Yeah, so I watch "24," the TV show for torture-lovers. Whaddya gonna do about it?
Here's my point: last night, for the million and twelfth time, Hollywood has resorted to a death cliché that has no anatomic basis. I speak as a surgeon.
If you are shot in the gut, blood will not immediately ooze from your mouth. Nor, if it did -- from a highly unlikely rending of stomach and aorta in such a way as to rapidly fill the stomach -- would it be that sad little half-mouthful of maroon that materializes on cue, every time, as the eyes glaze over.
Same is true for a shot to the chest, from which, if there were blood at all, it would be in the form of fitful coughing, hardly lending itself to the sad music and doleful close-up.
That mouth thing? Dramatically dribbling dollop of damask drool? Complete bullsh*t.
Had to get it off my chest. Thanks. I feel better.
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"TELL ME WHERE THE BULLET WOUND - oh there it is..."
ReplyDeleteSomebody's disbelief needs more suspending ;). As an IT professional, I spent the first two seasons of the show convulsing every time Jack needed CTU to "open two sockets on the mainframe motherboard firewall encryptor!"
Why is it that so many of us peacenik libruls enjoy "24" so much? Is there a show that conservatives secretly love?
I did get a little bothered a couple of eps ago. The head FBI guy tells Jack "We don't do that (torture). That's what makes us better than them."
To which Jack responded "Not today, buddy", as if that was an actual, legitimate answer.
Still, explosions! Awesome!
The woman also seemed to die within seconds of being shot in the gut. Is death that immediate or would she have just been unconscious? I'd previously been under the impression that getting shot there is a slow death, or was this another error?
ReplyDeleteIt would depend entirely on where the bullet went: if it hit a major artery, death (or, at least, lapsing into unconsciousness) could come pretty fast. If it avoided major blood vessels, it could take days. To die as fast as she seemed to, you'd have to bleed out to the point of cardiac arrest, which would most likely take minutes unless it were the aorta. And the belly would become quite distended.
ReplyDeleteOh. Now you'll probably tell me that real patients don't always vomit blood, break out in weird rashes, have constant seizures, and need to have ginormous needles plunged into their chests on a routine basis by a Vicodin popping genius, like on House MD? :-)
ReplyDeletespynster: by golly, you might be right.
ReplyDeleteAnother favorite of mine is the person who is on "life support" and they show them with a nasal cannula AND a bellows from an OR anesthesia machine.
ReplyDeleteSo Sid, are you the Worlds Expert on EVERYTHING??!!! Maybe the bullet was dipped in Coumadin??? Maybe the Victim bit his tongue?? Maybe its just a #$%^! TV show...Next you'll be tellin us no way Ginger would have taken that many outfits on a 3 hour tour...I'm a "Gilmore Girls" man myself... TV violence upsets me...
ReplyDeleteFrank
I LOVE that show! :)
ReplyDeleteA new one from those writers I am checking out tomorrow.."Lie to Me".
About breaking cases by reading facial expressions. Read about it at Throckmorton's blog and so googled it. Looks good.
Also found on google a fun 4 part test to take to see how good you are at discerning truth vs lies... connected to the show.
I have 3 24s saved on Tivo. Will have major withdrawal when done watching. :)
Obama did well in the speech. Presidential. And like I told you on Dr A's show... a powerful orator. :) (not saying I agree w/everything..but I do like a lot of what he said.)
PLEASE DON'T SPOIL THE 24 PLOT for me! I DVR'rd (a word?) all of the episodes as I work overnights and watch them a few days after they air!! I am all caught up until mondays show so please don't write it out!! And we all KNOW that blood doesnt come out like that , that is how we can watch it with out throwing up!! (And don't tell me to stop reading cause it's like a car accident? you have to turn around to look just one time......) and since I am around the "cop" parts nightly, No one shoots like that either!
ReplyDeleteI just wanna' know when someone is going to put a gun into Chloe and put her out of her misery. That girl is on permanent PMS.
ReplyDeleteWe watched "Lie to Me" tonight. Good show, interesting premise.
ReplyDeleteAnd as an IT professional, just let me say this: everything you see having to do with computers on TV is pure bullshit. All of it.
Except for maybe some of the algorithms on Numb3rs. And I hear tell that some of the math isn't actually total crap, either.
I think the public doesn't know how many people actually take a bullet or knife to the stomach or abdomen, and are just fine. Lots of times victom just gets chest tube w/wo exp lap whatever or where ever bullet decided to go,sometimes in and out, other times lodges in weird areas. one time a bullet ended up in a mans testicle after a shot to the chest.
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