New York, New York III - Sex and the City (1998-2004)

3/28/2012

New York, New York III - Sex and the City (1998-2004)

And last, but not least in the New York, New York posts... As I write these lines, the opening tune of the epic series, Sex and the City, is echoing in my ears. Who doesn't remember the infamous quartet? Four women in their thirties, sometimes going single, sometimes attached to someone, while again, sometimes, their relationship status rather undecided. If they had Facebook profiles back then, theirs would scream: it's complicated.

The series was created by Darren Star in 1998. The show, adapted from a book by the same name (written by Candace Bushnell) had a very successful 6 year run on HBO. The intricate story-line was narrated by the main protagonist, journalist Carrie Bradshaw, and it explored her and her friends love- and sex-lives- or their lack thereof.

A sensuous and ironic sitcom about four young, desirable, virtually inseparable New York bachelorettes who lead and confide in each-other their ever changing and confusing sex lives, as different as their natures. Carrie Bradshaw is a charming petite columnist, and often the narrator of the story, either writing her copy or off screen, constantly tossing up and rejecting different views on just about anything that does or might impact modern women's sex lives; she tries almost everything, is constantly disappointed, but always seems to return to a certain Mr. Big. Miranda Hobbes is a red-hair lawyer determined to score professionally and to be tough in love to, yet her only faithful lover is an insecure nerd. Charlotte York is a gallery-managing wasp from a prestigious, super-rich family, with high old-fashioned moral standards for her lovable but insecure self but unfortunately almost impossible to live up to for any lover... imdb.com

Surprisingly, the show is not only (more or less) accurate about the relationship between men and women, single life, and dating, but on American, more specifically, on New Yorkian culture as well.  The show starts off  in the 90s with its horrendous dresses and hairstyles, and it gradually leads the audience into the21th century.

The diversity of New York's culture is beautifully depicted in the series. From museums, through restaurants, till nightclubs, the portrayal of New York is on the spot. It also doesn't fail to criticize the craziness of the traffic and the hectic lives of the people living there and it also disillusions the non-New-Yorkers about the city's, shall we say, darker aspects, such as the dirt, the summer heat, and the muggers. And men in various age groups, of course. While in the series the Big Apple is every bit as glamorous as its supposed to be, no one and nothing can be perfect. The series is clear about it, although, it is clearly pro-New York. And anyway, why wouldn't it be?

The only culturally shady part is how someone like Carrie Bradshaw can afford all those highly expensive shoes and dresses. Well, nothing can be perfect. This mistake can be forgiven, if I say so myself., if for nothing else, but for our aesthetic sentiments.

To those, who are interested in seeing the sights our four heroins had frequented, here is a little help. While the show has been finished for nearly a decade - although, it still airs frequently on many channels in and outside of the US - one can still enjoy the fun Sex and the City has to offer.

New York, New York, II - How I Met Your Mother

3/13/2012

New York, New York, II - How I Met Your Mother

"Have you met Ted?" Well, If you are an avid HIMYM fan, then you certainly cracked a smile on this typical Barney Stinson phrase. However, for those, who are not such experts on the show, here is a plot summary which might entice you to follow the lives and adventures of the five friends:

How I Met Your Mother is a comedy about Ted (Josh Radnor) and how he fell in love. It all starts when Ted's best friend, Marshall (Jason Segel), drops the bombshell that he's going to propose to his long-time girlfriend, Lily (Alyson Hannigan), a kindergarten teacher. At that moment, Ted realizes that he had better get a move on if he too hopes to find true love. Helping him in his quest is Barney (Neil Patrick Harris), a friend with endless, sometimes outrageous opinions, a penchant for suits and a foolproof way to meet women. When Ted meets Robin (Cobie Smulders), he's sure it's love at first sight, but destiny may have something else in store. The series is narrated through flashbacks from the future, voiced by Bob Saget. (tv.com)

The series was created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS and out of the 154 episodes, 144 was directed by Pamela Fryman. Fryman, who is praised to the skies by the whole cast and crew, seems to know the receipt for success. And where else should she bring forth this useful bit of knowledge, than from her past experience with directing Friends?

Ingredients for making a popular sitcom:

                        

Who's missing?

Which only leaves Phoebe, but she already had her doppelgänger in Friends, who was none other then her own twin sister, Ursula. 

Success? Check. Fans? Check. Another season? Most probably check - though, god help those two poor kids, listening to their father's rambling for seven years straight. Reality check? It seems that the not so original (however entertaining it is) plot brought the same problems into the scenes of HIMYM then into the Friends'.

Our five pals do not seem to know the meaning of the word schedule - just as in Friends, these guys have an endless amount of free-time, which they mostly spend in a pub called McLaren's, while occasionally they venture into strip-bars and clubs. Out of the five mates, three of them (Marshall, Robin, and Ted) had been unemployed for a time, and while the show hints about money problems here and there, the matter of regular income (or lack thereof) never plays an important role in the lives of our heroes.

