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 | | The New York Times |
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Last year, when television writers reconvened to script the next season of shows, they were faced with a major dilemma: Should they incorporate the virus or not? |
If they ignored the pandemic, they might offer an escape from reality, but could lose touch with their audiences. If they wrote the virus in, they would be able to tap into a universal experience, but ran the risk of exhausting viewers in a time of widespread pandemic fatigue. |
Most sitcoms, especially newer ones, kept the pandemic out of their shows, with an eye toward reruns. Chuck Lorre, the creator of "The Big Bang Theory" and "Mom," said he didn't like heavy time stamps in his shows. "A reason to avoid pandemics and bell bottoms," he said. |
But other comedies didn't have that luxury — like "Superstore," which follows the lives of characters who are essential workers. One of the series's showrunners felt a responsibility to show the pandemic's impact on retail employees and "felt like it actually might be distracting if it was business as usual." |
Many hospital dramas took the pandemic head-on. "The Good Doctor" and "The Resident" both addressed the virus in their season premieres, but then fast-forwarded to virus-free futures. "Grey's Anatomy," on the other hand, has spent its whole season battling the pandemic, with several lead characters falling ill. |
Committing to pandemic plots can be difficult, and not just because you have to move scenes outdoors or adjust plot lines. Pandemic-era verisimilitude requires a lot of mask wearing, which is not great for close-ups and what a lot of showrunners refer to as "face acting." |
"There's a lot to be said for validating a shared and awful experience, even with commercial breaks," Alex writes. "The shows that persevere will be holding our hands — metaphorically, because actual hand-holding is a terrible idea right now — mirroring our reality and helping us endure it, case by case, laugh by laugh, mask by mask." |
Dr. Anthony Fauci urged people to watch the game at home, pointing to coronavirus spikes that followed celebrations and holidays like Christmas and New Year's. "You don't want parties with people that you haven't had much contact with," he said this week. "You just don't know if they're infected, so as difficult as that is, at least this time around, just lay low and cool it." |
If you still want to celebrate, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends hosting a virtual Super Bowl party or an outdoor gathering — although even outside it's important to wear masks the entire time (except when eating). |
The C.D.C. also said to try to avoid shouting, cheering loudly or singing around people from outside of your household, which can increase the amount of respiratory droplets in the air. Instead, clap, stomp your feet or use noisemakers. If you attend a gathering, the agency recommends bringing your own food, drinks, plates, cups and utensils. |
One team is virus free. During the N.F.L.'s season, more than 700 players, coaches and other team personnel tested positive for the coronavirus. Only the Seattle Seahawks remained untouched by the virus. How did they do it? |
What else we're following |
The Times set up a telephone hotline — let's call it the Primal Scream Line — to give mothers a forum to yell, laugh, cry or vent, for a solid minute. Here's some of what we heard (Beep): |
"God, every day I think I can't do this again, but then I do. I get it, I get up and I do it. Because that's just what parents do, right?" "I love my kids. I love my family. But we are together all of the time. Like, I never appreciated teachers and school as much as I did now. I don't want to be my child's teacher. I am not doing good with this. But, all things considered, things are cool. Somebody else rear my children, please. I miss going out. I miss being drunk. I miss dancing." "There is just so much talking. Talking all the time. All day long. Words. Words. Words. So much talking. I just, I need no more talking. No more words. I need no more. No more. So much talking. I just need silence. Please. Silence." |
In short, America's mothers are in crisis. The pandemic exposed "balance" for the lie that it is. Now, a generation is teetering on the edge. To read the entire package, and get access to resources that can help, click here |
Let us know how you're dealing with the pandemic. Send us a response here, and we may feature it in an upcoming newsletter. |
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