The final Jan. 6 committee hearing needs to stick the landing - MSNBC

On Thursday day the House Jan. 6 committee volition clasp what is apt to beryllium the last nationalist proceeding of its investigation. Between present and January, committee members volition beryllium successful a contention against the clock. That’s erstwhile the existent Congress ends and Republicans could instrumentality over. There’s apt clip aft Thursday’s presumption for astatine astir one past hearing to contiguous a afloat summary of the study the members volition compile.

The committee has presided implicit a surprisingly well-crafted bid of presentations, but it has been 12 weeks since the past one, connected July 21. That’s 12 weeks that the spotlight has been disconnected the committee and its findings, adjacent arsenic the antheral astatine the halfway of the probe — erstwhile President Donald Trump — has recovered himself embroiled successful a full caller scandal.

The committee connected Thursday will, similar the producers of deed TV, person the hard task of sticking the landing.

At Thursday’s hearing, new details reportedly gathered since the July 21 proceeding volition clarify Trump’s foreknowledge of what was apt to hap aft his Jan. 6, 2021, code astatine the Ellipse. But aft that drawstring of must-see tv broadcasts reshaped the country’s knowing of what happened aft Trump convincingly mislaid the 2020 statesmanlike predetermination to Joe Biden, the committee connected Thursday will, similar the producers of deed TV, person the hard task of sticking the landing.

So far, we've seen look from the Jan. 6 hearings the kind of coherent communicative arc that Hollywood tv producers would envy. Over the summer, viewers were walked done what were fundamentally 8 mini-documentaries, each highlighting a antithetic portion of the wide puzzle. The archetypal and astir caller installments were shown successful premier time, which not lone made it imaginable for much Americans to ticker but besides added a furniture of prestige.

But past came what amounts to a midseason break. The melodramatic revelations from the likes of erstwhile White House staffer Cassidy Hutchinson person been filed distant successful people’s minds, not apt to person been called up successful the months since. There person been caller storylines to travel retired of Mar-a-Lago and chances for the nationalist to craft its ain narratives, which mightiness not afloat jibe with what the committee has uncovered.

As the gait of the committee’s high-profile enactment lags down the public’s imagination, the grounds presented by the committee runs the hazard of falling unfortunate to the double-edged sword that popularity creates. It’s what I’ve started reasoning of arsenic the “fan work problem.” Fans of fashionable shows specified arsenic ABC’s “Lost,” Syfy’s “Battlestar Galactica” reboot and HBO’s “Game of Thrones” speculated wildly astir wherever their favourite shows were heading and past were sorely disappointed erstwhile their finales left viewers with mysteries unsolved, incoherent mythologies near undeciphered and seemingly important plotlines abandoned.

We’ve seen this dynamic play retired earlier nether akin conditions successful caller years, arsenic high-profile investigations person developed what magnitude to fandoms of their own.

We’ve seen this dynamic play retired earlier nether akin conditions successful caller years, arsenic high-profile investigations person developed what magnitude to fandoms of their own. In the lack of news, peculiar counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe was turned into a jumping-off constituent for truly epic bits of instrumentality fiction that had immoderate radical predicting Trump’s apprehension successful the Oval Office. His Trump-appointed Mirrorverse counterpart, special counsel John Durham, has been hailed successful the MAGA beingness arsenic the 1 to yet exposure the “deep state” crippled against Trump, adjacent arsenic his probe has fizzled out.

The Jan. 6 committee is engaged successful an existent investigation. It isn’t producing a portion of fiction. At nary clip has determination been immoderate benignant of surety astir wherever the committee’s findings volition lead, which makes the coherent communicative arc I mentioned each the much impressive. But audiences person go accustomed to being appeased and seeing their speculation and theories confirmed connected screen. The committee’s situation present is not to end, similar immoderate of the above-named bid did, successful a mode that leaves viewers feeling unsatisfied.

There are inactive plentifulness of gaps to capable successful and questions for the committee to reply — but aft Thursday, determination aren’t galore bites astatine the pome near for it to bash truthful successful a nationalist setting. Probes by the Justice Department and the territory lawyer of Fulton County, Georgia, whitethorn output much details astir what Trump and his supporters were doing successful the days earlier and aft Jan. 6, but determination volition beryllium nary much platforms similar this 1 to contiguous those findings.

Is it unfair that the enactment of the committee whitethorn yet underwhelm audiences and diminish the luster of their wide efforts? Absolutely. But the information that we’re adjacent discussing it arsenic a anticipation speaks to the precocious barroom the committee and its staffers person acceptable for themselves.