Although I am typically an early adopter of new technology, for some reason it has taken me a bit longer to move to Netflix. Maybe it’s because I feel guilty watching TV when it’s 70 and sunny every day and I’m typically cramped in a small cubicle for ten hours a day. Maybe it’s because until recently, when I acquired the ability to recite large chunks of most episodes from memory, I had been content to watch re-runs of Sex & The City on the Time Warner DVR system. Whatever the reason, I recently signed up for a free month of Netflix and have been loving it. Not only do you avoid the run to the retail Blockbuster locations but you also pass the breakeven on the “On Demand” movies through the cable companies if you watch more than two DVDs a month. That’s not too high of a hurdle rate, especially if you choose your movies wisely. Luckily, Netflix has a list of recommendations for each user based on his or her movie ratings.
Through this newfound relationship with Netflix, I discovered my new favorite TV show, Weeds. I had heard people rave about the show and was skeptical it wouldn’t be able to live up to the heightened expectations. It has, however, and has also scooted its way right into my top five list of favorite TV shows of all time. This list currently consists of: Sex & The City, 24, Weeds, 30 Rock and Grey’s Anatomy. Honorable mentions go to The Office, The Mentalist, The Sopranos and What About Ted. If I could resurrect any dead TV shows, they would be Lipstick Jungle, Eli Stone and John From Cincinnati. At any rate, over the past month or so, I’ve made it through the first four seasons of Weeds and managed to catch up with real time. I’m now faced with the dilemma of whether or not to add Showtime to my Time Warner package or just watch the latest episodes online (I’m leaning toward the latter).
Watching the adventures of Nancy Botwin and gang has led me to several conclusions: I would never make it in the drug industry so maybe having a legitimate career isn’t such a bad thing; be nice to people so everyone doesn’t hate you (like Celia Hodes – she is imprisoned for crimes she didn’t commit and taken hostage by her own daughter); and don’t ever cross a Mexican drug lord or DEA agent. I guess these are all relatively common sense observations but it has been fun watching them play out through the show. It is very dark and just when you think Nancy’s hit bottom, she takes it down another level. I highly recommend watching it if you haven’t already.
