What makes a guilty pleasure? Do you keep it a secret? Do you love it even more because you are embarrassed by it? Well, I'm airing my dirty laundry right here, right now. My guilty pleasure is trashy TV shows, preferably for the teenage set. If the characters are still in high school, then I'd probably love it. As a college graduate and a bit of an entertainment snob, it pains me to admit how much I love my bad TV. Now, don't get me wrong, I have a long list of intriguing, complex shows that I adore. But, I can freely admit on a first date that I watch Dexter. What does it say about me that I love The Vampire Diaries and Pretty Little Liars? Nothing good, I can imagine.
In order to feel more justified in my tastes, I am going to embark of a study of bad TV. I have a list of criteria for any show to become a guilty pleasure. It goes as follows:
1. Are the characters in high school?
2. Do said characters dress and act more adult than I do?
3. Are the mores of the show morally ambiguous?
Don't I sound smart? See, mom, the TV isn't melting my brain. And, finally:
4. Are there lots of handsome men to look at?
Both TVD and PLL fit these criteria in spades. Shall we examine the specimens?
Exhibit A: PLL centers around a group of four friends (clockwise: Hanna, Emily, Aria and Spencer) who are being hounded by the mysterious "A." A year ago, the leader of their posse, Alison, was murdered. She knew all of their secrets, and now "A" knows them too. It's a complicated web we weave when first we deceive, and the plot is a doozy. Characters come out of nowhere, "A" appears to be a coordinated home intruder, computer hacker and mastermind, and, to top it all off, they're all supposed to be 16. Crazy? Yes. Fun? Most definitely. Money is stolen, friendships are betrayed, and one of the liars has a romance with her English teacher, Ezra Fitz. Granted, they didn't know who the other was when they met in a bar (who lets a 16-year-old into a bar?), and Ezra can't be more than 6 or 8 years older than Aria, but it's still a felony. However, I love it. This show is not trying to be something deep. It's cotton candy for your brain; sweet, sugary, and a total treat.
Exhibit B: The Vampire Diaries is the story of Elena (center) and her relationship with vampires Stefan Salvatore (left) and his brother Damon (right). Human Elena is dating Stefan, but she has chemistry with Damon, who is secretly in love with her but can't seem to stop killing people. Oh, and there are lots of other vampires (including one of Elena's best friends and her birth mother), witches (Elena's other best friend), werewolves and general mayhem. There's lots of drinking, killing and other forms of debauchery, but there's something about this show that's fantastic. At times it's spooky, at others it's steamy, and there are lots of sweet moments between the characters. Also, even when the dialogue is a bit hokey, -- with a plot like this, it has to be -- the actors are still very convincing.
I've discovered a lot about guilty pleasures during my extensive field work. I think the key to them is escapism. I'm not in a love triangle between two vampire brothers, and I've never dated a teacher, but I enjoy seeing other people in a melodrama. At the end of the day, these are soap operas that give us a window into someone else's life. And I can shut that window any time I want. But not tonight; The Vampire Diaries is on.