What struck me, though - and here I can mention Friends again as these two shows seems to be estranged  twins with nearly a decade of an age gap between them - is the strange social etiquette so readily accepted on the screen. The idea of living a mostly carefree life - as the biggest problem there is to find the one - while having several best buddies and sharing a common close bond is indeed alluring. Who wouldn't love to share such hilarious adventures? OK, maybe not with the kids... But the idea - the ideal - is the dream of many. Yet, who wouldn't want some privacy? I cannot imagine that any friend of mine would barge into my apartment without so much as a by your leave. Nor can the Americans; knock, call, shout - it doesn't matter, one must communicate one's intention to enter someone else's room, no matter how close a friend he or she might be.  Furthermore, being best friends are one thing, but in real life, five thirty-something guys would drive each other crazy if they constantly hung out with each other. Privacy, pals, privacy!

To sum up, How I Met Your Mother and Friends are much similar in many aspects. They share not only the same success (and don't forget about director Fryman) but the same flaws as well. While they may not be very educational to non-natives about the American reality and the New Yorkian lifestyle, they will continue to occupy a part of our hearts with their ability to brighten up the dull weekdays. Until the next post, forget about the boring facts and enjoy the fiction!

To Get You in the Mood

2/28/2012

To Get You in the Mood

While the in-debt analyses of How I Met Your Mother won't be up till the end of the week, here is a little something to get you in the mood. This is my favorite episode of the whole series because its hilarious description of how people who are close to each are immune to the others' irritating habits until someone points them out. After, there is no cure, no vaccine - something once seen cannot be unseen. You just have to live with it.

 Spoiler Alert

Marshall awaits his bar exam results; Ted introduces his latest girlfriend to the gang, who all see the flaw that Ted has missed. (tv.com)

New York, New York, I - Friends (1994-2004)

2/26/2012

New York, New York, I - Friends (1994-2004)

There are only a few series which could be called epic as in a generation shaping way, but Friends is definitely on the list! The sitcom was created by David Crane and Martha Kauffman and it was aired on NBC between 1994 and 2004. For someone who was born in the 90s, it is hard to imagine that anyone could not know about this hilarious show; still, I will do the right thing and provide a link to the best summary I could find.

Friends - Opening Season 1

During its ten running years, Friends attracted 14,88-24,5 million viewers each season, making it the fourth most popular series in the history of American television. Fans all over the world tried to imitate the trend and style of the six friends while longing to have the same close ties and hilarious adventures. I myself dreamed of leading such a leisurely life as an adult; sitting in a coffee house like Central Perk (even though at that time I could not bear the thought of drinking that ‘vile drink’) during the day, laughing with my friends about our unbelievable shenanigans (I had one friend at the time and the most interesting happenings occurred in my daydreams) and eating all the junk food there was without feeling guilty, as the possibility of getting fat was zero (I was a chubby kid).

All in all, life portrayed in Friends seemed easy enough even with the complications the characters created for and by themselves and most people would have happily swapped places with them. The rays of reality only entered through when the laughter of people harshly intruded into ones sensitive fantasies or when the names of the cast and crew appeared at the end. Still, many thought that if life was like that in Manhattan, it is the place to go. I know, because I thought so, too. However, the laughter has long quieted and the harshness of the cruel world (American studies in ELTE) polarized my dreams. Here are some basic facts which will cast a completely new light on life in New York.

The 6 friends lived next to Central Park. Around 2000, the monthly income of the average Joe/Jane was approximately $2,666 a month ($32,000 a year) while the average apartment rent in the fancy Upper West Side of New York was around $2100. It is easy to conclude that living off of $600 a month is more than a bit problematic in such an expensive city. Considering that Joey was a struggling actor often without a job, he would have never been able to make a living in New York even with the constant loans from Chandler. The same goes for both Rachel (waitress) and Phoebe (masseuse). Furthermore, even the others, the luckier trio, Monica, Chandler, and Ross experienced bouts of hardships during their carriers. Though, most of the time they did appear to make a decent living, it was not very credibly portrayed since Ross was a university professor (said job comes with an average income) and Monica a chef. In 2011, New York was named the 32th most expensive city; one has to toughen up to live there!

Another small thing. Non-natives often think that Americans are lazy and have so much more free time than, for instance, Europeans. Wrooong! This misconception is also fed bed Friends in which the six characters’ lives are revolve around Central Perk, dating, and sitting at home. In reality, they would have been able to keep their jobs for a day only with this kind of attitude. Americans in comparison with Europeans take far less leave and do not even have a law for setting the maximum length of the work week. They often complain that they are the most overworked nation of the world.

In the light of these new facts, Friends can finally become what it really is – a fiction. Next week,  I am going to take another popular sitcom under my scrutiny. The second post in New York, New York will explore behind the scenes of How I Met Your Mother.

Friends - Opening Season 10