After an initial idea from Mae Clair, over at Story Empire, I’ve been inspired to write a series of posts exploring the multimedia that impacted, inspired and impressed me… and essentially, made me the writer and person I am today.
Over this series of posts, I will be exploring the books that influenced my writing, the movies that shaped my views of the world, the tv shows that leaked into my subconscious and then consequently dribbled into my creative works, and more!
And… I’m asking you to join in the comments or create your own posts asking, What Made You?
This week – TV SHOWS – what Top Five TV shows most impacted on your life?
Following are the Top Five TV shows that captured my imagination, and inspired or entertained me. I have chosen TV shows that directly influence(d) me in my writing to this very day.
AMERICAN GOTHIC
I can’t remember if this TV show was responsible for warping my then 14 year old brain into what it is now, or if I was drawn to this show because of my already warped brain. All I know, is this 1995 dark drama went hand in hand with my angst-ridden, goth-dressing, bad-poetry-writing teenage years, and remains one of my favourite shows (cheese and all) today. It was the ideas of Good VS Evil, and Gary Cole’s enigmatic super arch-anti-villain Lucas Buck, that did it for me. Okay, that and the deep south American drawl (I’m a sucker for that accent). So, while my friends were hip-deep in Friends, this show with its supernatural themes and bad-boy devil leading character was what I was watching.
KINDRED; THE EMBRACED
‘Kindred; The Embraced’ holds a place in my life somewhat similar to that of ‘American
Gothic’ (above), with the notable exception that I’ll probably never watch it again. Unlike ‘American Gothic’, ‘Kindred’ doesn’t come with a side-serving of cheese – it is pure cheese. Think ‘True Blood’ without the gore and sex, and a lot of politics. That’s ‘Kindred’. But, to the angst-ridden, goth-dressing, bad-poetry-writing teenage me, a show about suave, powerful, rich, attractive vampires was pure gold. Plus, I still love the idea ‘Kindred’ was build upon – White Wolf’s RPG about clans of vampires and their integration (and domination) over the modern world. So, yes, the acting’s bad, the dialogue corny, makeup pretty terrible, but the concept is powerful and who doesn’t enjoy watching Brian Thompson in a hammy role?
THE X-FILES
Okay – time to admit a deep personal secret – at high school, I was known by the nickname “X-Files”. Yes, not very imaginative, but it does give you some idea how big a fan I was of this show. Think, teenager wearing long black trench coat to school… Get it? I was determined to be a forensic psychologist when I ‘grew up’, I knew I’d marry David Duchovny, and was of course convinced aliens were real. I still believe one of these things – you decide which one. This show had a HUGE impact on me, and is primarily responsible for my love of the weird and wonderful… aside from the other two shows mentioned above. Are you seeing a theme here?
FIREFLY
Firefly came a bit later in my life; I wasn’t a teen when this brilliant show entered my 
life – maybe in my twenties. But, it had a big impact. It was sci-fi (which I’ve always enjoyed), but also kind of weird western… in fact, it was a bit like Star Trek meets American Gothic. How could it fail to impress me? It didn’t. ‘Firefly’s’ still one of my favourite shows to date, and still one of the greatest calamities in history that it only had one glorious season, ‘Firefly’ impressed me with its quirky characters, interesting and unpredictable story-lines, and of course, stellar cast of actors. This series is a little piece of gold, and still touches me in the feels today. Shiny.
SUPERNATURAL
I thought I’d finish with a show that came into my life quite late, but is probably the quintessential essence of ‘influencing TV shows’. ‘Supernatural’ is a little bit of all the above with a lot of humour, great characters, and some truly fascinating ‘monster of the week’ bios. Through this show I’ve been exposed to many different types of monsters and myths, history and lore; a lot which pop up in my own types of writing. Yes, it can be overly melodramatic at times, but that just adds to its charm. ‘Supernatural’ is like a comfy blanket – its warm, cozy, and just feels good. Oh… and did you see the cast!
Over to you now! What’s been the Top Five TV Shows that made you? Share in the comments and stay tuned for next time when I examine the Top Five Movies that Made You Who You Are…
I liked shows such as Dick Van Dyke and I Love Lucy, where the husband and wife had fun and always solved any problems by the end of the episode. Yeah, it took me many decades of disappointment to get past all of that hogwash:) I also enjoyed mystery, suspense and creepiness, like The Fugitive, 77 Sunset Strip, The Alfred Hitchcock Show, Twilight Zone, and Thriller hosted by Boris Karloff. As an adult, I absolutely loved The X-Files!
