Following the death of my father a few weeks ago, aspects of DMD understandably slipped during January and February. (I make no apology for that, and I know nobody expects one.) But it has given me a better idea about the strength/loyalty of readership when there's no new content for an extended period of time (surprisingly healthy), and the success of increased double-bill and bite-sized reviews.
It also made me realize two things: (1) that some shows benefit from shorter reviews--especially ones that have been running for years, as it can be tough to find new angles to discuss about stories and characters we've been following for a very long time; and (2) that there's no point struggling to review a show you're only half-enjoying, especially if you keep making largely the same points, which is one reason I decided to stop covering The Walking Dead. Drawing attention to its same flaws, almost every week, wasn't fun and was only encouraging repetitive arguments from people who DO enjoy it.
I also feel that weekly reviews of short and serialized shows, like the recent four-part Mad Dogs, aren't always worth the effort. From now on, in similar cases, I'll probably watch the whole series and review it in its entirety afterwards. (For those asking, I'll perhaps write something brief about Mad Dogs series 2 to coincide with its box-set release, but no promises.)
For now, I'm taking a four-day break (Sat-Tue) to be with my family and attend my dad's funeral. See you next Wednesday, as John Landis might say...
