We watch... so you don't have to.
Linda, Your Hair Is So Highly Defined
I'm sorry I haven't been writing more for TeeVee lately. It's just that, in addition to work and recovering from being away for two weeks, I've also been spending the bulk of my time staring, glossy-eyed, at the gigantic monolith in my living room.
We bought a gigantic TV set a few months ago, but this week we truly entered the world of high-definition programming. And I've spent a lot of time staring at high-definition stuff that I would never even give a passing glance to if it were in standard definition.
For example, did you know that Square Pegs is offered in high-definition on Mark Cuban's HDNet channel? It, along with Charlie's Angels and several other old-time shows that were shot on film have been transferred to HD. They look really good, too, which only makes the shows seem even weirder and more dated than before.
HDNet also features some recently cancelled shows that happened to be shot in HD, which includes the occasional gem (Andy Richter Controls the Universe) among the crud (The Agency).
But tonight was the real gem of my HD life so far: the new, revamped Sportscenter on ESPN's high-definition channel. And there it was, a gorgeous new set in high definition. But all I could do was sit there and count anchor Linda Cohn's stray hairs and marvel at the detailed view I had of Chris Berman's comb-over, live from Tampa. Even weirder, although game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals was broadcast by ABC in HD (and ESPN took advantage of that footage for the after-game celebration and some postgame interviews), the actual game 7 highlight package was in... standard definition. So if you're watching HD SportsCenter expecting to see actual sports in HD, you may be waiting a while. But if you're watching to see what Linda Cohn really looks like close-up, you'll be in for a treat.
(Update: Turns out that the 11 p.m. Pacific edition of Sportscenter did indeed have HD highlights of the hockey game, inexplicably missing from the 8 p.m. edition. And on Tuesday's Sportscenter, not only were all the basketball highlights in HD, but the highlights of the Red Sox-Padres tilt from Fenway was in HD courtesy of NESN. Also, Linda Cohn looked as fetching as ever -- but Berman's comb-over and poor Stuart Scott's twitchy eye were just weird in HD. So it's a mixed bag.)
