Okay,

It has happened now.  I am starting to notice that there are some wonderful movies available on netflix that represent a much larger spectrum of life than I have found available on the hundreds of cable channels that we have here at home.  I am wondering why there is such a lack of variety and huge glut of things that I don't want to watch when there is so much air time to fill.  I think that one of the reasons that there might be a problem is that the competition to grab ratings is huge, therefore people are less likely to take risks in programing.  Another aspect, might be that programing formats are more limited in time.  The editing space in a movie format allows for over two hours of exploration which allows for more focus on things like character development.  Also, a movie is only subject to restrictive programing in large distribution.  If it doesn't fit into the major chains planes it has other options for distribution.

Also, if you like some of the duel writing in major series, then it is often more convenient to get television in this format.  Duel writing means that there are two plots being created by the writers.  One plot for the episode and another over the course of many episodes and possible the whole season.  This serves to entertain the casual viewer and help to maintain a consistent audience.  A  good example of this duel writing would be in a series like House.  Each episode has a detective element of solving an illness, meanwhile there is still character development and plot over the entire season.  When watching this kind of television the characters major plot line can have an addicting effect.  It is then much easier to be able to find out what is going to happen when you watch the season on DVD. 

I was wondering how you felt about the issue?