Busy Schedule

I have been working for more than a week now on finalizing my schedule for the new semester, and it has been tough. Not only do I have 13 credit hours (my last semester of classes!), 15 private students, and opera rehearsal for several hours nearly every night, I also am getting blitzed by the return of a few other commitments that I have to somehow squeeze into my schedule. Luckily, they begin on dates that are spread out a little bit:

January 11: 24
January 16: Battlestar Galactica
January 21: Lost
February 13: Dollhouse
March 8: Breaking Bad

I have an ongoing commitment to all of the above TV series (with the exception of the brand-new Dollhouse, but its creator has had his hook in me for years with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly). For years I ravenously consumed the cinema, but in recent years I have felt that television has become the new cinema. There are so many great artists who have realized that an ongoing television show provides a much more expansive canvas for their creations than the confines of two-hour-long movie. I believe we have been experiencing a golden age of television, with amazing, innovative, brilliantly-written shows like Buffy, Gilmore Girls, Lost, Arrested Development, 24, Pushing Daisies, and many more.*

However, unlike a movie, TV series require a good amount of commitment to follow. Just as my classes require different levels of commitment, the level of commitment varies from show:

24 (5.0 credit hours) - Attendance is mandatory to be able to keep up with the course materials. The pace of the material is fast, and there are a daunting 24 meetings over the course of the semester.

Battlestar Galactica (2.0 credit hours + lab) - The second of a two-part cycle (part one aired during the summer semester), consisting of only 10 meetings. This is the final semester that this course will be offered. Must register for the accompanying lab (a special made-for-TV movie called The Plan that will wrap up the entire series).

Lost (4.0 credit hours) - Pre-requisite courses: Lost 1-4. Lost has the same strict attendance policies of 24, but the load is somewhat lighter because it only convenes 17 times per semester. However, there is a lot of required reading and peer discussion outside of class.

Dollhouse (Not for credit) - This is a pass/fail course, since Fox will most likely cancel it within a few weeks (like its ill-fated cousin Firefly).

Breaking Bad (2.0 credit hours) - An intensive quarter-length class, meeting 13 times in as many weeks.

So you can see how busy it can get (I also have occasional extra-curricular meetings, aka Office parties). Good thing I have a DVR to automatically record everything for me, so that my real commitments don't keep me from my TV commitments.

How about y'all - does this sound crazy to you are do you also have shows to which you are absolutely committed? I'd like to hear about them.

*My apologies if I left your favorite show off the list and you feel slighted. Also, check out this article from Entertainment Weekly that argues that the golden age of television ended last year.

P.S. - I finished this post off as I watched the Jazz beat the Pacers in one of the most entertaining and dramatic finishes I've seen in quite some time - besides the double-overtime thriller I witnessed in person in Detroit last month. GO JAZZ!!!