To the eternal gratitude of television fans, the writers' strike ended before audiences could be subjected to reality shows like Farmer Wants a Wife. However, the 100-day break might have been exactly what the writers needed.

The strike caused some terrible ramifications. Hundreds of production crew workers lost their jobs. Reports suggest that the Los Angeles economy lost an estimated $1.3 billion.

Still, there is a silver lining in every situation. At the start of the 2007-2008 season, only a few shows retained previous critical praise. For example, 30 Rock finally found its groove as The Mary Tyler Moore Show on acid. On the other hand, several programs were criticized for creatively unfulfilling plots, such as the pointless new characters on Heroes and the never-ending love triangles of Grey's Anatomy.

If anything, the writers' strike provided an occasion for showrunners to reboot. Most seasons have around 22 episodes. Imagine how difficult it must be to drag out a will-they-or-won't-they romance for that long! With any luck, the writers had three months to map out plots that will impress audiences. Without picking up any pencils, of course.

The most important part of the strike is that people are actually aware of the writers' existence now. Before, not many people could probably name a television writer, with the exception of a high-profile one like Tina Fey. That aspect hasn't changed, but the masses are starting to realize where all of those zippy one-liners come from. It's about time these underappreciated scribes get respect from someone other than a publicity-hungry star passing out doughnuts at a picket line.

The writers weren't the only ones who needed a break. Since I didn't have to rush home at 8 p.m. every Thursday to catch The Office, I took more time to read and finish my schoolwork. Because there was nothing of substance on TV, it was one less distraction for my procrastinating tendencies.

Now, if only Facebook would go on strike, I'd make the Dean's List.