Bored to Death: Season 2

When you jump into a show after it's already ended, as I've done these last few weeks with Bored to Death, it just isn't the same experience as viewing it live. Sometimes that helps you appreciate a show more, sometimes it helps set expectations for time commitments, and sometimes it detracts from your ability to get invested in the show since you know it'll all be over in a matter of weeks or so. As I write this post and attempt to reflect on the middle season of Bored to Death, it occurs to me just how differently I'd likely be reacting to each episode if, for one thing, I had to go at a pace of one episode a week, and if, for another, I had no idea whether the show would last another year, or two, or five, or be canceled immediately. No, I entered this viewing experience knowing it was a low-investment mission consisting of just three seasons of eight half hours of largely forgotten television. If I get too distracted by my computer or phone while watching, I seldom feel the need to rewind an episode a few minutes to see what I've missed, because I'm basically just along for the ride. Additionally, if two or even three straight episodes leave me wanting more, it's not as if I've gone half a month without seeing a decent half-hour of Bored to Death; in real time, each individual episode would bear the weight of a week's worth of expectations on my end, for better or worse. Instead, I don't need to grapple internally with whether or not to stop recording the show, or let it pile up on the DVR, or something. Here? I'm just kind of along for the ride. Which, granted, is how most people watch most comedies.

I'm not trying to say that Bored to Death is bad TV that I wish I could stop watching. It is, however, sometimes fairly bland. It's earnest, it's pleasant, and it's usually funny and quirky enough to enjoy, but I do wonder if I'd have had this same mildly pleased reaction to the series had I been watching it four years ago and dealing with isolated half-hours, weeks apart, in which nothing happens. But here, knowing the whole show comprises twelve hours in total, I'm just enjoying each episode as much as I can without worrying about whether or not to cut ties with it, or if I'm wasting time waiting for it to improve, or if it can sustain the nice little vibe it's got going on. Anyway, Bored to Death is still good stuff. At least in rapid-fire marathon viewing form.