Thursday, February 11, 2010

Edgy Mr Ed

This morning my husband was talking about how prime time television used to have more innocent shows with fantasy elements--like I Dream of Jeanie, Bewitched, and Mr Ed.

"Mr Ed, a talking horse.  A kid's show in prime time," I said, but then amended,  "No.  It was suitable for kids, but it wasn't a kid's show.  Because Mr Ed wasn't about a talking horse.  It was about a man who was frustrated with his wife and his small town middle class life.  His wife thinks he's a dolt, but he has this talking horse like a superman secret identity superpower."

"I never thought of it that way," said my husband. "He is frustrated with his wife--he probably married her straight out of high school.  The horse is his superman alter-ego.  That would be how to remake the show.  Have Wilbur be obviously psychotic, with Mr Ed just talking in his mind."

That led to whether Slaughterhouse Five should be interpreted as literal science fiction time travel, or as the character being psychotic, or as Magical Realism.

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