I'm so happy to have gotten the response on the last post I did...I was hoping to, if only to get some books to add to my reading list. First, some responses to the comments left on the post:
-Genny, so funny you mentioned "Anne of Green Gables", b/c folks commenting on the EW web post mentioned that one a bunch. It was up there with "The Lovely Bones", Harry Potter, and a few others as books that made many, many people cry. And now I'm going to have to look for "Tiger Eyes" to read. I love Judy Blume, so I have no doubt I will enjoy this book, and probably have a crying jag after I finish. Oh, and "She's Come Undone" is on my reading list. I've read "I Know This Much Is True" by the same author, though I don't remember crying. I might have. Good book, and I also plan to read his latest, "The Hour I First Believed."
-Steven, really? Not at ALL at Harry Potter? Not even when Dumbledore died? Wow, you might be dead inside. Or just need to really find a book that opens up the tearducts for that particular medium.
-Juli, I have "The Devils Arthmetic" on my list of books that made me cry, but I had to make some cuts, and since "Jacob Have I Loved" stands out the most, it won. Yeah, that one is fantastic and had me crying.
-Elise, I was sooo going to mention Stan's death on The Commish as a t.v. example, but you stole my thunder. Ah, memories.
-Em, "East of Eden" was also some cartharsis for me. I need to read it again. So satisfying on so many levels. And you know I have your copy of "Lovely Bones" and have for a while (I'm a horrible person) and still plan on reading it b/c of all the amazing things I've heard. I loved "Education of Little Tree"...didn't cry as much as you mentioned you had while working a shift at Mac Shack, but definitely emotionally worth it.
Okay, so onto some television. My last post about this will be movies, so don't worry about me neglecting that particular medium.
Television was the hardest for me to remember things that really made me cry. Even though I know it is probably the most likely of the three (books, t.v. and movies) that I will tear up at simply due to sheer exposure. So I'm eager to hear what television has made you all cry. Without further ado though, here is what sticks in my mind as tear-jerker television:
-Well, what first comes to mind is the Olympics Opening Ceremony. This one is funny b/c I have been very vocal with how I find both the opening and closing ceremonies a waste of 5 hours of television (and thats just for one of them). I guess I've never just sat down and watched them. Not that I did this last time. I was working out on the trusty elliptical here in Iraq during the summer olympics and naturally, anything sports-related was on. It happened to be the opening ceremony. I groaned inwardly and immediately started trying to find something to drift off into thought with. But as my eyes kept going to the screen, just seeing these athletes, who have worked so hard for 4 years, rise to the top of their sport and get their moment on the center stage of the world, it got me. And seeing the pride of each nation in their athletes. What a spectacular feeling that must be. So it wasn't just sweat dripping down my cheeks that morning.
-While we are on sports, it must be mentioned that certain pivotal games make me cry. I get wayyyy too invested and the whole play-off experience is already so emotionally draining, that I can't help but cry when my team loses or wins. More often than not, they lose. The game I remember crying the most at was the 1997 loss of KU to Arizona. Man, I sobbed after that game. It still hurts in case you were curious. Their winning of the championship last year went a long way to healing that (and the Syracuse) wound, but still...
-I used to be OBSESSED with ER. If anyone dared call me during the hours of 9 p.m and 10 p.m. on Thursday night, I would refuse to talk to them. That was my time. Now, that time is whatever time Lost is on, but once upon a television, it was ER. I remember being terrified and filled with anxiety for the week after the episode where Carter is stabbed on Valentines Day, just praying that they wouldn't kill him off. And I remember that same season, in the season finale, crying when Carter finally admitted he had a pain-killer addiction (due to the stabbing and subsequent surgery) to Benton, after taking a swing at his mentor. They get on the plane together for rehab, and man, that was a good episode. But it was nothing compared to the one where Dr. Green dies. Oh, I sobbed and sobbed and sobbed at that one. I think Elise watched it with me, an ER novice herself, and she sobbed as well. ER has been replaced in my heart, but that episode never will be.
-Funny about that Carter season finale, it also had the episode of Friends and Frasier that made me cry. It was the episode of Friends where Chandler proposes to Monica, and the episode of Frasier where Daphne picks Niles. It was an emotional night for me, and that Friends proposal still chokes me up. It is the perfect proposal and my favorite Friends episode of all time. I was apparently a basket case that Thursday night.
-Any episode of Oprah featuring mothers or someone getting their wildest dream, and I am a bucket of tears. I can be in the pissiest, least emotional mood ever, and all it takes is someone recognizing how amazing their mom is to have me crying hard. It doesn't even matter if it is on in the background as I get ready for work, I am always reduced to tears. Darn that Oprah and her emotionally manipulative episodes.
