Most formulaic show

[Relish in Chaos]

What do you think is the most formulaic TV show? My vote would go to Scooby Doo. Throughout most, if not all of the versions, almost every episode proceeds like this: the gang are riding in the Mystery Machine at night, with one of them giving some brief exposition like "It sure was great that your aunt [insert name] allowed us to visit their house" or whatever. They stop off in some town, are warned of a ghost, and a couple of red herrings for the culprit are introduced.

Fred says they should split up and look for clues (normally, between Fred, Daphne and Velma, and Shaggy and Scooby), Shaggy and Scooby mess around trying to find some food, the ghost runs after them, Shaggy and Scooby put on some costumes and do a little skit to confuse the ghost, and then everyone has to run and hide from the ghost in a music-filled montage. They meet back up, organize a trap that includes Shaggy and Scooby being used as bait after they're bribed with Scooby Snacks, the trap fucks up but the ghost is caught anyway and is revealed to be some guy trying to scare people for some plot of financial gain.

 

[Rylot]

At least Scooby Doo is a children's show, granted your criticisms are fair. My vote is Two and a Half Men. Charlie is going to be a drunk womanizing asshole, the brother is a goody goody looser who will have something bad happen to him. The kid will act stupid. The mother will be a *****, as will the maid. I cannot fathom how this show is still going and no I stopped watching long before Ashton joined.

Edit: I haven't seen it for a while but Big Bang Theory had some of the most step by step joke structures known to man. The set ups were so obvious they could be seen from space.

 

[Legion]

House.

- A person falls ill.
- House winds up team members because he is a dick.
- He takes the case because he is blackmailed or it stands out.
- The team all guess what's wrong with the patient incorrectly.
- He misdiagnoses the patient.
- Him or his team breaks into the patients house or intimidates them into giving information.
- He misdiagnoses the patient again.
- He winds up team members some more.
- He speaks to the patient again as they missed something out or lied.
- He misdiagnoses the patient again.
- Around the 3/4 mark, he is having a random conversation with Wilson and has an epiphany.
- He finally diagnoses the patient correctly.

Rinse and repeat for the vast majority of 8 seasons.


Then again, most detective shows tend to be just as repetitive.

 

[Goofguy]

How about every Law and Order, and CSI episode? Police procedurals are the worst. Limited character development and whatever season arc that exists is pretty half-assed.

 

[lRookiel]

House.

- A person falls ill.
- House winds up team members because he is a dick.
- He takes the case because he is blackmailed or it stands out.
- The team all guess what's wrong with the patient incorrectly.
- He misdiagnoses the patient.
- Him or his team breaks into the patients house or intimidates them into giving information.
- He misdiagnoses the patient again.
- He winds up team members some more.
- He speaks to the patient again as they missed something out or lied.
- He misdiagnoses the patient again.
- Around the 3/4 mark, he is having a random conversation with Wilson and has an epiphany.
- He finally diagnoses the patient correctly.

Rinse and repeat for the vast majority of 8 seasons.


Then again, most detective shows tend to be just as repetitive.

Yes, and it's still so fantastic

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

Teletubbies

TUBBY CUSTARRRRDDDD!

Spoiler

OT: i will say scooby doo is very formulaic, but that didn't stop me from watching and enjoying every damn episode

i'll add power rangers to that...99% of the time they would be hanging out or whatever, get a call from a random monster attacking the city, they would morph and fight, the monster would get steroided up:

and they would summon the megazord, wash and repeat.

hell there is a frickin trope built around it for christ sake:

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MakeMyMonsterGrow

 

[marche45]

Every anime harem show.
You could almost predict the dialogue before they say it.

 

[Sir Christopher McFarlane]

Every anime harem show.
You could almost predict the dialogue before they say it.

If you say it like that... Well, if it's you then I don't mind.

 

[Animyr]

How about every Law and Order, and CSI episode? Police procedurals are the worst. Limited character development and whatever season arc that exists is pretty half-assed.

I've been watching episodes of Cold Case, which seems to have been created with a mad libs sheet. They even play the exact same music at the same parts of every episode.

 

[sethisjimmy]

Easily the Big Bang Theory. I don't think I've seen a much more formulaic show in my life. It hits every checkbox on the generic sitcom list.

 

[The]

You can't get more formulaic than CSI. That's pretty much peak formula. But props to Big Bang Theory for reaching that same level.

 

[Flatfrog]

Easily the Big Bang Theory. I don't think I've seen a much more formulaic show in my life. It hits every checkbox on the generic sitcom list.

Everyone on this site seems to hate on BBT, I don't really understand why. It's well written and funny. And it may not be the most innovative show in the world, but it's certainly not formulaic in the same sense that Scooby Doo, House or Power Rangers are.

On the subject of Power Rangers, it's long been my opinion that it's the greatest piece of cynical toy-marketing ever designed. Every single thing about it is designed to maximize merchandising sales. Each series has a new range of Rangers, with a new range of zorgs and accessories. And of course, half-way through the series, just when the kids are getting bored and have a new bit of spare pocket money, a new ranger comes in with a new accessory. And finally - and this is the most ingenious bit - they've solved an age-old toy-marketing problem. In most cases, there's a disconnect between the cool gizmo on the TV show and the crappy piece of plastic you buy at the store. But in Power Rangers, the thing on the TV show *is* the crappy piece of plastic. There's no disconnect at all. I don't think it's just them being cheap, I'm convinced it's a genuine piece of evil marketing brilliance.