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Twilight Zone – now there’s a great show! Thanks for popping by and strolling down memory lane 🤗
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Goodness me, Jessica, the only show I know from your five is the Twilight Zone which was excellent. I don’t watch much TV and never have.
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Well Jess, once again you have me scratching my head in deep thought. I was going to say that no television show has ever influenced my writing but I have to admit the influence “Criminal Minds” had on me when writing “He Was Weird.” I do really like that show and so I guess it’s only natural that it crept into the story.
I was never a biker but my all time favourite show is “Sons of Anarchy.” Probably because I have always admired that kind of lifestyle although I know of bikers who are quick to denounce the show because not all bikers are criminals, I know that to be true. With all that, stay tuned to my next Peaceful Rampage post.
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Happy to inspire, Mike! I feel a bit the same about the Sopranos. I really enjoy that show, though I know not all Italian Americans are mobsters (probably very few). I just enjoy the story and the characters.
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That’s definitely the case with Italian Americans. They don’t all belong to the mafia. The Sopranos was an excellent show though.
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Agree 🤗
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Star Trek the original series because I wanted to be unflappable like Spock in the face of danger, Addams family because Morticia let the kids be themselves, quirks and all, Kolchak the Nightstalker because the hero prevailed over or escaped evil entities but was never defeated by them, Murder She Wrote because she was a cool old lady, and we need more old lady protagonists, and I’ll stop at 4 because I can’t decide which other one belongs in my top 5!
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I thought you were going to say Star Trek because you wanted to be a Kirk-girl 🥰
I loved Morticia too, but mostly because of her gowns and hair. Damn I wanted to look like that 😊
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I loved that peek into your personal history. I’m old enough to know shows nobody remembers. I may have started writing because I thought I could do a better job than some programs that let me down.
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I’d love to see your list Craig 😊
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You’d find things like Tales of the Gold Monkey and Crime Story.
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Tales of the Gold Monkey sounds intriguing!
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Old show. It came out in the wake of Raiders of the Lost Arc. It was a fun show for a few years.
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So cool to see this look into shows that shaped you (and many thanks for the Story Empire shout out). I watched three of your five and enjoyed them, although they don’t make my list of five. Mine are much, much older, though some I caught in reruns after they had been cancelled: Dark Shadows (the original), Bonanza, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Starsky and Hutch, Night Gallery.
Fun post, Jess!
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Thanks Mae! I’d love to see your own list expanded upon in a post… hint hint 🙂
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Heehee!
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I don’t think I could name only five. I don’t think I could name on five per genre. But I can tell you I really relate to your list, particularly Supernatural (which everyone knows I love) and Kindred: The Embraced. I think you and I might be the only two people who watched that! And I LOVED it.
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Haha! I knew there was something special about you 🤗
I know it’s weird, but damn I always wanted to be a nosferatu… 😬
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Okay, that is weird. I was Ventrue, all the way. But I liked the leaders of Toreador and Gangrel, too. (She was bad ass and he was cute.)
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Don’t get me wrong – I wanted to BE a nosferatu… but I’d have happily had a relationship with Mark Frankel (the Ventrue leader… swoon). I think I liked the anonymity of the Nosferatus…. they could lurk and hide and still have power (and artistic flair)!
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Swoon is right. I wonder what he’s doing now.
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He actually died shortly after kindred 😓
Motorbike accident from memory. Such a waste.
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Oh, no! That’s awful. I’m so sorry to hear that.
I just watched an episode last night. Found it streaming online. So sad now.
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😓
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I was reading about him last night. No one can understand how the accident even happened.
On a brighter note, one of his sons is an actor and will be starring in a reboot of NYPD Blue.
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Didn’t he have one blind eye? Maybe that contributed to the accident?
I’ll have to watch out for his son 😊
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Nothing I read said that. He was a pro tennis player (even won a big match) and was a bike expert. He’d built or restored the one he wrecked. No chemicals in his system. Ran into a lorry. No one understands how he could have lost control. And his brother, who was another adrenaline junkie, had died just a few years earlier in a plane crash. Tragic family history.
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As I said before, such a waste 😓
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