-The episode of Buffy where her mom dies is one of the best episodes of television ever. They use a Sarah Mc. song to perfection in that ep.
-The Gilmore Girls have me crying at many, many points, but that final episode was soooo good and I think I spent the whole thing crying, from the theme song to the last shot of them in the diner, I was dripping like a leaky faucet. It was similar to Harry Potter, where I knew I was saying goodbye to them, but man, when Lorelei tells Rory "It's too soon", oh, I'm just crying right along with them. Gosh, I absolutely love that show. It is my favorite show of all time. That's right, I said it. I have many competing heavily for number two, and I'm not saying it is the best show ever made (that would be The Wire and Arrested Development), but it is my personal favorite, go-to, comfort, tear-jerking escape.
-Last but not at all least is Scrubs. There are too many episodes that have reduced me to tears to count, so I'll just say that there is no show out there that can have me laughing so hard I'm crying and then in the next second, just simply crying. Episodes that stand out are the ones with Brendan Fraser, any episode that has Dr. Cox emoting, and the one where J.D.'s dad dies. And that finale this year? For any Scrubs fan out there (looking at you Em and Joe), it was tear-jerking and completely satisfying. The perfect finale. My favorite part? "Hooch IS crazy."
So, there it is, the t.v. that has me crying. I'm missing so much from this list, I know. I haven't even delved into those old Hallmark commercials at Christmas time or the cotton commercials or anything involving old people, so feel free to remind me of some great television that is cry-worthy. Next up, movies...(not that that won't be enormously predictable, but it's still coming).
11 comments:
This'll be long, because TV gets me way more than movies. Maybe it's because my attention span is short...
1. I've stopped watching Grey's Anatomy, but saw the first three seasons and I don't think a single one passed without tears...and even when I KNEW about Denny/Izzy, had seen screenshots of the last scene, etc., it still KILLED me. Bawling, racking sobs.
2. Sex & the City gets me quite a number of times. Aidan and Carrie, before Charlotte's wedding to Trey...ohmygodohmygod. I'm like begging along with Carrie: 'PLEASE Aidan, PLEASE forgive her, PLEASE...'
3. Beckie, our love for Gilmore seems infinite. Perfect, perfect show, in my opinion. While not a complete substitute, 'Privileged' has a lot of the same...same what...same REASONS I like GG. I know you've been gone for it, but I hope you'll try it out when you get back! But seriously, that ep when Lor & Luke break up...and she can't really handle it, and dreams about him in the movie theatre...he is SO COLD. I hate it. But I also know why he's like that. Cried the entire time.
4. Friends: the episode was on the other night where Ross & Rachel break up for the first time...and he says something like "How can I live without these arms...this heart..." and oh criminy, I am gone.
5. Your Olympics Opening Ceremony is a good call, and I always swell with shivers and pride at that. More recently, Obama's acceptance speech and inauguration were two instances where I could not hold in the tears. I just imagined getting in touch with mom somehow and saying "Mom! LOOK WHO'S PRESIDENT NOW!" and her beaming. My tears were not necessarily because of his political beliefs (I don't think I'd have been as teary if, say, Kerry had won--though I am a liberal), just the whole 'seeing how far we've come' thing.
6. I guess this is kinda stupid, but back when Rosie was on, she was obsessed with Survivor. Remember Colby, from Season 2, who just totally let that chick (Tina?) win because he was a great guy? He was hot. Anyway, Rosie loved him too, and had him on, and wheeled out a freakin' bad-ass motorcycle for him. I have never seen someone freak out as much as he did. I watched it over and over, tears sparking from my eyes every time.
7. I've heard about the amazing Buffy ep you mentioned, but I just don't think I can watch it!
8. Scrubs: totally. I knew about the Brendan-Frasier ep ahead of time (you know the one I mean), but I can't watch it without crying at "Where do you think we are?" and Cox's realization of it.
Man, this is cathartic! I am totally relishing remembering all these sob-inducing instances. Can't wait to hear everyone' else's!
Okay, let me get the horrifying confessions out of the way first:
1. cried at the "Full House" episode where Uncle Jesse got married and is moving out, and Michelle is so sad, and Jesse is sad, and yeah, I cried. Sheesh.
2. Series finale of "Fresh Prince of Bel Air"... Cried until Carlton gave us one more Tom Jones, and then I laughed AND cried.
Okay... On to more legitimate stuff:
1. Any episode of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition", EVERY time. What a glorious show, to be completely about GIVING. Completely about being selfless. I adore it.