And to return to the OP, I think the formulaic nature of the show also ties in with this. If you're in the playground and a bunch of kids are playing Power Rangers, anyone can join in. There's no ambiguity. And it has that feeling of a kids' game too: 'Okay, I want to be the bad one now - rrr! no one can defeat me!' 'Wait, I've got superpowers!' 'Well, I've got bigger superpowers!' 'Well I've got a big robot!' 'Well I've got a *giant* robot!' 'Well our robots can join together into an even *bigger* robot!'.

 

[DoPo]

House.

- A person falls ill.
- House winds up team members because he is a dick.
- He takes the case because he is blackmailed or it stands out.
- The team all guess what's wrong with the patient incorrectly.
- He misdiagnoses the patient.
- Him or his team breaks into the patients house or intimidates them into giving information.
- He misdiagnoses the patient again.
- He winds up team members some more.
- He speaks to the patient again as they missed something out or lied.
- He misdiagnoses the patient again.
- Around the 3/4 mark, he is having a random conversation with Wilson and has an epiphany.
- He finally diagnoses the patient correctly.

Rinse and repeat for the vast majority of 8 seasons.

I take offence at that description. You missed the point where the patient seems to be doing better after a misdiagnosis but then gets worse. Usually in the most dramatically appropriate moment with the most dramatically appropriate effect - they are just about to leave the hospital when they start coughing blood for example.

Then again I don't find it annoying or anything - the formula usually works. But the reason I didn't really watch it (aside from the odd episode on TV I'd just leave in the background) was that, a large portion of each episode was irrelevant to me: just meical technobabble (medibabble?). So it was fine, aside from the fact that I watch, like, 10 minutes of each episode.

 

[Daft Time]

Yes, and it's still so fantastic

It's all in the writing between the formulaic structure of each episode man. House could be put in so many other settings and still be just as awesome. =)

 

[Karma168]

Pokemon's awful for it - Ash and friends meet someone with a pokemon ash has to point dexter at (even though he's seen one half a dozen times), team rocket will hatch a scheme to steal pikachu and the new pokemon, they'll eventually fail and pikachu will shove 50,000V up their arse - causing them to explode and blast off into the sky.

 

[jetriot]

I hate shows that are formula and fail to push forward the storyline except maybe slightly at then end and start of a season. All the CSI shows, House, Bones, most reality TV.... I much prefer shows with moving plots, BTvS, Firefly, GoT, 24, The Wire, etc. etc. It is a shame because many of those forumla shows have potential but are the TV dinner equivilent of television instead.

Although to be honest I don't mind formula in short sitcoms. I don't typically expect a grand plot in them.

 

[NightmareExpress]

Seth Macfarlane shows.
Stupid main character.
Over concerned wife.
Smart baby/animal character.
Hapless dimwit son.
Rebellious/unliked daughter.
"Remember that time when" / "That reminds me of" jokes.

Typical, formulaic, stale.

 

[Zac Jovanovic]

I hate shows that are formula and fail to push forward the storyline except maybe slightly at then end and start of a season. All the CSI shows, House, Bones, most reality TV.... I much prefer shows with moving plots, BTvS, Firefly, GoT, 24, The Wire, etc. etc. It is a shame because many of those forumla shows have potential but are the TV dinner equivilent of television instead.

And I was about to nominate 24 for the prize, though to be fair I haven't seen all of it. Couldn't bear it past 4 or 5 seasons.

 

[jetriot]

I hate shows that are formula and fail to push forward the storyline except maybe slightly at then end and start of a season. All the CSI shows, House, Bones, most reality TV.... I much prefer shows with moving plots, BTvS, Firefly, GoT, 24, The Wire, etc. etc. It is a shame because many of those forumla shows have potential but are the TV dinner equivilent of television instead.

And I was about to nominate 24 for the prize, though to be fair I haven't seen all of it. Couldn't bear it past 4 or 5 seasons.

You can like or dislike 24... it is far from my top 10 list. However, other than the theme it created for itself it was hardly a formula show. A forumula show exists in a bubble so that the audience can jump into the show at any point. It doesn't matter whether you had seen the previous episode or ever watched the show at all, the characters, plot and devices exist in a time bubble that barely changes. Every episode they go through the same handful of plot devices and the only thing that changes is the problem, the supporting characters and the solution.

 

[Relish in Chaos]

Seth Macfarlane shows.
Stupid main character.
Over concerned wife.
Smart baby/animal character.
Hapless dimwit son.
Rebellious/unliked daughter.
"Remember that time when" / "That reminds me of" jokes.

Typical, formulaic, stale.

Although it's only Family Guy that do cutaway gags. American Dad and the god-awful Cleveland Show (if you loved Peter Griffin, you're gonna love Cleveland Brown! /sarcasm) have pretty traditional humour.