IN WHICH The Girl Wishes for Happy Spies

Oh, the woes of watching summer television. Yes, I know: first world problems. Obviously, our tv watching options become extremely limited during the summer. Beyond reality television (of which I will only watch So You Think You Can Dance), only a few stations produce new episodes between May and September, mainly USA, TNT, and ABC Family. Since I rarely watch TNT and I’d like to keep the number of ABC Family shows I watch on the DL, let’s talk about the USA Network.

Overall, USA has dominated summer television, producing a number of interesting and fun concepts that work well for short runs of ten to twelve episodes over the summer. The shows tend to involve silly but entertaining premises – burned spies, lawyers without law degrees, snarky criminals and/or psychics helping the police, and concierge doctors in the sunny Hamptons. I have watched and enjoyed many of these shows over the years, but I recently started to notice a trend in the USA shows. Over time, the shows turn darker, more serious and more involved, switching from episodic plot lines to season-long stories. While this narrative evolution would be a great thing for normal television, I believe it’s the downfall of the summer series.

My favorite summer shows over the last couple years have been Covert Affairs and Suits. They both started out with fairly simple set-ups. In Covert Affairs, a new spy, Annie Walker, starts working with the CIA and deals with learning the ins and outs of being a spy while trying to hide her new job from her family. Suits begins when a hot shot lawyer, Harvey, hires Mike, a young genius, but one without a law degree, who accidentally ended up in the firm’s interviews while running away from cops. We follow the progression of both Annie and Mike’s careers from the beginning, watching them solve a case a week and enjoy the excitement and danger of their risky jobs while juggling duel lives. Ultimately, the characters’ friendships and love lives evolve from episode to episode, but you never had to follow any complex plot developments and if you missed an episode here or there, no problem.

Lately, Suits has become a little more serious. Over the last couple years, the writers introduced season-long stories that one must follow from episode to episode. Also, Mike left the firm at the end of last season, putting the best part of the series, watching Mike and Harvey outsmart the opponents together, on hold. Mike’s personal life has also fallen apart, so it’s even more depressing. However, the show still includes some light-hearted elements, namely Donna and Louis, and it looks like Mike and Harvey will be fighting on the same side again soon. Suits appears to be following the darkened path of earlier USA shows, like Burn Notice, but still has time to redeem itself.

Covert Affairs, however, has been on the air longer. While still a good show that I continue watching, it’s not nearly as light or fun as it used to be. The previous couple seasons have provided complex season-long stories that I barely cared about, such as the take down of Henry. My favorite part of the show has always been watching Annie hop from country to country on missions, and dishing about these events to her handler, Auggie. But recently Annie’s goal changed from feisty spy craft to revenge, living undercover, and now hiding her medical condition. I can’t remember the last time she genuinely smiled or enjoyed her job. The only thing that looked promising was her relationship with Auggie, which also went kaput. I’m not sure I see a happy light at the end of this tunnel, but I keep hoping.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I believe that television shows, like any story, must develop over time. You can’t stay static forever. Usually I enjoy watching characters evolve and deal with serious conflicts. Nevertheless, when you start a show off with the promise of an exciting hour of entertainment with little commitment, you should stick to that promise. That is all I want during the summer. I want to watch Annie sleuth through a cocktail party, beat up the bad guy, and then laugh about it before making out with Auggie. I’m taking a break from Lost-style television because in theory I have all sorts of fun summery things to do outside instead (in theory). So please, USA Network, turn the light back on.