I’m one of the millions of Americans who thoroughly enjoy the gut-wrenching and admittedly disgusting serial killer, psychopathic criminal crime shows on TV. Namely, Criminal Minds, Law and Order SUV, and Hannibal are my first rate thrill fests. I have even got my wife hooked, a surprising accomplish given she is such a refined and cultured individual – she is an avid classical music, opera, and art museum aficionado. If truth be known, she always was a murder mystery fan, although she leaned towards the British PBS mysteries, cozy mysteries, talking cat mysteries, or food related mysteries complete with embedded recipes when we first met three decades ago. Over time and under my influence, she gradually shifted towards the tougher and edgier novels. She would even add Bones to the list of her favorite crime shows, but in my mind the writers of that show struggle with maintaining a consistent tone… one week everyone gleefully exchanges banter while dissecting a mauled corpse, another week the show is a gritty police procedural, then a romantic comedy, and occasionally a psychological thriller. As a result, the thing just doesn’t work for me.
I digress. I wonder if the visual and plot content of these shows (Criminal Minds, Hannibal, et al.) has gotten rather extreme. Who would have thought that such carnage would routinely have gotten air time even just ten years ago? It’s probably true that we, as a TV-watching culture, have habituated to such extreme visceral images. Maybe we watch these shows because we can safely say to ourselves, well thank God I’m not that nuts or thank God that can never happen (to me). So, there is a sense of safety or smugness as we sit in the comforts of home watching people being torn apart. (For what it is worth, I am a little concerned about the mental health of the writers for Criminal Minds…those folks have to come up with a new form of mass murder or torture or both week after week – a lot of time with young women as targets).
When you come right down to it, the most frightening plot twists involve images not seen but implied. Then, imagination takes over and often delivers more of a jolt than a screen image. Maybe fewer body parts will enhance our imaginations?
One final post-script, I enjoyed the season finale of Hannibal and I’m looking forward to next season. What that says about me in conjunction with my mini-rant above? Who knows?
I digress. I wonder if the visual and plot content of these shows (Criminal Minds, Hannibal, et al.) has gotten rather extreme. Who would have thought that such carnage would routinely have gotten air time even just ten years ago? It’s probably true that we, as a TV-watching culture, have habituated to such extreme visceral images. Maybe we watch these shows because we can safely say to ourselves, well thank God I’m not that nuts or thank God that can never happen (to me). So, there is a sense of safety or smugness as we sit in the comforts of home watching people being torn apart. (For what it is worth, I am a little concerned about the mental health of the writers for Criminal Minds…those folks have to come up with a new form of mass murder or torture or both week after week – a lot of time with young women as targets).
When you come right down to it, the most frightening plot twists involve images not seen but implied. Then, imagination takes over and often delivers more of a jolt than a screen image. Maybe fewer body parts will enhance our imaginations?
One final post-script, I enjoyed the season finale of Hannibal and I’m looking forward to next season. What that says about me in conjunction with my mini-rant above? Who knows?
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