Full Hearts

The best show on TV is back on, and that is something considering that TV season has been more than impressive this Fall. Friday Night Lights started season four this past week (on DIRECTV) and it proved once again it's one of the best written shows. But the general consensus these days is that most television shows have come back stronger than ever this new season.

It's impressive but not surprising. The economic problems have cancelled many programs and cut the number of new bets in more than half, so naturally everyone that is still on the air knows the stakes are high. The good news for most of them is that ratings have been sky-high, and although advertising revenue still trails last year, the most important thing is that television is showing how strong of a medium it is. 

Yes, online viewership is also up. Movie box office is also up. Everything is up. But the economy is down. Simple math if you consider that watching television and going to the movies remain to be some of the cheapest things people can do in a time of crisis, but truth is that beyond the economic factors, quality has become important and overall it seems like the shows that have been successful are the ones that have proven to have improved creatively. 

This is not true entirely if you count that sport ratings are also up. NBA kick-off week had a huge ratings boost over last season and pretty much every season since Michael Jordan was still in uniform. Baseball is up, and NBC is thanking god for having Sunday Night Football save their ass. TV viewership is up in every category.

So if you are also interested in watching good TV, get on with Friday Night Lights. If you don't have DIRECTV, the fourth season will air on NBC in early 2010. In the meantime, you can probably get all the previous seasons on DVD for little money and catch up. Other shows that you should pay attention to are Dexter, Californication, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Big Bang Theory and 30 Rock. Enjoy!