Ask the Critic: Robert Lloyd

Question: The review copies you receive as a television critic do not have commercials. Do you think that gives you a different (and presumably more favorable) impression of the show than someone watching at home with frequent interruptions for ads?

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Lloyd: It certainly gives you a different impression of the medium -- and anyone who watches public broadcasting or subscribes to a premium cable channel or has bought a favorite series on DVD knows that difference. I believe I can say without fear of contradiction that, content aside, television is far more congenial an experience without commercial breaks (not that there isn’t a certain art in the best advertisements). Because of the time it takes -- around 45 minutes for what’s billed as an hourlong episode -- and the uninterrupted flow of the action, it’s easier and better to watch a show without ads and their dramatically irrelevant meditations upon the merits of this SUV or that roll of toilet paper.

Without those distractions, a good show’s merits may indeed be more obvious, its subtleties easier to read -- just as the flavor of a good meal will come through more distinctly if you’re not forced to, say, chew a stick of gum or smoke a cigarette every fifth bite. But a lack of commercials won’t make a bad show seem any better -- just shorter.

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