Why does TV suck now?
- Thread starter milefile
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- Somerset
- Pagey279
I would say there's quite a lot of good tele out there, you've just got to find it. It's the same with everything, you have to sift through all the crap to find the decent stuff.
However some of the long running TV series like Top Gear, The Big Bang Theory and Family Guy are steadily getting worse. Still good programmes but no where near as good as they were and there isn't much similar stuff to watch. I normally watch re runs of programmes, like those mentioned above and stuff like Two and a Half Men, Friends, Wheeler Dealers etc.
Then you've got your real big budget stuff that doesn't come around that often, like Band of Brothers, The Pacific, Game of Thrones which are all epic. But really it depends what you like.
However some of the long running TV series like Top Gear, The Big Bang Theory and Family Guy are steadily getting worse. Still good programmes but no where near as good as they were and there isn't much similar stuff to watch. I normally watch re runs of programmes, like those mentioned above and stuff like Two and a Half Men, Friends, Wheeler Dealers etc.
Then you've got your real big budget stuff that doesn't come around that often, like Band of Brothers, The Pacific, Game of Thrones which are all epic. But really it depends what you like.
Robin
Premium
- 16,799
- United Kingdom
Yeah Big Bang Theory for me went down the drain when they added the other girls, became real dumbed down and irritating. Stopped watching Two and a Half Men when they wrote Sheen out.
TV shows don't really have the mileage they used to have in the 90's (probably because there wasn't much else to do without broadband!).
It's a trend that becoming common, new series either die really quickly or drag on and get really terrible. This is why networks are reviving classic titles in the hope that the name alone will give good ratings. Like they are going to redo Dad's Army and others.
TV shows don't really have the mileage they used to have in the 90's (probably because there wasn't much else to do without broadband!).
It's a trend that becoming common, new series either die really quickly or drag on and get really terrible. This is why networks are reviving classic titles in the hope that the name alone will give good ratings. Like they are going to redo Dad's Army and others.
- 2,836
- HaggyBaggyBalls
The Walking Dead springs to mind as a show that began excellently and slowly turned to crap as time wore on...
- 4,687
- Golden State
- xViLLaiNx12
@Wiegert
I know, beggers belief that programmes like that can win it channel of the year! I swear they just give it to a different one every time to look impartial.
Well obviously, we are in different countries.
Your country doesn't/didn't air Sherlock, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, House of Cards, Mad Men, The Wire, Luther...?
I'd move.
Robin
Premium
- 16,799
- United Kingdom
A lot of the good stuff and most of what you listed is pay per view, most of our free channels (known as freeview) aren't that great. Only about 8 of the 90 channels are worth watching. I think in the US the setup is different where practically everyone has cable.
For every 'Sherlock' there are a hundred 'insert itv2 reality show of the moment here'...'s.
Robin
Premium
- 16,799
- United Kingdom
@TB Yeah, the on demand services are really taking over and will eventually kill cable because you pretty much get everything on it.
They are even predicting that TV as we know it (scheduled) might disappear in the next decade as people custom build their own channel which fits around them. It would find that a shame because some of the best stuff I have watched I have stumbled upon flicking through the guide. I kinda feel sentimental about TV, as a child of the 80's and 90's it practically raised me
They are even predicting that TV as we know it (scheduled) might disappear in the next decade as people custom build their own channel which fits around them. It would find that a shame because some of the best stuff I have watched I have stumbled upon flicking through the guide. I kinda feel sentimental about TV, as a child of the 80's and 90's it practically raised me
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- Controls set for heart of sun
- GTP_RogerTheHors
As long as BBC Four exists, UK TV's doing fine, all though it's not as good as it used to be.
CodeRedR51
Premium
- 55,319
- United States
x2. I don't have cable either, but I still pick up a few channels and I don't watch anything unless it's a NASCAR race (rarely, and until they switch to another station half way through the season) or something I really don't want to miss and have access to, like Cosmos.I haven't had cable/satellite for over 15 years and still find plenty to watch on my 12 channels, 7 of which I've never used.
That said, I do abuse the living crap out of Netflix's streaming, but at $8/month, it's well worth it.
