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  • June 12, 2011 6:48 pm

    It’s Almost Father’s Day. And Stuff.

    So, it’s June and it’s almost Father’s Day.  Apparently.  At least, that’s what everyone keeps telling me.  I haven’t paid much attention to the “holiday” since I lost my dad a few years back, so obviously it’s not really a part of my life anymore.  That said, I’m also not the kind of guy to bring that kind of shit up every time they mention that it’s Father’s Day (except, I guess, this time); as far as greeting-card holidays go, this one has a pretty great and deserving honoree: Fathers.

    But, on to the point of this post.  I just - about five minutes ago - came across a website (Man of the House) that set up a bracket to find out the World’s Greatest TV Dad. It spans several generations, so there are some that I’m biased towards, and some that I’m confused how they even got on the list.  The brackets they began with, though, were laid out the following way:

    Bracket One, “West”

    Bracket One, “East”

    Bracket Two, “West”

    Bracket Two, “East”

    Now, at a quick glance, it’s clear that the second bracket makes a lot more sense than the first bracket (with the exception of the Hannah Montana thing, but whatever, I guess he is a dad).

    Admittedly, I don’t know much about Modern Family — anything really — but it seems to me that the idea of this bracket should be as much the patriarch of the show as it is the patriarch of a particular family.  That idea alone makes the first bracket disjointed, at best.

    There are, at minimum, four names I would eradicate from this list without questions.  As much as I love Nathan Fillion (*ed. note: Dork Alert! He’s a huge Firefly fan!*), for example, Castle isn’t a “family” show as much as it does try to include his awkward little bundle of faux-NYC homespun joy.  There are also many glaring absentees from this list, not the least of which is Fred Sanford (Sanford & Son) and if we’re including campy mystery shows with only C-Story level family “drama”, then Joe Rockford (The Rockford Files) is more than qualified to appear.  There.  I just solved your three characters from one show imbalance.

    But here’s the thing: All of these issues don’t compare to how this bracket has actually progressed.  My real problem isn’t with the website or its creators.  It’s not with the characters on it or the ones confusingly left off.  It’s not even the way this bracket was set up.  It’s with the people who visited this site and voted (of course, it’s also the same site whose commenters say that only teenage girls are supposed enjoy Top Gun …seriously?)

    I assume the plan was to have this thing complete by the time Father’s Day hit, so let me just show you who made it through all 32 names to make it to the final.  I’ll even include the Semi-Finals to show you who they beat out to get there:

    Now, I can speak no ill of either Mike Brady or Cliff Huxtable, but I’m honestly baffled by the other two.  I’ve already mentioned my utter bewilderment at the addition of Richard Castle to this discussion, but I’m also in awe of Red Forman’s ability to get this far.

    Okay, sure. He’s a TV Dad in it’s truest form, and his parenting skills are less like Cliff Huxtable as they are akin to Archie Bunker’s, *another* huge name that is also mysteriously missing.  But he is a TV Dad.  What gets me, though, is exactly who he’s beaten to get to the Semi-Finals (and if the small, yet apparent number of votes cast remain true, the Finals):

    • Danny Tanner - Okay, I can see that. Danny’s pure camp, Red’s authoritative.
    • Hayden Fox - Coach? Really? He beat Coach?! A supportive and strong - albeit at times bumbling - father figure.
    • Steven Keaton - Oh, Come On!  Really?  He beat Steven Keaton?  Classic TV Dad persona who, sometimes “hippishly” (made up word), always commanded the begrudging respect of his children.  A real father, caring and strong, intelligent and open-minded.

    Obviously, I’m biased, and as much as I hate to admit it probably has to do with my age, I really can’t figure out another answer.  But it does bring up an intriguing thought:

    What happened to strong and complex father-figures in television today?  From Mike Brady to Harold Cunningham to Cliff Huxtable, I grew up with great male family leaders, whether through prime-time or syndicated re-runs - anyone want to tell me where the hell Rob Petrie, Steve Douglas, Ward Cleaver or John Walton Sr. were?! - these were great characters in their own right, and great father’s to teach not just their fictional kids, but the kids watching at home, as well.

    I know I don’t watch as many as those types of shows anymore, but going by this bracket Tim Tayler and Hayden Fox were really the tail-end of these types of fathers, and really, their shows were more about them than they were about the family dynamic.  Since then, all of these “TV Dads” seem like stereotypes and one-trick ponies; hollowed out shells of a complete person.

    Maybe I’m wrong.  Maybe it’s because I don’t look at TV with the same eyes I did when I was a child.  Maybe because my likes and interests have changed.  But there’s something I miss about the days of getting lost in a TV show and really caring about the lives and shenanigans of the Seaver clan, the juggling work & life dynamic of the Petrie Trio, or the family crisis that has yet again rocked the Huxtables of Brooklyn.

    Hopefully someone will come up with a well-written, character-driven show that harkens back to those “good ol’ days” of family “dramedy” (yeah, I know. i hate that fake word, too) and I’ll be inclined to watch again.  Until then …

    Happy Father’s Day.

    And stuff.

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