TV show obsessions are meant to be shared

It's frustrating to like a TV show when no one else watches it. There's no one to call up the next day and say "Can you believe they did that?" or to invite over for the season premiere or finale. Watching TV shows with like-minded friends is one of life's greatest pleasures. So to love one that no one else seems to be able to jump on the bandwagon about (or has gotten around to jumping on the band wagon about) is difficult.

Take Veronica Mars. Why more people aren't watching Veronica Mars is a great mystery to me. It has everything a good TV show should---intrigue, humor, tragedy, cultural relevance, pretty people, good music---and yet no one I know is into it. It is on UPN. And until recently, unavailable (at least as far as I'm aware) in Lincoln, Nebraska. (And even now that it is available it's on channel 110.) It's also on at the same time as Lost, another show with a cult following that grabs huge ratings.

However, last night my friend (and maybe yours) Scott agreed to begin the indoctrinization process for Veronica Mars viewership. He seemed to like it, laughed in the places I think are funny and seemed to appreciate the various "reveals" the show throws at the viewer. It wasn't until he was sitting on my couch watching the show with me that I realized how validating it can be to share that type of experience with someone.

While it's no Veronica Mars, I got very into TBS reruns of Dawson's Creek about a year ago. I hadn't really kept up with the show while it was on TV the first time around, so the reruns were basically all new to me. I half-forced another friend to sit and watch an episode with me just to have someone to share in the Dawson Leery hate and the Joey Potter/Pacey Witter love. This friend (and maybe yours) Jacque took up the DC obsession and also set her DVR to record it during the day. She came over one Sunday and we watched an entire season of DC to catch her up on some of what she'd missed. (Yes, grown ups with decent jobs and relatively normal social lives, spent an entire day watching a somewhat cheesy and deeply flawed WB drama and loved it!) We would sometimes call each other after a particularly disturbing Dawson Leery scene and talk for extended periods of time about how much we loathed the idea of Dawson as hero of the show. While I probably would have enjoyed the occasional DC episode without Jacque's dedicated involvement, it was far more fun to have a partner in embarrassment and obsession.

So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Scott takes up the Veronica Mars cross and is willing to share enjoyment of it. (I don't want to scare him away from it, however. So Scott, if you are reading this, I promise you don't have to spend an entire Sunday watching it with me, and we don't have to talk about it on the phone. Pinky swear). It's just more fun that way.

Oh, and by the way, if you've not gone to www.televisionwithoutpity.com, you should. Until someone does take up my Veronica Mars obsession I enjoy reading the witty commentary by the TWoP writers. I discovered that Web site during the DC phase, and thoroughly enjoyed their archived recaps of the Dawson's Creek episodes. (I highly recommend them to anyone with Dawson Leery issues.)