Tapping The Keg Podcast Episode 79

Tapping The Keg back again for more fun with Charlie and Mitch. The boys begin talking about the new trend in New York City called 'Exerdating' and why it is the worst thing ever. Tinder gets discussed again somehow. We cover all things free agency ranging to some of the big contracts along with Sam Shields and Green Bay not making moves yet which should be expected.  We move on to March Madness with UW-Milwaukee making the tournament along with other things from Championship Week. Bucks get some discussion including why John Henson needs more time. We finish with how Ryan Braun went full heel and why it's great plus some True Detective talk.

Charlie.

Don't Put True Detective on a Pedestal

Let me guess, it is Tuesday. You are at school, work or at home maybe, and there is one or two people in
the common place that cannot stop talking about "True Detective."  There is major FOMO going on right now, and you want to be a part of the action. I saw it happen with two of my friends, Eric and Mitch, whom caught up before the finale happened on Sunday evening. There will be more people loading up on "True Detective" because it is only eight episodes, all on HBO Go and people know what everyone is saying about it right now.

My biggest fear for the show going forward is people having lofty goals that it is 'the best season of television I have ever watched' and then going around saying 'it is not what I expected.'  Truth be told, I fell asleep twice trying to watch the first episode. It is really slow and dry to start out. I actually was ready to give up on the show, but the hype kept growing so I stuck with it despite being a show that put me to sleep in the first two episodes. I never do that, but I am happy I did.  By Episode Four, you are completely sucked in and ready to roll with Marty and Rust whom are people's favorite cop duo in the last five years. 

But do not expect to be something like "Homeland" where it sucks you in right away, and you cannot leave it. In a way, "House of Cards" does that too, but this is not that type of show. It is a slow burn like a good bourbon. You watch it for the acting displays put on by Matthew McConaughey who is the best actor in the modern game right now (Seriously, I do not know how this happened, but if he were a baseball player, there are columns coming out about his PED use at his older age).  Woody Harrelson does a damn good job too, and that is forgotten at times because McConaughey as Rust Cohle is a beautiful sight to see. The acting makes this television show, and while the story lacks sometimes, these two make a fantastic eight episode masterpiece.

In my personal opinion, people talk about the greatness of the show is due to the acting. We think of it as a better show because the acting throughout is magnificent. If actors a little below Harrelson and McConaughey are playing these roles, I think we do not have the same sort of admiration right now with it. Nic Pizzolatto wrote a great script, but these two did such a damn good job at making into what it has become, a cultural obsession, by the television fanatics looking to fill a void with the conclusion of "Breaking Bad" and awaiting the start of "Mad Men" and "Game of Thrones." If anything, that also vaulted it to another level by placing right between all of the major television shows. "True Detective" found its niche and it will only grow throughout the months.  

 (From here on out, we will have some SPOILERS. So if you haven't seen the season, don't read, okay?) 

Since everyone is giving their two cents on the finale, I thought I would add my mine. I loved how it ended. We finally got the idea that this show is not about the crime, it is about the cops. Pizzolatto pointed that out to Alan Sepinwall, but I immediately understood that when Marty receives the news Rust was in a coma after the final scene with Errol. I realize many people thought it was too easy to find him, but remember the whole quote of 'It was right under our noses the whole time." Some people wanted both of these guys dead instead of surviving to live another day. I think the only way it happens is if one dies, but in reality, they could not survive without each other.  Also for those wondering about why 'Time is a flat circle', the news report clearing the Tuttle family meaning this whole thing never really ended, and it might begin again.  

Many people believe the story left too many loose ends, but in reality, no show is completely perfect. We are not going to get all the answers we want by the end of it. Look forward to pouring a Lone Star out for Rust. 

Charlie. 

The Future of True Detective and Television

"True Detective" has taken over my life. I think this could be said for a lot of people. Currently, it is
everyone's new addiction. Whenever you can spend about two hours on Reddit diving into different rabbit holes about the theory plot lines, it is a pretty good show. There is nothing like a show where heading into the final two episodes and you have the slightest idea what will happen in those final two episodes. There is no telling what the final answer will be of the show.  With all the hype and attention the show is getting right now, what's next for the show, could we be glimpsing into the future of television?  And what would have happened to "Homeland" and others if they decided to originally go this route.

Ep 1-3 = Act One. Ep 4-6 = Act Two. Ep 7 & 8 = Act Three. #TrueDetective
— Nic Pizzolatto (@nicpizzolatto) January 22, 2014

This is a great tweet from the show runner Nic Pizzolatto telling the audience on his first tweet you will get the show in basically three acts like a play. If this were a traditional television show, we would have the whole thing start in 1995 versus a 17 year timespan. There might be some flashbacks stuff, but the answers we have received in six hour-long episodes are probably worth about two or three seasons with some of the bigger shows of the recent decade. Would some things get expanded more so than they did in different episodes? Without question, but they are able to condense a whole concept in the span of eight hours of television. There is the reason to fall head over heels for this show.  

"True Detective" saw the model created by "American Horror Story" where they decide to do something different with related ties through all three seasons, but nearly different characters every time giving them outlets to try new things. "American Horror Story" did not capitalize like "True Detective," and let's remember the show was not supposed to begin as an anthology, the only reason they did it was to win more Emmy's which they did for season one. "True Detective" begun as anthology and will continue to be one in seasons to come with different characters, different plots. The hope is the next "True Detective" might take place in Seattle or northern Minnesota, Florida, western Pennsylvania with slight nods to the first season but being its own boss.

