Wednesday, January 5, 2011

30-Day Challenge, Day 4

A Favorite Television Program

Well, most everyone who knows me well knows that, in general, I hate TV shows. They're so repetitive and end up being such nonsense (I think). Therefore, if there is a TV show I remotely like, it would have to be called my favorite because I don't like any others. :-)

Granted, I don't mind the Andy Griffith show or Storm Stories, if they're playing, and now and then I'll sit and watch one of those old shows from the 50s or 60s. But I wouldn't say I like them especially. One show, however, that I've recently been introduced to and like very much is...

Now, I've only watched a few episodes of the first season, and it may be that as I watch more, I'll find them to end up being as repetitive and nonsensical as the other shows I've watched. But as it stands right now, I really actually do like the show.

Emergency! was a very popular show when my mom and dad were growing up, and both of them watched it on the opposite ends of the country. It's no wonder they were so popular. They're packed with action, and Johnny Gage (played by Randolph Mantooth) and Roy DeSoto (played by Kevin Tighe) are downright cool. :-P

Actually, I think the reason why I like Emergency! would be the close connection it has with my family. The show charts the very beginnings of the paramedics in the 70s--people were beginning to realize that people were dying one the way to the hospital who would have lived if they had received professional medical treatment on the scene of the emergency. The first episode shows the true-to-life loopholes the early paramedics had to go through to make it legal for them to administer medical help to patients on the scene. This holds great significance to me, because my dad is a paramedic, and my granddaddy was greatly involved in starting up the paramedic service in our area during the 70s (around that same time). We take it for granted these days that we have paramedics who can come when we need them and help us in an emergency, but it wasn't always so. While Emergency! isn't a Christian show, and the characters and most of the events are fictional, it reminds me that God was at work, preparing the details thirty/forty years ago to work out His plan in people's lives even today-- the saving of lives so that they might have another chance to find Him here on earth.

The episodes I've seen so far are very exciting. The characters deal with emergencies from house fires to California forest fires, from broken limbs to heart attacks, from car crashes to caving tunnels. They keep you on the edge of your seat, and what's nice is, at least in the early ones, is that you don't have to worry about seeing graphic details of the injuries. The only thing that bugs me is a negative comment in one of the episodes, where the doctor mentions "helping God to make up his mind" or something like that... an all-too-common attitude among doctors, I'm afraid. Oh, another thing that bugs me is Dixie's false eyelashes and Hollywood-influenced nurse outfit, but that's just because I think it looks really stupid. ;-)

But overall, it's actually a show I pretty much enjoy and I look forward to seeing more. I only wish I was familiar with them a couple months ago when Daddy got to meet Randolph Mantooth at a symposium. Lucky. :-P

3 comments:

Miss Laurie said...

I too enjoy watching this show simply because my mother enjoyed it when she was young. It's a good program and I also enjoy the shows Adam-12 and Dragnet which were done by the same writer/director Jack Webb. Johnny Gage is one of my favorite characters, he's good looking (in a 70's sort of way) and a nice guy.
That connection with your grandfather being a paramedic is pretty cool and that your dad got to meet the actor! :)

I've watched so many of the old shows my mom & dad (and even my grandparents) enjoyed when they were younger. I still enjoy watching the old Andy Griffith and I Love Lucy re-runs better than anything new that's on TV now (except maybe the Duggar's show 19 And Counting)!

Amanda said...

I need to watch it...I don't remember too much from the episodes I saw a long time ago. :)

Kelly said...

Oh I love Emergency! I own the sixth season! Oh my favorite characters are Captain Stanley, Chet Kelly and Johnny Gage.
It's a really good show, out of all the movies out there Emergency is the best show my siblings and I love!!!!!


www.threads-of-modest.blogspot.com