advice from someone smarter than you

People in America are generally stupid. That's not to say there aren't smart people, what I mean is as a whole, we're pretty much dumb as a bag of hammers. You want proof? Check out the weekly TV ratings for 10/24. Outside of the live sports events (football rules!), here is the list:

1. Modern Family - ABC
   
2. Two and a Half Men - CBS
   
3. NCIS - CBS
   
4. Big Bang Theory - CBS
5. Grey's Anatomy - ABC
6. Dancing with the Stars - ABC
7. Desperate Housewives - ABC
8. NCIS - Chris O'Donnell - CBS
9. Criminal Minds - CBS
10. Survivor: Nicaraguwho the fuck cares - CBS

Jesus. Just typing that list out makes me want to die. A real who's who of washed up movie actors across the board. Of course Modern Family is fantastic TV - I'm proud of America on that one. And I have some weird friends who still watch Survivor. Whatever, its mindless TV, I get that.

But the others? I swear I thought Grey's and Desperate Housewives were over by now. And seriously, there are two NCIS's on TV? Oh, and I'm pretty sure the world is out of Two and a Half men jokes. So I'll just link to this one.

Along those lines, I have a general rule about TV I try to follow - no new series. Simply put, we have NO IDEA what good TV is. A show can be dogshit and hit the top of the charts, and another show can be the best new show of the year and not get the ratings to land a second season. So, to avoid getting sucked into a show and then cursing the world when they suck and don't watch it and a stupid network cancels it, I try to stay away from new TV shows.

Well, I kind of fell off the wagon last night. And by that, I mean I flat out broke my rule. And you know, what, IT FELT GOOD. Because AMCs new show, The Walking Dead, fucking blew my mind. Its based off a comic or something (I dunno because I'm not a weirdo who reads comics), but wherever it came from, its awesome. I'm gonna try not to spoiler, but hear me out.

I thought I was over the zombie thing, but this was spectacular TV. No shotty science explaining what happend to make everyone a zombie, or cutesy rules over how to kill them, or Will Smith to ruin a perfectly decent plot - just edge of your seat thrills, great effects, solid character development, intriguing plot twists and very good acting. Not shocking, considering this is the network that brought you Mad Men and Breaking Bad. Also not shocking, considering it was created by Frank Darabont. You might know him as the guy who did Shawshank and Green Mile.

The pilot was 90 minutes long in TV time, which meant actually around 65-70 minutes without commercials. So mirroring the time with the quality, it actually watched more like a mini-movie. And while some people groan about a long TV show, I was sitting up in my bed at 1am furious that the episode was about to end. I'd say that's the sign of a pretty good TV show.

So trust me, sit down and check it out. Best case scenario - its the next big TV show. Worst case - its still WAY better than either of the NCISs.