Poker to soon be CRYSTAL CLEAR.
ESPN is going to be airing The World Series of Poker this summer in high definition. I find this interesting for the following reasons: 1) it suggests that we’re starting to approach the time when HD is the norm and standard definition is something of an anomaly in broadcasting. 2) This also assumes that HD is no longer thought of as a luxury, but instead as a necessity. And 3) have you seen the people who normally play in the World Series of Poker? It’s like looking at the cast of The Devil’s Rejects wearing green visors and smoking unlit cigarettes. It’s a veritable state-fair of side-show acts and tourists — now available in crisp, clean, high definition.
Is this really what we want? Shouldn’t this great new technology be saved for those things in which we really want to see the detail? Like bass fishing. Or women’s beach volleyball. Seeing the wringles in a green felt table does not make me want to go out and drop an M-note on a new plasma.
