What's the point in watching TV series anymore?

[Antitonic]

Waht do people have against the big bang theory?

Humour is subjective?

And for anyone that likes it, I'd recommend the british comedy The I.T. Crowd. You may find it even funnier.

I would back this recommendation. I quite like The IT Crowd, and I find Big Bang Theory unfunny and painful to watch. It's better than Seinfeld, though.

 

[Something Amyss]

go watch some hbo

band of brothers
sopranos
the wire (this more than anything else)
boardwalk empire
game of thrones
trreme
Rome
the pacific
oz

there are more lol

So watching predominantly old shows is the point of watching TV series "anymore?"

I don't think he needs old series, he's talking about current first run TV.

 

[Azure-Supernova]

Since Netflix I haven't actually watched any TV... in the future my children will ask about TV in my day. They won't believe me when I tell them that you couldn't get your favourite shows on demand. I've been having a blast wathcing older series, though when Breaking Bad comes back...

 

[Scarim Coral]

Honestly in my view ever since Lost came to be, half of the studios just started to copy their formula so we get all of these samiliar mystery and intense shows with very short intros.
Granted not all of the modern shows are like that but those who are under mystery category fit the bill. The writer or the producer should get back in a attempt at making a new show that is fresh and original.

 

[Buzz Killington_v1legacy]

I haven't heard about most of these.

You...you haven't heard of Breaking Bad? I envy you. Go and watch it before the next season starts in July. Speaking of which...

Breaking bad should have ended. They are going to ruin it by going on for another 2 series.

Nnnno. They're doing a fifth and final season starting in a couple of months. (Source. [http://www.deadline.com/2011/08/done-amc-sony-tv-reach-deal-for-16-episode-final-season-of-breaking-bad/]) They may break it up into two blocks of eight episodes each, but it's the last season.

 

[manic_depressive13]

[HEADING=2]WARNING: OPINIONS[sup]TM[/sup].[/HEADING]
[small][sub][sub][sub]Side effects of opinions may include: shock, surprise, horror, being stunned, the vapours, clutching pearls and saying "Oh my stars", compulsive fanning, hives and tomato soup.
If you experience any of these symptoms, please quote me and respond by pointing out "Why I'm wrong." Please be aware that this can cause Irony[sup]TM[/sup], as you are expressing Opinions[sup]TM[/sup][/sub][/sub][/sub][/small]​

Homeland wasn't too bad. Grimm is pretty entertaining as well. And How I Met Your Mother is still just as good. Even the Big Bang Theory has a few good parts.

But yeah... too much reality TV. It can fuck right off.

I read your opinion several times over but I didn't get any tomato soup. I am upset.

 

[Launcelot111]

I've been told that Community is good, but I've only seen the first couple of episodes. So far it's...ok.

Community starts out as an entirely adequate show, but towards the end of the first season and then on from there, it starts putting out episodes that are just amazing. The writing is inconsistent, as for every great episode, there will also be an underwhelming one, but the good ones are more than enough to deserve the acclaim the show gets. Just hang in there and you'll get it.

OT: OP seems to be looking for good scifi, which has pretty much always had poor representation on network TV. There's plenty of good stuff if you branch out though.

Community
Parks & Rec
Mad Men
Happy Endings
Weeds (the first 3 seasons)
Dexter (first 3 or 4 seasons)
Sherlock

Or for shows that aren't on the air anymore but still worth a look
Pushing Daisies
Wonderfalls
Friday Night Lights (only superficially about football)
The Wire
Veronica Mars

EDIT: FX comedies. Watch them too. Louie, The League, It's Always Sunny, Archer, Wilfred. All solid gold

 

[razerdoh]

I think we're getting dangerously close to a time where nothing but reality shows are on TV. Considering most new interesting series like Awake, Alcatraz and Terranova were cancelled I don't know what's the point in watching new series if they're not going to make it beyond season 1.

Most series were not totally amazing like The Event and Flash Forward and I would even say that most of them were just a Lost wannabe, but even then, even an average series is much better than those crappy reality shows.

I thought that after Lost we would get even more amazing TV shows that really blew our mind and surpassed movies quality, but it seems that all TV networks are interested is in mediocre stuff.

There are still some good shows like Fringe, but the future seems dark.

What do you think about TV nowadays and its future?

captcha: broken heart

atleast they canceled CSI: Miami...

 

[Fappy]

I have watched >1 hour per day of TV for the past 5 years. Its just so much more boring than other leisure activities. I'd rather read a book.

