Quibbling Siblings: Are procedurals appointment television?

Debbie:

This week, let’s debate the procedural. I know you’re generally against everything they stand for (with maybe a few exceptions?), but I embrace the new generation of procedurals. While I could never really get into the multi-series procedurals — Law and Order, CSI — I really love The Mentalist, Castle, Psych and other procedurals with “consultants.” I know that’s a funny connection, but I find if they are straight-out law or cop shows they bore me. I think the civilians mix it up a bit and add just the right amount of lightness to get non-procedural watchers to tune in.

I like that these new types of shows are light and funny with the main characters having great chemistry, but they all have a deeper story arc so that the regular viewers get a little more payoff than just the case of the week. You also can’t argue with the ratings — people love procedurals. Again, I’m so glad the networks are wising up a bit and giving new viewers some shows with a little more than your average crime case … they get new viewers and we get new shows we’re interested in.

Bob:

I realize procedurals are hugely popular, and I can even understand why. They are perfect for the casual TV viewer. You can miss an episode or two and don’t have to worry about missing a key plot point. All the stories are conveniently wrapped up by the end of the episode, and the characters are pretty much static, so they are always familiar and comforting. The problem is, I’m not a casual TV viewer. I’m a hardcore, can’t-miss-my-shows-for-anything obsessive type watcher.

Really it just comes down to preference. If I want to watch something for a short period of time and have it all wrapped up, I’ll go for a movie where the production and budgets are much bigger and better than anything on TV. What I love about the medium of television is that is gives so much time to the writers. We are talking about hundreds of hours for them to play with, not just two or three. Obviously, that’s why I love big complex serial shows.

I have been known to tune in to a few procedurals, and even like a few that you mentioned. The problem is, as with Burn Notice which we have already discussed, there is just not enough to compel me to keep watching. I watched Bones for a few seasons when it was in a timeslot where nothing else interested me. Once it moved, I gave it up. I enjoyed the characters and most of the stories, but there wasn’t enough for me to go seek it out. I enjoy Pysch when I catch it, but there’s nothing making me put it on my DVR. Even Burn Notice has lost its luster. I just grow bored with most procedurals.

Debbie:

It’s interesting that you mention you grow bored with procedurals. I find myself watching more of them than ever before and I’m starting to feel like appointment television with them is a chore, so I just might agree with you on that point. I love the ones I watch, but I think at this point I’d be OK missing a couple of episodes (and then an epic episode comes along like last week’s Psych, “Not Even Close … Encounters,” and I think that I can never miss an episode of Psych ever).

I’m feeling like it’s difficult to make the investment. When a new episode of Supernatural comes around, you can bet I’ll be there at 8:59, waiting for it to start each week. Ditto for House, Glee, Dexter and Human Target. I suppose you could argue that several of those are semi-procedurals, but the big difference is that there is a back story that’s a huge part of the series and drives the content far more than in a traditional procedural, even though there may be a story-of-the-week element.

So while I’m so glad that Castle, The Mentalist and Psych exist, because I really love them (White Collar and Burn Notice too, if you consider those procedurals), I think I can live without seeing every episode of the season.

Do you have a procedural left on your viewing schedule that you consider a don’t-miss?

Bob:

I think the only show that I watch that can be considered a procedural is The Good Wife. It certainly has the “case of the week” element, but there is so much more going on that it transcends the genre. The characters are deep and engaging and their relationships seem to be constantly changing. There is also quite a bit of ongoing story with the marriage of Alicia and Peter. That plot line saw a lot of movement in the first season and promises to add more in the second. Even with The Good Wife, though, there are episodes and cases that I have felt went too fast and I would have loved to have seen them drag out for three or four weeks. Alas, that is not how the procedural works.

It’s funny; I’ve always had a much higher tolerance for the lawyer procedurals than the cop procedurals and I’m not quite sure why. Maybe it has something to do with the types of stories. A law case can turn in so many different directions. At the end of a police procedural you know the crime is going to be solved and the bad guy will get caught with very few exceptions.

So now we turn it over to you: Where do you stand on the procedural? Is it appointment television? Can you miss an episode? Would you rather just go watch a movie? Comment!

Clacked by Debbie McDuffee
on Aug 05, 2010 @ 12:00 EST5EDT