Another David and Goliath

I resisted as long as possible, but I finally watched "Kings".  I knew it was created by one of the top writers and co-executive producers of "Heroes" (which we all know I love) and I really didn't want another hour long show to keep up with.  However, today I went to Hulu.com and watched the pilot episode.

It was pretty good for a pilot.  Very long, because they released it as a movie to kick off the show.  I was astonished at the sets and all the cash I could see that had gone into this pilot.  Check out the "Heroes" pilot.  It was also an ambitious show, but you could see the tight purse strings on the pilot.  I really like Chris Egan who plays David.  He is one of many actors NBC has hired from other countries to play Americans.  I wonder why?  Does Australia and England have superior television actors?  Anyway, his scenes were very moving and I love his portrayal of David so far, very midwestern.  So far, the other actors are also impressive.  The show is filled with "where have I seen this guy before" actors.  Eamonn Walker as Reverend Samuels is also a powerful presence on the screen.  I look forward to seeing more of him.

I'm not so sure about the premise of the show.  Usually when someone rips off the David and Goliath story, they're not so blunt about it.  This show is the re-telling of the Biblical story in a modern time.  I'll have to re-read the Biblical account to see how closely they stick with the story.  Some nods I've noticed beyond the basic plot line and character names:  David's harp is an antique piano, the Court Historian records history as the King sees fit in a very poetic and Biblical language, and they even manage to throw in the controversial topic of Jonathan's sexuality.

The show reminds me of another NBC show, "The West Wing":  well written, political, and visually dramatic.  I don't think this show will last as long as that one did.  We'll see if NBC gives the show another year, but I'm afraid the curse of the peacock has killed yet another show.  It'll be fun while it lasts, though.  Check it out.

What if Clark Kent Really Did Work for a Newspaper?

First, watch this video.

This is inspiring.  It really makes sense.  I receive the local paper daily in my box.  It's not free.  I hardly read it.  On Sundays, I look at the comics, Parade, and the ads.  I've already received my news from the internet, TV, and radio.  There's a local paper that's free and often has articles about things that are uber local, not regional like the big paper.  It also is better designed and is smaller, easier to read in tight spaces.  It's filled with local ads too.  Often ads the big paper would never publish, like the local strip club, but ads none the less.

If the big paper would prioritize the news to only publishing that which I go to the paper to read and maybe one or two huge stories that give a detail and local twist no other outlet provides, then the newspaper would have my attention.  If it looked pretty, flashy, but clean, I'd pick it up.  If it were free with well designed and placed ads, I'd read the ads.  The salvation of the local paper might not lie in websites that are over-loaded with content, video, and blogs.  Maybe the local paper just needs a little pizzazz.  Sure, from necessity and in respect for the earth, the actual paper newspaper we know may go away, but the elements should remain.  Uber local, fantastically framed and emotive photos, well written articles that are examples of perfect grammar, and ads that catch the eye.  

Television could learn from this as well.  Sure, it's getting cheaper and cheaper to make TV and all those innovative people you passed up because they weren't making cookie cutter TV are killing you now because they can afford to fund their own projects, but you're not dead and buried yet.  Quit looking at poll groups.  Quit over analyzing.  Look for innovation, style, talent, and cutting edge.  If your company becomes known for discovering and cultivating the next great thing, people will flock to you to find their newest obsession.  

Forget about ratings.  That's old stuff.  Find new ways to attract advertisers.  "Heroes" has done a great job with it.  I know two advertisers that are loyal to "Heroes": Sprint and Nissan.  I know this because they advertise in every show mentioning "Heroes" in their ads.  They advertise on all of "Heroes" web content.  They've stuck with "Heroes" for all three seasons.  This is one way to do it.  There are others.  Get your writers, directors, actors, and producers involved in thinking up ways to include the advertiser.

Radio, it applies to you as well.  Hire local personalities.  Play local bands.  Be active in the community.  If one station in each market did this, they'd kill the others.  The others are all computers.

The answer to improving your company isn't automation; it's personalization.  People are loyal to people.  A company laying off employees doesn't garner support.  A company that hires excellent minds and shows how creative and non-boring it can be; people will line up at the door and wear t-shirts with the company's logo on the front (especially if the logo is well designed).

A Word About Life

All these blogs on my favorite shows and though I've mentioned it, I've never dedicated a whole blog to one of my favorites, "Life".  I love the USA network's theme of great characters and I've loved how NBC has picked up on some of that as well.  Detective Cruise is a great character.  He's got a great back story.  Happily married and a cop, he had a great life until he was framed for murder.  12 years later, he's released from prison when his lawyer proved he was innocent.  Now he's back on the force as a detective who has more than enough money to be set for life, but still works murder cases.

So, on the surface, kinda ho-hum, right?  Nope!  The writers for this show are good.  This guy was a cop behind bars, that's like having a target on your forehead.  He learned to survive.  He has no luxuries for 12 years, including taste.  Now, he can't walk past a piece of fruit without tasting it.  He searches for exotic fruit and has it shipped.  He buys fast cars and a big house, but there's something else to Cruise besides extravagance.  While he was in prison, he found Zen.  He might have the big house, but it's empty.  He might have fancy cars, but he's trying his hardest not to care much about them.  He does care about one thing though, finding out who framed him and who killed his friends.  Now we have the sub-plot to each episode.  

The show's good because the stories pull you in, they're both stand-alone and serial, but the show's great because of Cruise.  Like House, Monk, Shawn and Gus ("Psych"), "Life" is more about Detective Cruise and his thought process than it is actually about the plot this week.  There's something about this way of storytelling - really delving into characters and developing them so that the audience knows them so well they could write scripts - that forms a loyal and dedicated fan base.  I think it's because for the hour this show is on you're feeling/thinking like these characters... and the funnest part... they're so out there yet so identifiable, it's like being someone you totally aren't.  Isn't that why we love tv/books/radio/film?  The trip, the challenges, the exhilaration?

Watch "Life" on Hulu.