TV Isn't As Good As It Used To Be...(Snik1's TV W/O)
Jul 24 '05
The Bottom Line TV used to be good back in the day...
I don't watch as much TV as I used to do in my younger days. Back then, I had shows like Family Matters (with the constantly-enjoyable Steve Urkel), the Parent 'Hood (no one knew much about this one but it was a great show), and my favorite when I was a kid, Reading Rainbow. In fact, I used to sit in front of the ‘tube and watch PBS all day, loving shows like Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and the adventures of a certain aardvark named Arthur (talk about a serious trip down memory lane). Nowadays, you only need half a brain to enjoy most of the programs on the tube. Still, it sounds like Kyle's writeoff will be fun, so let's get started.
Most Enjoyable Comedy On The Air: I'm going to cheat on this one, because this show has been canceled for a while and endlessly runs in syndication, but I love watching the Cosbys. Even though it often tied in loose ends too nicely (no one really got in trouble on the show), it still was and will remain a classic program. A show like this couldn't make it on the air today because most black-themed shows nowadays don't deserve time slots, don't receive the viewers needed to stay on the air (ignoring the largely hit-or-miss programs on UPN) or in some cases, are pitted against each other, ensuring one's failure (Fox's Bernie Mac Show being placed at the same time as ABC's My Wife and Kids). But if you want something more current, I guess the HBO show Entourage has been catching my eye recently.
Comedy Where You Can Tell They Use A Laugh Track: It seems like most comedies use laugh tracks so I can't pick just one show that uses it. All I know is that the usage of them make painfully obvious corny jokes that much cornier and annoying.
Best Cancelled Comedy/Sitcom: The Cosby Show should be in this spot, but since I already used it, I'll have to go with the Fresh Prince of Bel Air. It took me a while to warm up to this show due to the fact that the show's writers overplayed the preppiness of the Banks family and made them seem a bit pompous during the early seasons, but as soon as they fixed that problem, this show became one of my favorites. I just know when in the final episodes where Will and Carlton did Carlton's finger-snapping, arm-wiggling dance for the last time and when Geoffrey (their butler) called Will by his actual name instead of "Master William" for the first time, I realized that this show will always remain classic in my eyes.
Most Entertaining Drama: One word: Deadwood. I arrived to this show late in the first season and have been hooked ever since. I never thought I would be so enthralled by a show set during the gold-rush days, but there's something about this show that makes it a must-watch. The only problem is that HBO is slow at showing new seasons of their shows (often having half a year between seasons) so there's a chance that continuity can be lost.
Most Overexposed/Overrated Drama: Other than Deadwood, I don't watch many dramas, but I have to go with the many spin-offs of CSI and Law & Order. It's tiring turning on the TV and seeing a commercial/promo, a episode, or somebody talking about those shows.
Show You Just Never Got Around To Watching: Like I said earlier, I don't watch much TV so there's a bunch of shows that I never started watching. But, I always wanted to know what the appeal to Family Guy is. I never watched an episode of that show yet I'm always surrounded by it due to the fact that some of my friends constantly repeat its jokes.
Best Reality Show: I'm not a big fan of reality shows because all the reality is need is there when I step out the door. I mean, I'm not going to live in a house full of strangers with serious problems, I'm not going to be locked in a room with people looking at me at all times of the day, and I'm not going to eat rodents and bugs and do idiotic things to win some money. Still, if I have to pick a show, I'm going with the Surreal Life just because seeing Gary Coleman letting Vanilla Ice punk him without seeking any retribution in the last season was priceless.
Guilty Pleasure Reality Show: Nothing comes to mind since I don't watch reality shows that much.
Show You Liked At First, But Suddenly Stopped Watching: I used to watch My Wife and Kids religiously. I never would miss an episode in the early seasons, but for some reason, I stopped watching it. Maybe it's the fact that I dislike network television or that sitcoms in general just began to bore me with fake laugh tracks and annoying jokes.
Most Entertaining Animated Show: I can't even answer this question, since I stopped watching the Simpsons a long time ago, never watched Family Guy, never got into King of the Hill, and stopped being entertained by the cartoons on Nick, Disney, and Cartoon Network. I used to love watching old cartoons (especially the Acme Hour) on Cartoon Network, though, until the network started taking those off to show more anime. But, I guess Tripping the Riff on Sci-Fi is becoming interesting to me.
A Show Past Its Prime: As much as I want to say almost everything on BET right now falls under this description (but that's a discussion for another time and place), I'm going to say Rap City. That show is a utter disgrace. It's nothing but a show-off of largely-generic rappers, mostly no-name DJs, and admittedly-cute video girls. Every episode shows the same videos and features the new host (whatever his name is) pandering to every guest, no matter how talented they are. I hear this show used to be something, but whether in the Basement or above-ground, it hasn't impressed me.
A Show That’s Received Too Much Hype: Desperate Housewives is all that needs to be said. The ladies may look nice on this show, but come on, regular housewives don't look that good. A show that could replace the Desperate Housewives in a few months is the desperately-unfunny Mind of Mencia which looks to be a third-rate imitation of the Chappelle Show. I know Comedy Central needed a replacement, but once again, come on, say it with me...Mencia...isn't....funny.
Most Overrated Show In The History Of Mankind: Trading Spaces just for the fact that it spawned several imitation DIY shows that we didn't need to see all over television. All of these shows may have good intentions, but doesn't anyone remember that the show This Old House had a similar concept many years ago? By the reactions of some people, one would think that this genre was brand-new, but it's been done before. It's just been updated for the new generation.
A Show You Wish They Had Made A Long Time Ago; Or At Least Renewed: We all should be watching the third season of the Chappelle Show right now, but Dave had to clear his head. Whenever the show comes back, we'll be waiting, won't we?
Epinions Member That Should Have Their Own Show: Well, if you see any of us writers on TV, then there's your answer. Then again, the standards of today's TV shows are getting lower and lower, so that solution might not work.
Underrated Show On An Otherwise Corny Network: If a network is known to be corny, I try to stay far away from it. So I can't answer this question.
Your Opinion Of The Emmy’s: Never watched them, so I can't really comment on them. It always seems that HBO runs away with the nominations, though.
Most Interesting/Funny Commercials: Commercials haven't been enjoyable to me in a very long time (due to repetition), but a couple Nike commercials appealed to me: the one where they showed parts of Lance Armstrong's tearful press conference where he said he had testicular cancer right before winning seven straight times at the Tour de France and the one where they showed Tiger Woods' dramatic shot at the Masters where his ball (Nike side facing the camera) edged on the cup for several moments before it fell in.
Commercials You See Too Often: Every single Geico commercial. I really don't care how much some random person saved on their insurance.
Will You Add snik1 To Your Trust List: Well, he made a good writeoff, so I'll think about it.
This was fun to complete. I guess I watch more TV than I thought. I hope that this is enjoyable to read. Peace.
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Epinions.com ID:
poeticone16
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Location: Chi-town, Illinois
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