TV’s Blue Sky Era Is Better Than Anything On Streaming Now
In the age of streaming, I don’t pay much attention to broadcast networks anymore, and when I do, even as a fan of procedurals, I’m astonished at how many are out there and how interchangeable they all seem. From multiple FBI shows to the entire Chicago franchise and a new NCIS spin-off (with another one on the way), it’s wall-to-wall serious people solving crimes (usually murder). That’s why now, 10 years after it ended, I’m nostalgic for USA’s “Blue Sky” era, which made the bold choice to embrace bold colors, optimism, and a sense of humor that is sorely lacking from the television of today.
The Blue Sky Era
The seeds were planted for the “Blue Sky” era in 2002 with the premiere of Monk, starring Tony Shalhoub as the obsessive-compulsive detective, but it didn’t fully kick off until 2005, and the introduction of the cable network’s new slogan, “Characters Welcome.” While other cable networks were going dark, USA would instead go light, hence the blue sky reference in the name of the era, as these shows would feature bold colors, optimism, hope, comedy with drama, and a bright, blue sky you’d never see in, say, Oz or The Wire.
Over the next 10 years, the USA Blue Sky initiative expanded to include Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, In Plain Sight, White Collar, Fairly Legal, Covert Affairs, Necessary Roughness, Suits, and Graceland. These shows cover a wide variety of genres, from spies to police and legal procedurals, heists, and sports dramas. What they all have in common is that even at their darkest (the final season of Burn Notice, for example), they had a happy ending.
Modern Procedurals Miss The Point
I watched all of the USA Blue Sky shows, including Fairly Legal, and over a decade later, I’ll still toss on Psych, Burn Notice, or In Plain Sight as background noise while working. In comparison, I can’t watch Mad Men, Sons of Anarchy, or Breaking Bad as background noise because those shows, as great as they are, include dark, soul-crushing moments that demand your attention and emotional investment. The only time I know an episode of Psych is going to get dark is when Mr. Yin shows up.
And yet, I still love those “peak TV” dramas and re-watch Boardwalk Empire on an annual basis, but I have no interest in learning what a Tracker is, and by now, the name The Rookie has as much to do with the premise as Cougar Town did after Season 1. Speaking of The Rookie, it has a spin-off; Queen Latifah’s Equalizer series is getting a spin-off, and you know some executives are starting to wonder how to branch off Fire Country. USA showed restraint with the Blue Sky era shows and kept them self-contained, which seems quaint today, but it helps make the shows binge-able even this many years later.
Still Good After All These Years
Between the upbeat optimism and closed-end nature of each show, you can start streaming a USA Blue Sky series right now, stop for a week or two, and then pick it right back up where you left off and get caught up by the time the intro is over. I appreciate the shows that have low stakes compared to most procedurals today, in which there’s a terrorist that has to be caught or a killer is on the loose; every single episode gets a little draining. Instead, White Collar has an episode about faking a bottle of wine, and Psych, which has a significant amount of murders for such a small town setting, laughs about it and lampshades the absurdity of its premise.
There will never be another network slate like USA’s Blue Sky, but that’s alright because the shows it produced can stand the test of time. In another ten years, there’s still going to be pineapple-obsessed fans of Psych. Suits will continue to dominate on streaming, and a new generation will learn the proper response to the question, “Where am I?”
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