2. Ditto on Oprah, both the mom/fuzzy/favorite things episodes, and the tragic ones.
3. Recently, I've been watching "What Would You Do?" on ABC, like a 20/20, but specifically geared toward creating terrible situations and seeing what the average person would do when faced with it. I cried at the mom leaving her baby in the car. Cried at the kid being lured by a kidnapper. SOBBED at the people ignoring a passed-out homeless man because the only person who stopped to help him was a dear, fragile homeless woman herself. I'm crying just thinking about it. Wow. That show GETS to me. I PRAY I do the right thing in any of those situations, no matter how socially uncomfortable.
4. Back to more normal stuff... Ditto on Scrubs.
...and I am having a hard time remembering anything else right now. It has been SO long since I've been a true TV watcher....
So yeah. I'll leave it there.
Thanks for another engaging, fascinating post!
Beckie, I was so excited to list my TV-cries that I totally forgot to respond to YOUR response.
Also, the word verification is--honestly--*palin*. So I can't not comment now.
Wally Lamb didn't make me cry during "I Know This Much is True" either...somehow it's just the way he writes this woman in "Undone." Everyone said it at the time, too--it's amazing how much he knows women. (Of course, then I think of the line in "As Good As It Gets" when someone asks Jack N. how he writes women so well, and he says "I think of a man, and then I take away reason and accountability" and I get all mad. Thereby perpetuating the stereotype, I guess: me getting mad at a MOVIE LINE.) Anyway, I need to read it again...it's been awhile since I've really been touched hard-core by a book.
Okay, I think that's all for now. Oh, except, Emily, you are so cute with your tendency to WANT to watch/read sad or touching things...I try to avoid it at all costs, probably because I want reading or watching to be PURELY an escape, and I am not that comfortable letting my emotions show, especially when others are around. Also, hi! *wave*
Oh! Forgot about EVERY SINGLE SURVIVOR 'family reunion in some form or another' episode. This last one was freakin' killer.
Sorry, that's the last one.
I PROMISE.
Once again, my heartless nature shows through- my entries are few.
Embarassing? Crying when Noah (the black guy) died at the end of "Young Riders." Remember that show?
Legitimate? Only one show comes to mind: "Lost."
There were several moments I remember crying, but two stick out: When Boone dies in season one, and the end of season 3 with Charlie. If you've seen it, you know what I'm talking about.
I never sobbed, but I got sufficiently teary-eyed. The music they play at moments like that on "Lost" is perfect/beautiful/heart-wrenching/melancholy/emotional. Kudos to the composers.
And on that note, I say here and now that Matthew Fox (Jack on "Lost") has the best "crying" act on TV. I've never seen anyone more convincing when they cry/are sad on TV. If he does that bit, I almost feel like crying myself. He's brilliant.
Okay, that's all I got. A little better than books, but still not as much as y'all girls.
Wait for movies. I got some regulars for you.
Awesome post, Beezo!
P.S. Genny's comment on the word verification brought notice to mine- "hevetsl." I think that sounds like a fun word to adopt. And.....done. Happy Hevetsl to you all!
Steven, I feel your frustration... Honestly, when I was trying to think of books that make me cry, I was struggling. Only a few stand out clearly in my mind. I'm sure I've cried at others, but I can't remember. The same thing with T.V. I've been trying to think of T.V. moments that have made me cry and I am struggling. Maybe you have the same problem I have: a poor memory.
At least, that is what I have decided to blame for not being able to come up with things that make me cry. Part of the T.V. problem is that there are not many shows that I have re-watched since seeing them the first time, so I don't remember what might have made me cry... (movies, on the other hand, I often re-watch, so it is a lot easier to remember which ones make me cry).
Even so, despite a faulty memory when it comes to T.V., I will contribute what I can to this post:
Here are shows that most likely made me cry at some point, even if I don't remember specifically what made me cry:
1. Okay, while I wasn't as obsessive as Beckie about ER, I wasn't exactly a novice. I am positive that I cried when Dr. Green died. It was a terribly moving episode. I loved his character. (Maybe that's because it was Anthony Edwards, and everyone in the family knows how much I love Goose...but that's for the movie post...) Dr. Green was (and always will be) greatly missed.
2. I know The Pretender had some very moving moments as Jarod continually seeks to find his family, yet remains connected to the only family he has ever known, Sydney. One episode I do remember watching again fairly recently (thanks to Sarah and Kirsti) is one that centers around fathers. I don't remember the main plot right now, but I remember at the end, Jarod is talking to Sydney on Father's Day, asking something like if Sydney ever cared for him like a father. On the phone, Sydney feigns a distant attitude, gives Jarod the impression that he was a scientist that was about research and such and didn't get close to people like that. But as Sydney hangs up the phone, he pulls out a Father's Day card that Jarod had made for him as a kid, lovingly kept all these years without Jarod's knowledge. I KNOW I must have cried at this one because even now, thinking about it, I am tearing up...