Netflix is where I go, although I haven't had internet at home for a couple months so I'm starting to have withdrawals.
- 23,800
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Somebody's been putting out stuff on YouTube, like "The Big Bang Theory without the laugh track." Cringeworthy in parts, but I still chuckled at some of the jokes. I think it's unfair to that show, though... a show filmed with the laugh track and the audience in it has a different flow from a show filmed without it. It's like watching stand up comedy with the audience edited out. The comedian still pauses to wait for the laughter to finish, but you don't get that. You just see him pause.
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Not much to watch nowadays, but that's because we have kids, and most of what we want to watch is too scary/mature/hard-to-explain. Cosmos is great. Cooking shows are fine. And I'm glad they make cartoons that are watchable for adults, otherwise we'd never get any entertainment.
Feel like I'm missing out on Game of Thrones... but try explaining that to an eight year old.
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Not much to watch nowadays, but that's because we have kids, and most of what we want to watch is too scary/mature/hard-to-explain. Cosmos is great. Cooking shows are fine. And I'm glad they make cartoons that are watchable for adults, otherwise we'd never get any entertainment.
Feel like I'm missing out on Game of Thrones... but try explaining that to an eight year old.
- 12,389
- Betelgeuse
- Beeblebrox_237
Why does TV suck? Reality TV. I can't stand it. Mind you, almost all of the sitcoms aren't funny in any way, and they all look exactly the same. Truly original and interesting shows are rare; the best shows have been going for many seasons already or are remakes of old ones.
- 35,434
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- Cy-Fi
The answer, my friend, is
I also want to see what all the fuss is about GoT but will have to wait until it shows up on Netflix (if that ever happens...) or grab it from the video store.
- 11,339
- The 51st state of america
- sparkytooth50001
I barely watch cartoons and sometimes Top Gear USA when I can't UK, this place and my PS3 have absorbed me more.
I agree with @Beeblebrox237, reality TV is awful.
I agree with @Beeblebrox237, reality TV is awful.
- 4,687
- Golden State
- xViLLaiNx12
Well, I'm not advocating watching everything on TV. Your logic applies to movies, too. How many Tyler Perry movies are there compared to Francis Ford Coppola movies?
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1347153/ (In case you don't know who Tyler Perry is...)
Anyways, the point is that great TV shows exist. An argument can be made that the best series on TV are better than the best movies in theaters. That's saying a lot for how far TV shows have come, and how far movies have fallen.
Is there a ton of crap out there? Yes of course. Don't watch it. I don't.
Like I said, I don't think we watch the same things on TV.
CAMAROBOY69
Premium
- 18,567
- Michigan
- CAMAROBOY69
I haven't had cable tv or anything related to tv channels in MANY years. In fact I am through Comcast and I only have cable internet. No tv channels at all.
I use Netflix if I want to watch tv shows or movies commercial free. The rest of my "tv" time is spent gaming.
I use Netflix if I want to watch tv shows or movies commercial free. The rest of my "tv" time is spent gaming.
- 1,822
- Caliphornia
- GTP_raz_10
I recently cut the cord too, it has been a full week without live TV. The change hasn't been too drastic, except now I can't just have the TV on just to be on, I actually have to pick what to watch. which is good and bad cuz now I feel bad picking something and blowing it off. Haha
But with The World Cup coming up I'm
I used the PS3 for Netflix and Hulu, thinking of getting a box instead (Roku, Chromecast) I would hate to have the PS3 go bad...
Any Body have good advice on either of those or any other? seems like the Roku 3 is the way to go.
But with The World Cup coming up I'm
I used the PS3 for Netflix and Hulu, thinking of getting a box instead (Roku, Chromecast) I would hate to have the PS3 go bad...
Any Body have good advice on either of those or any other? seems like the Roku 3 is the way to go.
- 19,700
- Alabamamania
We've been without cable TV or dish for about eight months now. The kids would veg-out too much in front of the set, and my wife and I rarely found much to watch. I am interested in a few shows here and there, but they're rarely on and the few times I've recorded them, I rarely have found time to watch the programming, anyhow. I'd record twenty things a month, and find time for a quarter of them, at best, or not care if they were unfinished...stuff to do and real people to see on my weekends. About the only thing I miss are my F1 races; after that, there's not much I'll care much about missing.
