3) and extolled its wonderful depictions of characters, especially those who were first introduced to me as villains. She too is a fan of reading and indulges herself in 50 Shades of Grey when time allows her. I can’t lie, it felt like being stabbed through the heart when she told me how she enjoys the book and that her daughter told her how the series only gets better. To see this novel at the top of the bestsellers list in the Amazon Kindle Marketplace, hearing rumors of a movie deal, and just having to witness it come up as often as it does in regular daily life is nauseating.



I visited Barnes & Noble and read a few pages of the book about two months ago to confirm my (and the Internet’s) suspicions over whether this novel was pure drivel. To the contrary, it was worse. The book started off as Twilight fan-fiction and evolved into a macabre tale of a pointless sexual contract that reads like any other Harlequin Romance novel. The extraneous fluff of adjectives don’t help either. One of the most fascinating aspects of the pages I read included a list of assorted sexual positions and some talk of safe words; all of this information is delivered in a boring style, and is only interesting because the words look so naughty on the page.
It makes me sad to hear anyone wasting their time reading this poor excuse for literature when there are so many superior stories out there. I am clearly biased toward A Song of Ice and Fire, but not without justifiable reasons. One of the hallmarks of reading is that stories can teach us how to behave and what to do when a difficult situation overwhelms us. Many people turn to different sources of inspiration: celebrities, athletes, God; but there are also characters that stay with you, and give you the push to always better yourself.



What would Rocky Balboa do?

Replace Rocky with any other name and you have an icon to keep you grounded. In the A Song of Ice and Fire series, the central characters go through horrors that no one in our time could ever dream of. Catelyn Stark is easily one of the most forlorn wives, mothers, and women in the series, having to endure great strife and grief at every turn, and yet she continues to fight for the love of her family. The best part about her and many of the other characters is that she inspires debate; her actions and reactions change the course of an entire kingdom, and with it, the opinions of readers.
I think back to my coworker and know that she could use a character like Catelyn Stark as a role model in her own life: divorced, in her mid-forties, raising two children; it’s got difficult, and the strain clearly shows in her. She shouldn’t be serving tables, working with people half her age, but she does what’s necessary to survive, the same way that Catelyn Stark does. She could gather so much strength from a woman like her, not from some silly half-wit like Ana in 50 Shades of Grey, who enters a sexual relationship with a billionaire. A billionaire? This entire decade is going to be about the one versus the ninety-nine percent.
Readers must be more scrutinizing with their book selections. I understand it’s easy to jump on the bandwagon of popularity, and I only picked up on the aforementioned series because of HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” but I studied what it was that this series was introducing me to–and I have no regrets. The character’s I’ve met are lively and real, as real as any others I’ve known, and if I’m ever in a dark place, not sure where life is taking, I can always think back on the actions of the many characters in this series and borrow strength from. “Winter is coming,” are the words of House Stark, a bleak phrase that identifies that tough times are ahead, but after every winter there is a spring–an endless cycle always continues.