Has anyone given up on TV?

[Relayer1]

Whenever i end up at free TV stations and see that they interrupt a major movie after it has only started 6 minutes ago for commercial i'm gone.

I remember being shocked at the commercial breaks in US shows when I borrowed some 'off air' copies of TNG years ago before they were broadcast over here. Our commercial broadcasters generally have two or three advert breaks in an hour long show and also play ads in between shows. There's a caption or title card displayed before and after the ads, and the ad breaks are evenly spaced.

American shows are bizarre - teaser, opening credits, no warning ad break, a few minutes later, no warning ad break, minutes later, ad break etc. until end of last scene, another bloody ad break right before the closing credits, then ad break...

 

[Amaris]

I watch Netflix and Amazon Prime. Otherwise, the only live shows I watch are America's Got Talent, and NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt. Oh, and the occasional political debate, but I don't really think those count as TV programs per se. There are some terrific shows out there. I love House of Cards, The Expanse, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, and of course Angie Tribeca, which reminds me of the wonderful Police Squad! but updated and somewhat funnier, but I watch those via either On Demand or through my Roku box.

There's a new show I was checking out on Netflix called Stranger Things. I've only seen the first episode, but it feels like Steven Spielberg and Stephen King got together to make a TV show set right in the heart of my 80s nostalgia. So far, it's pretty decent, though I haven't had time to watch any more episodes. Still, I do love many older shows that no longer air (Cheers, Star Trek, Frasier, WKRP in Cincinnati, MASH, Boston Legal, and so on), but modern TV is doing fairly well, from what I've seen.

 

[JoeZhang]

As an intellectual, I of course only have a small discreet TV in the house to view meaningful arts films (obviously nothing in English). Only last night we watched a wonderful five hour Romanian epic about a small child who died cold and alone in the snow.

 

[flandry84]

/\I actually saw that one.
And even though it was filmed in colour I adjusted the set so I could see it in monochrome.

 

[maneth]

I can't remember when I last watched anything live. I DVR a few British crime shows when they're broadcast here, as well as Doctor Who. The only one who watches live TV in our house is our 7-year-old son who watches kiddie shows on Saturday and Sunday mornings.

 

[Greg Cox]

/\I actually saw that one.
And even though it was filmed in colour I adjusted the set so I could see it in monochrome.

And, of course, you need to turn off the subtitles and watch it in the original Romanian or you miss all the nuances . ...

 

[Kemaiku]

There are at least 5-6 shows that I'm waiting on a new season starting in the next few months, not counting the complete boxsets of a lot more I have sitting around, most of them from the last 15-20 years. And I'm terribly picky about most stuff I watch.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

I think we need these so no one will know we watch TV.

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[Mudd]

There's a lot more inventiveness on TV than at the movies now.

 

[publiusr]

A new golden age. I miss The Borgias.

 

[DarrenTR1970]

For me it has to do more with my work schedule than lack of programs. I'm gone from 1 in the afternoon until 12:30-1 in the morning. That leaves little time to watch anything, especially on the weekend when I'm running around doing errands. The only time I sit down and watch anything is usually on Sunday evenings and even then it's just The Simpsons, Bob's Burgers and The Last Man on Earth.

 

[Green Shirt]

I won't give up till TV has nothing left to offer me.

 

[RandyS]

It's funny. I can't stand having a TV running in the background, probably because I hate multi-tasking. If I want to watch TV, I want to give it my full attention. If I'm not watching TV, I don't want any background noise interfering with whatever else I'm concentrating on at the moment. I'm either watching TV or I'm not; there is no in-between.

Which, just to vent, is why I despise the modern trend of sticking TVs in in every public place: waiting rooms, laundromats, diners, airport terminals, etc. Whatever happened to just reading a book or doing a crossword puzzle or, God forbid, being alone with one's thoughts for a minute.

Don't get me wrong. I love unwinding in front of the tube after a long day, but I don't need TVs in my face everywhere I go. There's a time and a place, people.

(And can't people just watch TV on the phones these days, if they're so inclined?)

With the exception of watching TV on their phones (why watch on a screen so small?), I agree with everything you say here.

As far as TV watching goes, yes, I've given up on it. Everything I'm even remotely interested in seeing comes to DVD shortly anyway so I just get the set, and watch it that way. Same with movies. My TV is simply a monitor for my DVD player.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

There's a lot more inventiveness on TV than at the movies now.

Movies seem to make you choose between excitement and intelligence. Either it's just dumb eye candy or it's super talky and reflective. TV has been doing a great job being both smart and exciting.

 

[Tim Walker]

I infrequently go to an old fashioned movie theater with friends. Occasionally there is a movie worth seeing on the big screen.

This survived as a sort of niche thing, despite (now old fashioned) television.

I think if live television survives, it will be a niche thing. (I think that sports-if anything-would make this viable).

On the other hand, an old medium can disappear. I believe that the Internet finally killed off telegrams. Old fashioned newspapers are a dying medium-I understand that Craig's List was the final nail in the coffin, allowing no viable source of income.

 

[Samurai8472]

I know people who only watch netflix and get their news online.

Same for another couple who doest have a TV at home and only read news on their laptop.

 

[JoeZhang]

More seriously that my previous answer - here in the UK, I only have the free to air channels - I've never paid for sky or cable.

 

[Owain Taggart]

On the other hand, an old medium can disappear. I believe that the Internet finally killed off telegrams.

I thought that happened long before the Internet? Have telegrams been more popular in Europe?

 

[Amaris]

Movies seem to make you choose between excitement and intelligence. Either it's just dumb eye candy or it's super talky and reflective. TV has been doing a great job being both smart and exciting.

Not always, but if you have a big story to tell, a movie gets about 90 to 150 minutes to tell it, while a TV series gets hundreds of hours to do the same.

 

[JayTheTrekkie]

I don't watch TV often. During the fall/spring TV show seasons/new shows....I'm mostly into sitcom shows, science fiction/drama (depends on theme & plot), action/adventure (depends on theme and plot). When it comes to new sitcom shows, I would check it out, if I like it or not. The current ones I have been watching for years (the ones I like most). There were a few I wasn't interested in that had been on air for a few years.

The following genre of shows I'm not into are: crime/drama, legal/drama, medical/drama, horror/drama/action-adventure (although, I did watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer since it had some horror which didn't bother me much), and the soaps (although, they are on going and its in the afternoons on some days).