Case File #1: Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip

[TMC]

https://www.avclub.com/case-file-1-s...rip-1798228131

In a 2007 Chicago Tribune article, Maureen Ryan quotes Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip creator/show-runner/writer/God Aaron Sorkin as saying, “I think that’s what’s unusual about Studio 60, is that the people who don’t like it are extremely vocal about it.” He wasn’t kidding. Four years after Studio 60 was put down like a long-suffering, much-kicked dog that took itself way too seriously, the show lives on as a series of pitch-perfect Twitter feeds chronicling the lives of characters like the Matthew Perry-portrayed Sorkin surrogate Matt Albie, a wise-cracking, hard-living warrior for satirical truth who’s as witty as he is fearless.

There’s nothing new about creating fictions based on characters, situations, and conflicts you do not own. It’s called fan-fiction and it is held in only slightly higher regard than tentacle porn and the music of clown-themed horrorcore duos from crumbling former industrial centers. Yet the Studio 60 Twitter feeds operate on a higher, more satirical evolutionary plane than regular fan-fiction. It’s not just that the people who don’t like Studio 60 are extremely vocal about it; they’re also unusually creative and eloquent in the way they express their dislike for the show. Actually, dislike isn’t fair. People don’t get obsessed with shows they merely dislike (or movies or books, etc). No, the Studio 60 Hate Brigade is obsessed with Studio 60 almost as much as the characters within the universe of Studio 60 are obsessed with Studio 60. That’s saying an awful lot, because nothing has interested anyone, ever, to the extent that Studio 60 interests its characters.