It’s a brilliant show and there isn’t anything quite like when a Hollywood Star like Charlie Sheen, Mel Gibson, Lindsay Lohan, ect goes supernova. It dazzles and outshines all other Stars for the briefest of time before it rapidly declines and disappears out of sight, creating a black hole that sucks up everything in its wake. We can’t help but watch this brilliant process. It’s much akin to a train wreck as we strain our necks to see the catastrophe and wonder at the chaos that is unfolding right before our eyes.
Why all the ruckus? Is it really necessary to see Lindsay in a drunken stupor, hear Mel’s angry rants, or watch while Charlie Sheen’s children are taken from his home? No, but it does great things for television ratings because we just can’t get enough of it, even when we say we have. We still watch wondering what could possibly happen next. It’s an addiction that demands to be coddled.
What does that mean for us? It means an escape, a chance to watch others as they implode. It makes us grateful that we aren’t the only ones with problems and that those who live the rich and glamorous life have problems too. It’s a reassurance that hardships are universal. It also gives us something to gossip about on Facebook and to the lady cutting our hair at the Salon. So is it a bad thing that we keep watching the destruction of a Star?
No, not necessarily. It may get old, it may get frustrating, it may get beyond ridiculous, but it is an examination of the human condition. If we are smart, we will learn from it. If we are careful, we may never have to experience a supernova in our own lives. If we listen, we may avoid the pitfalls of hubris, unbending attitude, negligence and other such proclivities that often lead to personal destruction.
On the other hand, there’s the saying that bad publicity is better than no publicity at all, so we may just be fueling an attempt to reboot a flagging Star, giving it the power it needs to come back brighter than before. We all have the combusting Star’s name on our lips, as we buzz about the latest scandalous episode with secret excitement. Does that mean that we the Mass have been duped into playing their game? I guess worse things have happened like the Recession and skyrocketing gas prices, but then who wants to focus on the negative.
I suppose the most tragic part of the whole thing is that the regular John and Jane don’t get such elaborate attention. There are no lights, cameras, paparazzi, crazed fans, or last minute interviews. We reach our boiling point and combust without even a fraction of the hoopla, if any at all. In fact, it would be more like a figment of the imagination, an illusion of the mind- one minute you’re there and the next minute you’re just gone just like a puff of smoke. Our supernova, in all its glory, didn’t even get a second glance as our explosion hits upon deaf ears and blinded sight.
