I’ve written before about the TV shows that I watch and enjoy but I thought I’d write a little something down about a different category of TV shows that I’ve had on lately. TV shows that aren’t good enough for me to watch but are good enough for me to listen to. Since I work at home by myself I often listen to radio shows or podcasts as I work but sometimes I put on some TV shows in the background. They’re shows that aren’t quite interesting enough to demand my entire attention but offer some entertainment non the less.
Finding Bigfoot – This show could more realistically be called “Never Finding Bigfoot” because it’s in season three and they have yet to find a Bigfoot. The show is made up of a few Bigfoot hunters and a biologist who is the show’s skeptic. They all go to different parts of the country every week and hang out in the woods looking for Bigfoot. Most of the people on this show believe Bigfoot exists and say they’ve seen him but don’t have any proof. They howl in the woods, bang on trees, and give us lessons in Bigfoot behavior. I find it impossible to take seriously but it makes for an okay background narrative. People walking around the woods having a good time.
America Unearthed – Another farfetched show about a forensic geologist (who knew that was a thing?) who goes around the USA digging up evidence for a past in the Americas that know one knew existed. Knights Templar, Vikings, Phoenicians, and people of all kinds of stripes were here long before anyone knew they were is the common theme. This one is in its second season and every episode deals with a different bit of the past. The host is way too quick to believe flimsy evidence but he still doesn’t believe everything. Once again it’s a show that tells a nice little story even if I don’t believe it.
The next batch of shows falls into the same category. The “Wars” shows. “Storage Wars” and “Shipping Wars”. There are three different “Storage Wars” shows. The storage shows all follow the same formula. A group of people all are bidding on storage lockers without getting a good look at them in order to sell the lockers’ contents and make some money. The shipping show is the same thing except they’re bidding on shipping unusual items so they can make some cash. All the shows are really about the different personalities of the bidders and shippers and how they compete with one and other. They also love to make bad jokes. Once again it’s not good enough to concentrate on but is okay background noise. Some of the shows’ characters are more amusing than others.
A new category that I’ve discovered in recent months is YouTube comic book shows. These are shows about comics books made by comic book fans who want their own TV show. They mainly talk about Marvel and DC comics which I don’t read but it’s an entertaining way too keep up with what’s going on. I was watching “Dan and Dale’s Comic Book Show” which is two guys from the UK talking about comics but they just stopped doing their show. I also check out “Pete’s Basement” which is a show done out of Brooklyn. The accents are Brooklyn and there is a lot of cursing. They put on a good show. The third show I watch is “Pryde’s Picks” which is a woman in Florida who also curses a lot as she talks about comics. The last show I watch is the “Merry Make-Up Geek”. This is another woman who talks about comics. I guess she started talking about make-up and changed over.
Most of these comics shows are only ten to twenty minutes long and sometimes I actually watch them but most of the time I have them on in the background and glance over now and again. All these video podcasts have people who really like comics. There are lots of shows to be found on YouTube by people who just seem to want to break into show biz and must see this as a way. They don’t really seem to like or know a while lot about comics and I find those shows boring. Or maybe the hosts are just less interesting.
The second category of YouTube comics podcast that I’ve discovered recently is the “Showing off the Comic Book Haul” videos. This type is for real comic book geeks only. Basically a person shows off the recent comic books he or she has purchased. Normally they’re done so that the camera isn’t even on the person. They point the camera at wall or other flat background and then show off their comics one by one as they place them in front of the camera. Usually the narrator tells you a little something about the comic. The reason for getting it, how much it cost, and what condition it’s in. They’re fun little videos that people make to share their excitement.
I find the “Comic Haul” videos interesting because of all the reasons people have for getting certain issues. Most of the comics aren’t worth a ton of money but these guys are finding a lot of what they call “Key issues”. Usually that’s a first appearance of something or someone. Some are obvious like the first appearance of Spider-Man or Wolverine but others are less well known like the first appearance of Anita Hill (Correction: Maria Hill. See, that’s how little I know about key issues).or Amanda Waller. When a new movie is getting made like “Ant-Man” all sorts of new key issues come to the front. Even the guys making the videos don’t always think the key issues amount to much but they still like finding them.
One final thing I find interesting about these “Comic Haul” videos is how old a lot of these comics now are. A lot of the key issues are from the early 90s (if not 80s) which seems like yesterday to me but was over twenty years ago. I think a lot of the people making these videos are in their 20s so to them these are books from long ago if not before they were born. Books that I passed over with disinterest at the time are exciting to them. They’re equivalent to comic books from the 50s and 60s to me. I find it neat to see and hear their different perspective.
One last YouTube video topic that I often have on in the background is weird conspiracy and mystery documentaries. JFK, Atlantis, Oak Island, Knights Templar, and whatever else they’ve got I’ve played them all. When I want some real com fort food video I throw on “In Search Of…” with Leonard Nimoy from the 1970s. Good stuff. I also like documentaries about actual history but they’re often good enough to sit down and watch.
Discussion ¬