Is it just me, or does television really suck?

[winterknight]

I don't understand how my parents can stand to have it on all the time. With the exception of the occasional gem like Sherlock, after five minutes I feel like my brain is dribbling out of my ears.

 

[MoufOfKhaos]

I don't think in totalities, so no, TV doesn't suck for me.

 

[winterknight]

Winterknight, I agree with you that the vast majority of it sucks. But "there's gold in them thar' hills".

BBC America airs some real gems. I have fallen in love with Downton Abbey, and if any show features Miss Marple, I tape it and watch it over and over again.

Some of the lesser-known channels air some gems, too. The History Channel often airs interesting programs as does National Geographic, and who could forget TruTV? (TruTV specializes in forensic science.)

I find Downton abbey brain-dribbling. Miss Marple I can see if it's Joan Hickson, but the new ones are Marple in name only.

We don't get those other channels here.

 

[anchihiro]

i hardly watch tv these days, but any David Attenborough wildlife documentary is still awesome.

 

[Muzzy91]

There's a lot of bad TV shows out there (i.e. most of reality television) but there are also a decent amount of good shows too, you just have to find them.

Some shows lately that I think are good are Desperate Housewives, American Horror Story, Alcatraz and Ellen (who doesn't love Ellen )

 

[maxpowr9]

Like 90% of movies now, 90% of television is garbage.

 

[Saybrooke]

I just rid of my cable, so the only things I watch are Buffy on dvd and The Walking Dead at my sisters

 

[Beachguyj]

It really is horrible. The only hour long Drama/suspense show I watch is The Walking Dead. I haven't watched a sitcom for probably 10 years. Lucky for me I do like reality TV and I like shows like Top Chef, but for the most part it really does stink. I even had to downgrade me cable because it got too expensive, now I almost never watch TV and anything I watch is from online sources which is connected to my TV. I also find my attention span is awful. Usually I watch 10 or 15 minutes and pause it and continue later.

 

[Beachguyj]

Mark Burnett can be held responsible for those who dont like who reality tv has taken over. He created the first reality show, Survivor. If he hadnt, it might have never happened.

.

Survivor is less reality now than it is a game show, same as Top Chef it's a competition. Now the Real Housewives and those Kardashian shows are the real reality shows which is just vapid people arguing about nothing. You can thank Bravo for most of that.

 

[Ram]

There are people who still watch television?

 

[pat grimshaw]

I like reality TV too. Some people may complain that it isn't really real but I feel it's sufficiently real to be preferable to fiction.

…Mark Burnett ….created the first reality show, Survivor. If he hadnt, it might have never happened.…

I consider these manipulative interview shows to be the first example of 'reality TV'~


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Up_Series

 

[SLOPPYSECONDS]

numba folk bang head inta 1000 kilometer truck cum othda way at da waste of invention a TV ans a screen movie flickyfliccky

while it alllllllllllllll keep goin on

pips

 

[HunterM]

WinterKnight,
What the hell are you talking about? I find lots of tv shows very entertaining...with some pots and drinking games

 

[Beachguyj]

It's just you that sucks. j/k

 

[ronboy]

Often times, I think TV was better when we just had three channels (ABC, NBC, and CBS) to choose from, instead of 500 channels....

 

[youngneil]

I think there's so much crap because they make shows for just about every person & demographic now. If its on the air I'm sure a few million people like it. I myself like shows on premium channels like Showtime & HBO etc. almost everything else on basic cable is stupid ie vampire diaries, jersey shore

 

[evanrick]

i didnt find that clip at all funny.

television is too hetero-centric these days....best stick to gay porno.

 

[Joshua_me]

It's fairly horrible...

Reality shows have all but destroyed American television, and the actual drama's and "comedies" that are produced ( you know, the ones that actually require writers and actors with talent) are mostly aimed at the 30 and under set.

And because of the economy, the commercial breaks have become intolerable. A sixty minute show is reduced to 42 minutes because of TV ads...

That's almost a THIRD of the allotted time allowed for the actual show.

It's pure greed.

The only solution is to spend more money. (There's a surprise) Either rent a film, or buy/rent the DVD set of whatever show you'd like to catch up on, or pay for channels like HBO or Showtime. *Which in "on demand" HD run you about 15 bucks a piece every month...

It's a sad state of a affairs for those of us that remember "the good ol' days", but then again there's an entire new generation coming up behind us that know no better....

meh

Time marches on.

(Meanwhile, the major entertainment companies wonder, with a straight face, why "illegal downloading" is such a problem.)

 

[hylas]

"Is it just me, or does television really suck? "

i actually think there is so much good television out there, its fucking hard to keep up!

you like fantasy or scifi? i suggest game of thrones, doctor who, and fringe! you may also like spartacus, eventhough its not technically scifi/fantasy

reality tv? rupauls drag race of course!

soap operas? revenge, downton abbey, and mad men are all soaps done well. in the case of mad men, its done so well it actually transcends the soap genre.

comedy? i love archer, parks & recreation, and community.

im sure ive forgotten something. and im not even counting the many high quality tv-shows of all formats and genres that have been produced over the last 10+ years, and are readily available. even instantly and for free, if you dont mind pirating.

really, i dont understand the complaint. are you guys even looking for good tv? or are you just complaining that the good shows are not finding you automatically as you lie there on the couch napping?

 

[hylas]

addendum: you like happy guns? try burn notice. you like serious guns? try homeland.