 

[ToastiestZombie]

British TV right now is terrible for me. All it is Britains got Talent, gypsys and crappy knock off talent shows. But these shows are giving me hope that TV won't become fully shit just yet.
.MLP:FiM (INB4 "OMG STOP SHOVING IT DOWN MY THROAT)
.Adventure Time
.Walking Dead
.Game of Thrones
.Breaking Bad
.South Park is still good
.Doctor Who is still brilliant every year, but it's not AS amazing as David Tennant's reign.
. EastEnders is also a really good soap. Maybe it's because I'm half Essex that it appeals to me.

[EDIT] I think another point here is that really, except for Doctor Who and EastEnders I have to go on the internet to watch the others. MLP isn't even shown in britain, so youtube is where I watch that. Adventure Time is shown at an awkward timeslot on a channel I don't even get. I have no clue when Walking Dead, Game of Thrones or Breaking Bad are on.

 

[Tipsy Giant]

The TV shows I'm watching at the moment:

Mad Men
The Walking Dead
Boardwalk Empire
Curb Your Enthusiasm
It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia
Adventure Time

All of them are top notch.

Also, The Big Bang Theory is one of the worst shows I have ever seen. It's about as funny as watching a child have an aneurism. After seeing various snooze-worthy clips I was finally made to watch an entire episode. As far as I could tell, the only joke they had was "nerds are a thing that exist". EDIT: And I really like The I.T. Crowd. Nerd humour done correctly.

Me and you have very similar tv tastes my friend I was extremely close to ranting that no-one had mentioned Mad Men.

I watch all those shows except IASIP, gave it a try not really my kind of comedy (much more into curb!)
any other recommendations?
If you like IT Crowd you have to check out Garth Marenghi's Darkplace!

 

[Xeraxis]

That's mostly the reason why I don't watch TV nowadays. So many of the shows are either rehashed, stupid or unappealing in my opinion. Some people I know have tried to recommend me a lot of shows from the UK, like Doctor Who, but its just not my kind of thing.

 

[pilouuuu]

I haven't heard about most of these.

You...you haven't heard of Breaking Bad? I envy you. Go and watch it before the next season starts in July. Speaking of which...

Breaking bad should have ended. They are going to ruin it by going on for another 2 series.

Nnnno. They're doing a fifth and final season starting in a couple of months. (Source. [http://www.deadline.com/2011/08/done-amc-sony-tv-reach-deal-for-16-episode-final-season-of-breaking-bad/]) They may break it up into two blocks of eight episodes each, but it's the last season.

I just call that 2 seasons with 1 story arc, I knew about the structure already. It still doesn't change my opinion, there is nowhere the show can go now but downwards.

Well, actually I heard about Breaking Bad, but never got to watch it. It seems I'll have a blast! :-D Do you think it'll be my cup of tea? I like Dexter, Game of Thrones... Well, I guess I should just check it ASAP!

Honestly in my view ever since Lost came to be, half of the studios just started to copy their formula so we get all of these samiliar mystery and intense shows with very short intros.
Granted not all of the modern shows are like that but those who are under mystery category fit the bill. The writer or the producer should get back in a attempt at making a new show that is fresh and original.

I agree. That's why they fail. They want to copy Lost. I think the only one that succeeds is Fringe, while not exactly like Lost, it is mysterious, but the difference is here we actually we get answers. Neither Flash Forward, Alcatraz nor Terranova were above average, because they all tried to copy Lost. I still think Heroes' first season was one of the best things ever. That's a series that should have ended on the first year and it would have been perfect. Quality TV!

 

[BloatedGuppy]

I think we're getting dangerously close to a time where nothing but reality shows are on TV. Considering most new interesting series like Awake, Alcatraz and Terranova were cancelled I don't know what's the point in watching new series if they're not going to make it beyond season 1.

Most series were not totally amazing like The Event and Flash Forward and I would even say that most of them were just a Lost wannabe, but even then, even an average series is much better than those crappy reality shows.

I thought that after Lost we would get even more amazing TV shows that really blew our mind and surpassed movies quality, but it seems that all TV networks are interested is in mediocre stuff.

There are still some good shows like Fringe, but the future seems dark.

What do you think about TV nowadays and its future?

captcha: broken heart

Reality television will remain commonplace for quite some time. It's cheap as dirt to make and pulls in a large audience. Scripted shows, by comparison, are extremely expensive, and often struggle to find audiences. Is does not, however, mean there are no good scripted shows, or that scripted shows are going to abruptly disappear entirely.

If you're short on things to watch, here's some stuff you can use to fill the void. In no particular order past the top 4...