My theory is that so much of TV, whether it's news or entertainment or sports is usually based on dumbing things down to a level where a teenager could understand 95% of the episode, using excessive amounts of repeated body language and overplayed emphasis in lieu of verbal content. Maybe it's because the older I get, and the more my life changes, there's less of it that I can relate to on that TV set. I don't really care for manufactured adventure, drama, overly-scripted nonsense, or seeing what others can do when given a limitless budget; and the same goes for my real life. I think the so-called "unscripted" stuff is like experiencing bad office politics that don’t affect me or getting trapped in someone else's Facebook page of someone who has completely different interests.
I don't think the overall quality has really changed much, to be honest; I just think my tastes and experiences have changed greatly. There were bad and forgettable TV shows decades ago, there's just more channels now; there's more to pick on.
My theory is that so much of TV, whether it's news or entertainment or sports is usually based on dumbing things down to a level where a teenager could understand 95% of the episode, using excessive amounts of repeated body language and overplayed emphasis in lieu of verbal content. Maybe it's because the older I get, and the more my life changes, there's less of it that I can relate to on that TV set. I don't really care for manufactured adventure, drama, overly-scripted nonsense, or seeing what others can do when given a limitless budget; and the same goes for my real life. I think the so-called "unscripted" stuff is like experiencing bad office politics that don’t affect me or getting trapped in someone else's Facebook page of someone who has completely different interests.
I don't think the overall quality has really changed much, to be honest; I just think my tastes and experiences have changed greatly. There were bad and forgettable TV shows decades ago, there's just more channels now; there's more to pick on.
- 19,700
- Alabamamania
The thing is, we don't get an a la carte menu pricing model in the US: The theory is that cable TV channel bundling is what saves you money in the long run, but there's some evidence that it's completely the opposite. One can argue they subsidize other channels under their corporate umbrella, but Lifestyle Network and Weather Channel (as examples) aren't paying a sporting body a half-billion dollars per year in broadcasting rights.
You're usually faced with a $50 plan with twenty more channels, and then $20 more for a hundred more stations, and $20-50 for additional movie channels. Plus any local, state, and national fees tacked on which are buried in fine print. So $80-100 per month for TV? No thanks, and that's why I can understand why we hold it to a higher standard.
You're usually faced with a $50 plan with twenty more channels, and then $20 more for a hundred more stations, and $20-50 for additional movie channels. Plus any local, state, and national fees tacked on which are buried in fine print. So $80-100 per month for TV? No thanks, and that's why I can understand why we hold it to a higher standard.
- 4,120
- Philippines
- GBalao888
- GBalao888
The reason why TV is starting to suck right now is because of lack of creativity, inspiration, tradition and downright stupidity. This also goes to the cartoons. Adventure time is arguably the cartoon with the highest amount of stupidity.
Sometimes it's best to go back to the old-school stuff from your lost youth... there were good TV shows back then. Same with music, some of the music today are starting to make me dislike them, whereas the music back then were very good and pleasant to the ears.
Sometimes it's best to go back to the old-school stuff from your lost youth... there were good TV shows back then. Same with music, some of the music today are starting to make me dislike them, whereas the music back then were very good and pleasant to the ears.
- 5,551
- Controls set for heart of sun
- GTP_RogerTheHors
OK, the first question this brings up is simply "how much Adventure Time have you actually watched?"
The second is "are you sure you're not confusing surrealism with stupidity?"
The third is "since when was stupidity in fiction even a bad thing?"
The fourth is "are you some sort of mega-hipster who likes to claim that they dislike things simply because they are popular?"
- 4,120
- Philippines
- GBalao888
- GBalao888
I only watched one episode for only one day until I've heard that it can bring horrible influences on children.
Stupidity is in fact, surreal in many sophisticated ways. Stupidity in fiction may make children go nuts and spread all the dirt across people. It's like stupidity is a virus. And lastly, no, I am not a hipster of any kind.
