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Monday, 31 May 2010

Where are the emperor's clothes?

Maybe I’m the only kid watching the emperor strut down the road naked. After all, I haven’t read the reviews or checked to see what my Facebook friends are saying or listened to anyone’s Tweets. So, maybe I’m the only one who didn’t “get it.” But I felt cheated by the series finale of one of my fav shows this week.

For years I, along with countless others, tuned in weekly to get a dose of mystery and romance. I looked forward to seeing which flawed, but loveable, hero the heroine chose. I wished a supporting character would escape from under her father’s controlling thumb. Fingers crossed, I fretted over pregnancies. I smiled at babies, cried as beloved “friends” died off, and hoped for an end to one character’s run of incredibly bad luck.

Turns out, I’d have been better off reading (and would have enjoyed it more). Because, after the last show of the last season, my take-away message was, “Ha! Ha! You’re joking, right?” To me, that ending re-affirmed the importance of the promise every author of romance makes to their readers: We will deliver happily-ever-after. Not only that, we’ll deliver it neatly wrapped with a satisfyingly emotional ending. With no room for sappy sentimentality.

So, are you fan of series television? Ever wish the writers and producers were required to deliver the way romance authors do?

Leigh Duncan
The Officer's Girl- April 2010
Catch of a Lifetime-2011
www.leighduncan.com

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