As a kid, I barely knew who Van Halen was, but I was acutely aware of their "demand" for brown M&M's to be removed from backstage at their concerts. Like many, I mistook this as the ultimate in prima donna behavior. It was only years later that I understood their motives: it was their litmus test to see if the venue had met their more important requests in their rider. Such demands were often complicated and involved equipment and safety, and the band's confidence rested on their ability to see that this minor detail to candy was attended to.
When a TV show has continuity errors, relies on deus ex machina, or fails to adhere to the rules that they've created in their own universe, it makes me fear what lies beneath. These brown M&M's, a glaring admission to lazy preparation, deny me the ability to trust the writers. In the end, whether a vampire has the ability to glamor their way to a human-invitation into their home is meaningless. But if the writers don't care about that, do they really care about about staying true to the nature of their characters? Is there really anyone manning the ship?
In a behind the scenes look at Six Feet Under, we got to witness how the stories develop. A dry erase board had a list of characters, with potential story arcs and writers attached. Those writers were interviewed, and explained how they wrote for each character; it was quite obvious they viewed them as "real people". And as a result, you never saw Claire or Nate eating brown M&M's.
A Modern Family rerun led to me searching out Alan's old review of it, which led to him linking to this blog. In short, the guy shows a clip of the Honeymooners and asks his readers if they find it funny. Watch it, then read the comments.
It leaves more questions than answers for me, but it's exactly the kind of stuff I've wondered about before.
http://kenlevine.blogspot.com/2010/02/comedy-test-do-you-find-this-funny.html
The "Product Placement" in this week's Modern Family didn't bother me, and here's why...
Posted in tv
...it wasn't "product placement". Product placement is when everyone at the table is drinking Snapple, and all the bottles conveniently face the camera ever so perfectly to expose the label. Product placement is distracting because you see Carmela Soprano holding her shopping bag in an awkward way to expose the name of the store, or because characters crowbar brand names into conversation unnaturally.
In last week's Modern Family, a plot point developed as the result of a unique product, the Ipad. The character has already been established as a geek/nerd, so it was very natural that he would be an "early adopter" of the product. Furthermore, this whole Apple Fanboy phenomonan is very common in our current society; such a storyline shouldn't be avoided just because it involves a product. We, as viewers, know people who'd wait in line for an Ipad. The character is that type of person. The storyline "fits".
Finally, the "image" of the Ipad wasn't manipulated artificially. The character who craved one is considered the "doofus" of the family, so his desire for one isn't exactly a ringing endorsement of the product. This is not Jack Bauer saving the world using a Sprint phone or the President watching Fox News to get updated on the situation.
Other characters express skepticism about the product, calling it a toy. The only thing the Ipad is shown doing is to create a birthday cake that allows its "candles" to be blown out. Most people would roll their eyes at such a "feature". And while some have expressed a complaint about the show ending with the family oohing and ahhing over the gift, I think that's the perfect anti-feel-good message that this show is known for. The family cared more about the materialism than celebrating the birthday.
I hate product placement because it's so distracting. In order to appreciate a show, I have to forget that it's scripted. I have to believe in the characters, the scene, etc. The second I pause and say "hmm, why is that coke can placed there?" I'm taken out of the fantasy. But an actual story about something so common as Apple Fanboyism...that rings true to me.
Sorry Alan (who I rarely disagree with, but who hated the product placement), but I found nothing wrong with MF.
