So ... first of all, I know what you're thinking. 2 posts in the same week, man this guy must be bored. On some levels that is certainly correct, but this is the calm before the storm. Come January, all hell breaks loose at work ... so get 'em while you can.
On to the real reason I'm back ... back again. The Capitals/Penguins 24/7 HBO Series kicked off on Wednesday, however I got around to watching it last night. I have to say, it's damn good and not just the parts that are about the Capitals. The Penguins players showed to have personalities ... at least the ones on the episode 1. Max Talbot showed to have a pretty hilarious personality. I still find him full of himself, and episode 1 didn't do anything to change that perception, but hey he's having fun being who he is. Pascal Dupruis has a big family that he leaves for Pens away games, and he has a huge TV in his living room too. It was also interesting to see how some players were a bit shy when a camera was put into a place that it's not normally in their lives. One of the funnier parts of the first episode was when MA Fleury and others put an entire hotel room's worth of furniture into the hallway, for the rookies to clean up and put back into their room. All in all, as a Capitals fan (and someone that's predestined to hate the Penguins), the Penguins came off in a decent light after episode 1. The Capitals side to everything was quite interesting to me, or probably was to anyone who's grown up with sports being a big piece of their life. Yes, this is a job for these players ... Yes, they are playing a sport and getting paid a ton of money for it ... But in no way does that change the passion they have for hockey. Like I said earlier in the week, the Caps have had a rough go of things lately. I believe they're evolving into a better team, but that's a post for another day. When the coach gets so incensed with the way the team plays that a full 30 second timeout is devoted to dropping F-bombs ... that shows passion. I might have to head back to the iTunes and listen to the "uses for the work f*ck". About halfway through the show, I think Bruce Boudreau had "Bingo" on his card. I'm certain of one thing though, the fact that the Caps are in a losing streak and the Pens are in a winning streak certainly showed the contrasts between the two emotion sets. I'd like to see some Caps winning and Pens losing, just to see how the Pens handle adversity for a bit.
It wasn't all good though. The interview sections of the show really creep me out. I feel like they could have done away with the Big Brother type of closet confessional. The camera is way too close to the player's faces, and I'm not sure what's going on with the lighting from below. Although, I'm sure the ladies loved seeing Brooks Laich, up close and personal.
In the end, this is exactly what hockey needs. The games ... being shot from multiple angles, and with players mic-ed up (which catches some of Ovechkin's brilliance when he tells the referee that John Michael Liles might just have sensitive skin after Alex Semin cuts him with a cross check). The players ... shown having personalities and being people, with lives and families. The management ... having to make decisions on who to bring up, who to sit, how to deal with injuries and sickness. All in all, this is truly an all access look into hockey, and it's more than most fans will ever see. However, being around sports for most of my life ... it's exactly what I was hoping to see.
No comments:
Post a Comment