new series | TV Recappers Anonymous

As I was preparing to watch the season premiere for Big Love (which I recapped for you here), I came across an HBO trailer for its four new “original” television series. The trailer went something like this . . .

From the people who brought you The Sopranos, a show about a present-day mafia family living in Northern New Jersey . . .

. . . here comes Boardwalk Empire, a show about a 1920s mafia family rising to power in Southern Jersey.

From the people who brought you Entourage, a show about a twenty-something actor from Queens, New York, and his buddies, who relocate to Hollywood when the actor strikes it big on the silver screen . . .

. . . here comes How to Make it in America, a show about a twenty-something fashion designer from Brooklyn, New York, and his buddies, who try to strike it rich in NYC.

From the people who brought you The Wire, a realistic, often gritty, portrayal of urban life in Baltimore, Maryland . . .

. . . here comes Treme, a realistic, often gritty portrayal of urban life in New Orleans, Louisianna.

From the people who brought you Band of Brothers, a miniseries about World War II . . .

. . . here comes The Pacific, another miniseries about World War II.

Now, don’t get me wrong, these all sound like really good shows. And knowing me, I’ll probably watch every single one. But am I the only one starting to notice a trend here?

Are we one day going to get to the point where all of the media we enjoy: our television shows, books, movies, and artwork, are nothing more than previously popular old concepts, dressed up in new and shiny packaging? Has Hollywood just temporarily run out of new ideas? Or are producers simply so primed against the possibility of failure that they are afraid to take a chance on something that is fresh and new?

I guess only time will tell what types of programming will be reviewed ten years from now, on TV Recappers Anonymous: The Sequel.