From my Yahoo news list this evening, a story re: TV violence

[link]

The study by the Parents Television Council counted 534 separate episodes of prime-time violence on the six major broadcast networks during the first two weeks of the November ratings "sweeps" in 2002. That was up from 292 violent incidents during the same period four years earlier, the organization said.

....

One positive finding for the PTC was that three networks — CBS, NBC and the WB — cut back on the level of violence during TV's so-called family hour, between 8 and 9 p.m. For the WB, that's due almost entirely to losing one program, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

The story talked a lot about gun violence and the lack of consequences, and I was thinking, "Well, that let's out Buffy," then I got to the last paragraph, shown above

Rating the season finales-I liked them all a lot, though Prophecy Girl (as with Season 1 as a whole) is the least of them for me. My favorite ep is Graduation Part I (which I suppose is technically cheating as it didn't end the season). The one that makes me cry every time is The Gift.

Ah yes, the PTC...(rolls eyes)...don't pay much attention to them...it was only after I read their review of Season Six that I got the allusions to oral sex in "Under My Spell." Good thing we have people out there keeping a close eye for anything indecent.

Okay that didn't sound right...I mean that they let those of us that like "indecent" stuff know where we can find it.

They *are* decent characters. They just happen to enjoy oral sex.

My mom didn't have any trouble with the lesbian storyline in OMWF, but she did say of Willow and Tara "why are they wearing those ugly clothes?"

I know, I know, don't take offence, I love W&T too

When I got my parents to sit through the first half of OMWF (no small feat—Dad makes David Boreanaz look focused, and Mom's reaction to musicals is akin to that of pod people to humans in that 70s Invasion of the Body Snatchers remake), Mom's reaction to the big Willow/Tara serenade was "are those two girls... witches?" You had to be there, but her tone so matched the euphemistic treatment of "doing spells" on the show itself, I could barely keep from cracking up.

Oh, I was paraphrasing The Goodbye Girl.

Sex and violence on television? Since when?

Rating the season finales-I liked them all a lot, though Prophecy Girl (as with Season 1 as a whole) is the least of them for me. My favorite ep is Graduation Part I (which I suppose is technically cheating as it didn't end the season). The one that makes me cry every time is The Gift.

I don't think that's cheating. I think the actual two parters (one whole episode, split between two hours) should only (have to) be counted as one episode. For me, Becoming is just Becoming. Ditto Surprise/Innocence, What's My Line, Graduation Day. Two to Go/Grave and Bargaining are a bit more splittable for me, but the others seem more seamless.