There is much discussion as to who will be the new detectives and what the case might be, but let's hope for whomever is acting, the show does not start for at least 18 months or so. There is no reason why it could not be slated for July 2015 as "The Newsroom" says farewell after this year or even wait until the Fall when "Boardwalk Empire" finishes their five year run. With a couple HBO shows leaving, it leaves the door open for HBO to at least find places for "True Detective" that are not just every January we get a new season. I think that's unfair on Pizzolatto given how much detail needs to go into a brand new version and avoid the inevitable comparisons to the first one.

The last time I saw a show get this much hype out of the gate was Homeland's first season which I keep thinking about watching this show. For those who may have forgot, it won countless Emmy's and racked in some Golden Globes as well. SPOLIER (I mean it is lame I have to put this after three years, but odds are someone will bitch if I do not) if "Homeland" went with their original idea and killed off Nicholas Brody's character in season one starting completely fresh in season 2... 

A.) They would have gained all of the respect the Internet had to offer which we all know matters more than Emmy's.  

 B.) Which is more important, they would have been heralded as trail blazers of television, not afraid to kill off a main character doing it in a non-book form as "Game of Thrones" was forced given the book prior to it.  "Homeland" could have been like "True Detective," yet they relied on a tried storyline that dragged on for two seasons.  You have to think Alex Ganza and others involved with Homeland kicked themselves a bit when hearing about True Detective's success.   

"True Detective" is tremendous dedication, and there is a chance it will be duplicated, but never replicated. Showtime will have their own anthology series, I can almost guarantee that one. Same for AMC, but they will try to extend for an entire year making it real awkward around award season. I am willing to bet FX tries something different than American Horror. "True Detective" is the first wave of many in the anthology genre because different cable networks will know if they are able to lure in big talent both in front and behind the screen for a short while, it could translate into bigger paychecks and more awards.

An anthology will probably not be the best show ever. But if "True Detective" keeps delivering with different seasons with different big name stars, it might end up making a case. Right now, it should be enjoyed with your own theory of what will happen along with what might be the blowback from television executives in the next year.  

Charlie.  

Skirting Social Media TV Spoilers

"I watch too many television shows."  A phrase almost everyone has uttered at least once in their lifetime. Television is so good right now that it is nearly impossible not to have too many television shows to watch. It caused me to break up with some (RIP The Following) as well as take me forever to catch up on. It also does not help when new, great television shows keep coming out (Looking directly at you, True Detective). Additionally, Netflix provides the problem where the entire season is released in fall swoop. We have too much great television and that's not a bad problem.

This leads many people to get all uptight about spoilers. Social media is an interactive place where you want to talk about everything and anything in the immediacy.  I am at the point with spoilers that if they are not big ones, I have grown to expect them and not really be disappointed especially if I see them 24 hours after the show aired.  If they do not openly state what happens in the plot, it is not really a 'spoiler', but House of Cards is the first show where I am almost forced to watch in the coming weeks because I have a direct fear at some point this week the season will be ruined for me. Usually I can avoid social media for a night, but I really cannot for a full week or more . 

I do not have premium cable meaning I usually wait until the wee hours of the night to watch these shows through various means. At some point last spring, I realized there is no way I could watch Game of Thrones and be on social media of any sort. I had to watch the night of or first thing in the morning if I wanted to avoid any sort of spoilers. Thrones might be the most tweeted about show with things getting ruined in the process. Without spoiling anything for those whom are catching up by April, season three, episode nine justified my decision that I am avoiding all social media when Thrones is on television. It made my life easier and not full of disappointment.

Currently, True Detective has nearly reached Thrones status. I need to be fully awake for that show as it is slow moving meaning if I watch it too late in the night, I will doze off at certain slow points (I am sure this is a crime in some states).  But like Thrones, I watch it later in the night meaning social media during the eight to eleven hour leads me to scroll quicker than usual with tweets. With the Olympics, NFL Playoffs and NBA All-Star Game, it has been easier to avoid spoilers with this show versus others yet the last three episodes will probably get a social media shutdown given sports are pretty much over Sunday night. Further, everyone having their own theory on what is actually happening in this show meaning there will be a lot more discussion about being right and such.  

As for House of Cards, it is my own fault. Being up early for USA-Russia on Saturday morning plus not having work until about four or so. Marquette did not get going until three meaning I had time to knock out maybe three or four House of Cards episodes. Instead, I caught up on Girls and House of Lies which I was two episodes behind on both of them. The biggest problems with Cards dropping right now is we are in-between a bunch of shows I am watching on a weekly basis. When I viewed the first season, it was in the middle of the summer when next to nothing was on television giving me pretty much free range to start watching it. With a pretty open weekend along with a day off tomorrow, it appears time to watch House of Cards to avoid getting everything ruined.

So far, we only have one sorta spoiler, but it is nothing serious at this point. But it appears as more people watch the whole season, the more stuff will leak out. It is time to clear the schedule and watch Cards because the best way to avoid spoilers is watch the damn thing.

Charlie.