Showtime recently put this show on its OnDemand selection because it is entering its second season and it offered me the chance to check it out. The show is essentially a series of documentaries based on a Public Radio program in Chicago. Each week they take a theme and then give 1-3 short documentaries that somehow fit the theme.
The documentaries themselves are of high quality, and the narration from Ira Glass is nothing short of stellar. Mr. Glass seems to have a voice made for radio as he somehow pulls off an intelligent yet fun narration that is very difficult to accomplish. I found the show to be interesting and thought provoking, and offering what isn’t really news, but somehow fills the news buffer better than CNN and Fox News does.
The various documentaries has ranged from an old man who visits his wife’s mausoleum every day years after she had passed to a story of city teens riding and taking care of horses through the streets to attempt to impress women. Some are funny, but in all honesty, many are quite depressing. The series promises that this upcoming season is more uplifting and humorous, though the first episode has still been a little on the depressing side.
Of course this show has made me discover the radio program which I have found to be also quite interesting to listen to, although I don’t like it nearly as much as the television broadcast. It is a rarity that I think the new version is truly better than the old one. That is to take nothing away from the radio broadcast, it is equally stellar. But images bring so much more to the story that just narration cannot provide and for this reason the television broadcast is better.
If you are interested in finding out about the show. They have a website with most of the recordings freely available to listen to or buy. I have started listening to a few and have been surprised with how well the show has stuck with their original format since 1995. And while a lot may think that it is time to change, this show is so good it doesn’t really need to. They got it right from the start.
I also would like to mention that the radio show is refreshing take back on the radio programs of old before the advent of television which I think is a format that is sorely missed. It is so much like these programs of old that they even take the show on the road for people to watch. I wish there were more of these not necessarily targeted at the 60+ crowd…