3. I am pretty sure I cried at LOST with the whole Charlie thing (though I'm not as sure if I did with Boone...).
4. I agree with Beckie about Buffy- there were some pretty emotional moments on that show that I am sure I cried at. (I loved that show!)
5. Yeah, you may call me lame, but I'm pretty sure I cried at least once in watching The Young Riders- they did deal with some heavy stuff (and didn't one of them get shot and killed? Maybe that, too, is a faulty memory, but I loved those characters and I'm sure things happened that made me cry)
Yeah, that's all I can think of for the possibles...
Here are some definite things that made me cry (and I am going to "cheat" and include commercials):
1. The first commercial that comes to mind might still live on in video lore in the Lambson home. On the video that contains the animated How the Grinch Stole Christmas, there is an old McDonald's commercial where a elementary school class, after complaining about how hard their teacher Mrs. Hatcher is (I even remember the name), they realize how much she taught them and made them grow and how much they love her for it (and they show her by buying her an Extra Value Meal! Why don't my students do that, dangit?! ;). Even now, especially now from a teacher perspective, the thought of that commercial gets me teary.
2. Any of those Cotton commercials featuring the singing of Aaron Neville (at times, his voice is annoying, but somehow it was perfect for those commercials...)
3. Here's me, pushing up my nerd glasses. I don't remember if these events spanned one episode or two, but in watching Deep Space Nine, I DO remember getting weepy and emotional when Dax was killed (Worf's grief was heart-wrenching) and when Dukat, evil as he was, lost his daughter (she got killed in the crossfire between the Cardassians and everyone else). Actually, in that case, the grief was for the death of the daughter, Xial, because she was a good person who did not deserve to die. I think it was more for Garek's grief (who loved her) than Dukat's that I wept. Both those incidents brought me to tears. I would even dare to say that Deep Space Nine slightly edges out Next Generation for my favorite Star Trek because connected with it emotionally more than I did with Next Generation...
4. Finally, Beckie, I didn't mean to steal your thunder with Stan, but that didn't have to stop you from a brief explanation... :) I think what made this one so traumatizing is that we knew one of four characters was going to be killed- we just didn't know who. The nervous anticipation was bad enough, but when Stan, who had recently (FINALLY) hooked up with Carmela, got blown up in a car bomb, it was too much to bear. The main reason I remember the trauma of this is because, for years after, whenever we would watch Field of Dreams, Beckie and I would mournfully point out Stan (the actor in a bit role, directing Ray to Terence Mann's apartment).
Okay, I think that's enough. For someone who doesn't remember crying a lot at T.V., this ended up being a lot longer than I expected...
Speaking of T.V. that makes you cry- the season finale of LOST didn't quite push me to tears, but it definitely got me choked up. I won't spoil anything here, but I will just say I really like what they've done with Sawyer's character this season. Fortunately, we have movies like Harry Potter to help us get through the summer to the next season...
Speaking of Harry Potter, does it count if watching the amazing trailers gives you goosebumps and gets you a little teary-eyed? I haven't cried yet at the previews, but they definitely get me emotional... :)
Okay, I know I keep adding things, but they just keep popping in my head-
First of all, I appreciate that Steven has admitted to weeping unabashedly at the series finale of The Young Riders (and he reminded me that it was Noah, the escaped slave, not our adorable nephew, of course, that got shot and killed at the end. Sad. I really did like Noah.)
Second of all, where does youtube fit in? I suppose, since I am referring to Britain's Got Talent, a British T.V. show, it would fit here, in which case I got teary-eyed with the Susan Boyle one, but I definitely sobbed at the Paul Potts one. Unexpectedly incredible voices out of such humble frames. Just wow.
It is interesting to see the two "camps" in the family - those that cry and those that really don't. Dad is MOST DEFINITELY one who seeks out a good cry. He will go back and back to watch something that will make him cry. I do not. I don't mind crying at a movie, television show, with a book but I prefer being blindsided, I guess.
Oh, I remember the very first movie I cried uncontrollably at - Romeo and Juliet that came out when I was in 7th grade.
I haven't watched TV regularly in years, so I'm gonna plead memory loss in general, but I'll cop to the Dr Green ER episode as well. I was a watcher originally, but I hadn't been following it for quite a while. Nevertheless, somehow I was watching that episode (I probably saw previews and decided to watch out of respect for Anthony Edwards, or at least that's what I probably told myself). I'm convinced that a lot of it is the effectiveness of the composer, the editor, the manipulators... but whatever they did, it worked and I cried...
Also, Hallmark commercials can get to me pretty easily - especially during "Hall of Fame" movies where that's all the commercials you see (and the movie has already primed you...)
That's it for me, though (for now). Happy crying, everyone :-)
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