1. The Wire (essential viewing, arguably the best show in the history of the medium)
2. The Sopranos
3. Mad Men
4. Breaking Bad
5. Battlestar Galactica (the modern reboot, first two seasons especially)
6. Deadwood
7. Six Feet Under
8. The Office (UK)
9. Arrested Development
10. Extras
11. Community
12. Game of Thrones (if you can tolerate the deviations from the source material)
13. Lost (S1 anyway, the rest of the show is of debatable quality)
14. Seinfeld
15. The Simpsons (first 8 seasons, avoid thereafter)
16. Futurama
17. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
18. Firefly
19. Curb Your Enthusiasm

This is not including ambitious but uneven crap like Walking Dead and Dexter. Surely there's a few shows on there you haven't seen yet, and if you've not seen the top 4 you need to remedy that immediately if not sooner.

 

[UncleAsriel]

I recommend Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe. It's not been released outside of Britain, and it's culturally attuned to British television, but it remains one of the most entertainingly insightful things about the making of TV I have ever seen.

I strongly recommend it. You'll learn quite a lot, and answer the question of "Why do so many series die on their arse after a season?" Really grand stuff.

Charlie Brooker also did Newswipe, Gameswipe, and How Television Ruined Your Life. They go over similar territory, and so if you're not fond of his style of comedy (which inspired our own Yahtzee) it kind of sucks, but I can honestly say it was refreshing.

Also, FX's Archer is hilarious, in an Arrested Development sort of way. It's not live-action and so might not appeal to some folks, but the humor is witty, raunchy, and occasionally heartfelt. (I want to be Doctor Krieger when I grow up!)



I've heard good things about TV's Grimmm as well. Is this any good? I kind of got taken into the Magical Fae Otherworld concept since discovering Changeling: the Lost by White Wolf, but I've not set aside the time to test Grimm yet. Any other thoughts?

 

[Mikeyfell]

That's all the more reason to watch TV series.

They get canceled because of low ratings. the more people watch them the less likely they are to get canceled

 

[pilouuuu]

I think we're getting dangerously close to a time where nothing but reality shows are on TV. Considering most new interesting series like Awake, Alcatraz and Terranova were cancelled I don't know what's the point in watching new series if they're not going to make it beyond season 1.

Most series were not totally amazing like The Event and Flash Forward and I would even say that most of them were just a Lost wannabe, but even then, even an average series is much better than those crappy reality shows.

I thought that after Lost we would get even more amazing TV shows that really blew our mind and surpassed movies quality, but it seems that all TV networks are interested is in mediocre stuff.

There are still some good shows like Fringe, but the future seems dark.

What do you think about TV nowadays and its future?

captcha: broken heart

Reality television will remain commonplace for quite some time. It's cheap as dirt to make and pulls in a large audience. Scripted shows, by comparison, are extremely expensive, and often struggle to find audiences. Is does not, however, mean there are no good scripted shows, or that scripted shows are going to abruptly disappear entirely.

If you're short on things to watch, here's some stuff you can use to fill the void. In no particular order past the top 4...

1. The Wire (essential viewing, arguably the best show in the history of the medium)
2. The Sopranos
3. Mad Men
4. Breaking Bad
5. Battlestar Galactica (the modern reboot, first two seasons especially)
6. Deadwood
7. Six Feet Under
8. The Office (UK)
9. Arrested Development
10. Extras
11. Community
12. Game of Thrones (if you can tolerate the deviations from the source material)
13. Lost (S1 anyway, the rest of the show is of debatable quality)
14. Seinfeld
15. The Simpsons (first 8 seasons, avoid thereafter)
16. Futurama
17. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
18. Firefly
19. Curb Your Enthusiasm

This is not including ambitious but uneven crap like Walking Dead and Dexter. Surely there's a few shows on there you haven't seen yet, and if you've not seen the top 4 you need to remedy that immediately if not sooner.

Great list! Thanks. I'm really curious about The Wire.

 

[shrekfan246]

[HEADING=2]WARNING: OPINIONS[sup]TM[/sup].[/HEADING]
[small][sub][sub][sub]Side effects of opinions may include: shock, surprise, horror, being stunned, the vapours, clutching pearls and saying "Oh my stars", compulsive fanning, hives and tomato soup.
If you experience any of these symptoms, please quote me and respond by pointing out "Why I'm wrong." Please be aware that this can cause Irony[sup]TM[/sup], as you are expressing Opinions[sup]TM[/sup][/sub][/sub][/sub][/small]​

Homeland wasn't too bad. Grimm is pretty entertaining as well. And How I Met Your Mother is still just as good. Even the Big Bang Theory has a few good parts.

But yeah... too much reality TV. It can fuck right off.

I lol'd.

OT: I don't watch much TV anymore. I follow House, Castle, Grey's Anatomy, and Big Bang Theory. At all other times if I really have a hankering to watch something, I'll just open up my other laptop and start up MASH, or Star Trek: Deep Space Nine or The Next Generation or The Original Series, or Clone High, or Scrubs, or the first four seasons of House, or Stargate SG-1, or The 4400, or Charmed, or Firefly.