The Revolution Was Televised: How The Sopranos, Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Lost, and Other Groundbreaking Dramas Changed TV Forever

Entretenida lectura con muchos detalles sobre la producción de las más grandes series. Tiene abundantes spoilers, por lo que no es buena idea leerlo si no has visto las series y tienes pensado verlas

Alan Sepinwall's second book is a collection of interrelated essays that tell the story of the New Golden Age of Television, starting with HBO's Oz and The Sopranos, all the way through the still-running Mad Men and Breaking Bad. Sepinwall doesn't spend much time making the argument that we're living in a Golden Age, rather he treats us with the history of the shows that he feel have worked to change the landscape of television. For the most part, I agree with the shows he's included, with the exception of one: 24. I would have liked him to offer more of an argument in favor of the show's inclusion, rather than taking for granted its importance. I also wish he would have spent a little more time detailing why the show was incredibly problematic; he gets into the controversy surrounding the show, but not as in-depth as I would have liked; perhaps that's fodder for a different book, though.In all, the background and little tidbits Sepinwall shares with us--all pulled from interviews old and new, with showrunners, writers, producers, and executives--are worth the price of admission alone, but where this book really shines is how it reads as a moving, heartfelt love letter to the shows he loves. While the author may not spend much time trying to convince us that these shows are Capital-I Important, he effectively conveys just how special they are, and the best essays made me want to re-watch these shows' runs in their entirety (or, in the case of the few shows I had not already seen, finally make a point of checking them out). The book even convinced me that it might be worthwhile to go back and pick up LOST again. I had given up on the show about midway through the third season, after what I thought was a brilliant first season, an uneven but often great second, and an absolutely wretched third. The essay on Battlestar Galactica reminded me that it was a great show, even if my feelings on the last few episodes--and the finale in particular--soured me on the show over all. (Yes, I was one of those people who reacted so strongly to the finale that I felt it retroactively tainted my opinion of the earlier seasons as well, a phenomenon BSG and LOST fans have in common.)In some cases, I wish the essays would have delved a little deeper, and I would love to see Sepinwall write book-length treatises on The Sopranos and The Wire in particular. I also wish that the book had spent a little more time on the changing landscape of television, and the way DVR, streaming, and downloads have changed things. This is a topic he touches on at several points, but only in relation to specific shows. I would love to see a more general conversation about the topic. Sepinwall seems to feel that good TV comes and goes, often thanks to sheer happenstance, but it seems to me that the way TV has increasingly come to serve more and more specific niches isn't likely to change anytime soon. Most of those he interviews agree with his view, but I wonder if those on the inside truly have the most clear perspective.My biggest quibble with the book is a question of formatting. Sepinwall keeps the weird annotation method that he uses in his web pieces, where he will include footnotes after paragraphs as opposed to at the end of a piece. While I understand his reasoning for doing this on the web (even if I find it annoying there as well), in book form it's outright obnoxious, and footnotes or endnotes after each essay would have been much preferred.In all, I'd recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the possibilities of television as a medium, who feel that TV is uniquely poised to give us art alongside the big, broad comedies and procedurals, or who just happen to love any of the same shows Alan loves. It's a nice quick read, and Mr. Sepinwall's style and his transparent love for these shows and the medium that brought them to us is actually rather riveting.

In the last few decades, we've witnessed a transformation. Television, long considered the refuge for the actors and directors who had been unable to make the jump to the silver screen, began seeing show after show break the mold of what was thought possible. TV critic Alan Sepinwall has spent his career picking apart and analyzing television programs, and with his new book, he looks at 12 shows that forged new territory, from the brutal mobsters of The Sopranos to the high school drama found in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. With each section, Sepinwall traces the genesis of a dozen unlikely programs, showing how creators such as Vince Gilligan and David Simon brought their visions to life. Sepinwall brings forward a tremendous amount of knowledge to each chapter, weaving interviews and research together to show the birth and growth of each of the shows. While some chapters stand out (it's difficult to read the chapter on The Wire without itching to rush out and buy the DVDs, and a story about Battlestar Galactica producer Robert Moore and his creative response to a request for a more light-hearted episode is hysterical), each analysis feeds into the others. Sepinwall demonstrates how each show tapped into different ideas and cultural movements to achieve something remarkable, and in many cases, show how a lot of shows owe their existence to those who came before. It's a remarkable achievement, but if this was just an insightful analysis of a dozen TV shows, it would be intriguing at best and repetitive at worst. But Sepinwall has created something much more. His genuine love and admiration for this creative medium bleeds through every page, and his enthusiasm and wonder at the great moments in these programs is infectious. His writing has a simple elegance that allows a critical analysis to flow like an eager water-cooler discussion, albeit from someone who has a deep understanding of what makes television work. Programs such as The Sopranos and The Wire showed the world that television was capable of weaving extraordinary stories in a way film could never match, and through Sepinwall's discussion of those that followed in their very large footsteps, I came away excited about the future of the medium. The Revolution Was Televised is a virtuoso piece of critical writing. It left me hungry to delve into these classics, and eager for what's yet to come.

Você nunca mais vai olhar pra indústria da TV americana com os mesmos olhos depois de ler esse livro. Não só as histórias que assistimos são fascinantes, mas tudo que envolve os bastidores dela também são dignos de um livro tão bom como esse para nos contar como as coisas acontecem por detrás das câmeras. Se você é fã de séries, então faça um favor a você mesmo e leia esse livro!

It's a great book

Wer sich für Fernsehserien interessiert, sollte dieses Buch lesen. Viele Hintergrundinfos und tolle Einblicke in die Entstehungsgeschichte einiger großer amerikanischer Fernsehserien. Der Mann schreibt übrigens nur über Serien, die er toll findet. Aber das sind natürlich auch die besten Serien ever (The Wire, Sopranos, Breaking Bad u. a.).Was nervt sind die vielen Anmerkungen, die im gedruckten Buch natürlich unten auf der Seite zu finden sind. Im E-Book sind sie irgendwo mitten drin (kursiv gedruckt). Irgendwann gewöhnt man sich aber dran, darüber hinweg zu lesen.

Ripercorrendo i retroscena che hanno portato alla creazione delle pietre miliari della serialità americana dell'ultimo decennio, con interviste ad autori, produttori e attori, Sepinwall illustra magnificamente la rivoluzione innescata alla fine degli anni '90 dalla HBO con i Sopranos, vero punto di partenza di quella che oggi viene comunemente definita "L'età d'oro della televisione". Senza la lungimiranza della HBO e senza capolavori come i Sopranos, Deadwood, Six Feet Under e The Wire probabilmente non ci sarebbero stati Battlestar Galactica, The Shield, Breaking Bad, Mad Men, Game of thrones o Sons of anarchy. Un libro da comprare ad occhi chiusi.

Alan Sepinwall es uno de los críticos actuales de TV mas reconocidos, y este libro es sin duda una obra de obligada lectura si eres un fan de las actuales series de TV. El libro se enmarca en el análisis de lo que ha sido el desarrollo de la ficción televisiva en los últimos 10-12 años tomando como punto de partida 10 series (The Sopranos. Oz. The Wire. Deadwood. The Shield. Lost. Buffy the Vampire Slayer. 24. Battlestar Galactica. Friday Night Lights. Mad Men & Breaking Bad) que según la opinión del autor han sido cruciales para poder definir este periodo como una época dorada de la TV.Se incluyen también entrevistas con conocidos "show runners" que añaden un toque adicional a su análisis. Sin duda un fantástico libro.