Have we witnessed the death of intelligent TV?

[Mr. Adventure]

PBS special on the history of Wonder Woman

How'd I miss that?!?

It aired as an episode of Independent Lens, a weekly documentary series. I was keeping an eye out for it, but, yeah, if you weren't looking for it, all you'd see listed was Independent Lens, not "Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines" (which was the full title of the documentary).

FYI: Trek author (and well-known Wonder Woman enthusiast) Andy Mangels was prominently featured in the program.

Cool, I saw it under "Wonder Women" in OnDemand for $4.99! But now I'm able to record the repeat of Independent Lens instead.

 

[Greg Cox]

It was an interesting special. The emphasis was on Wonder Woman, but they touched on Xena, Buffy, Ellen Ripley, Sarah Connor, and the Bionic Woman as well.

 

[Ryva Brall]

Heh. Last night, after watching yet another new (as in "new to us") series on Netflix, hubby turned to me, rather shocked and said, "Do you realize that every new show we've loved in the last two years has been British?"

Ripper Street
Whitechapel
Luther
Wire in the Blood
State Within
Sherlock
Last Enemy
Blue Murder
The Last Detective
Downtown Abbey
Mr. Selfridge

How is Mr. Selfridge? I didn't realize it had begun airing on PBS until the second episode, and I'd already missed the first. I suppose they're probably on their website.

Also, did you ever watch Foyle's War? It's about a detective stationed in Hastings during WWII. It's understated, but the writing and acting are both superb. Michael Kitchen is especially wonderful. And it's full of great guest stars, like David Tennant and Emily Blunt and James McAvoy.

 

[Amaris]

I think TV has become more about background noise than straight up focused entertainment. It's on while you're texting, tweeting, and facebooking. There's no strict narrative on most reality shows, so you can catch something to bring out the lulz or the omg, and then go back to your 3.5" backlit social life without missing anything noteworthy.

Just a hypothesis.

 

[Kegg]

I think the OP was referring more to educational material on channels like Discovery and History giving way to fiction based shows. Not that fiction based shows are "getting dumber". That's a different topic.

This is true, but he also suggested that 'network decay' was something that was happening on every network.

Since 'network decay' can mean networks drifting away from their stated niche (like American Movie Classics going from the channel that airs old movies to the channel behind Mad Men, Breaking Bad and the Walking Dead) I'd submit it's not that bad a thing.

Intelligent documentaries still get made, and with streaming services you can watch them at your leisure. We have more flexibility in how we consume TV content then we ever have before. Even if you prefer say older shows, I don't think anyone can fault the evolution of the distribution system that much, even if this means among other things a shift away from networks.

 

[auntiehill]

Heh. Last night, after watching yet another new (as in "new to us") series on Netflix, hubby turned to me, rather shocked and said, "Do you realize that every new show we've loved in the last two years has been British?"

Ripper Street
Whitechapel
Luther
Wire in the Blood
State Within
Sherlock
Last Enemy
Blue Murder
The Last Detective
Downtown Abbey
Mr. Selfridge

How is Mr. Selfridge? I didn't realize it had begun airing on PBS until the second episode, and I'd already missed the first. I suppose they're probably on their website.

Also, did you ever watch Foyle's War? It's about a detective stationed in Hastings during WWII. It's understated, but the writing and acting are both superb. Michael Kitchen is especially wonderful. And it's full of great guest stars, like David Tennant and Emily Blunt and James McAvoy.

I really like Selfridge; I enjoy the history and the characters a great deal. Having worked retail for years, I find it very interesting how the small things were considered "shocking" back then. Just selling lipstick out in the open was considered obscene back then, so something like Selfridge putting a make-up counter in the store--and then putting up by the door, just freaked people out. I love those kinds of stories. Plus, oddly enough, this is the most subtle performance I've ever seen Piven give---which is funny, because Selfridge is a PT Barnum kind of character. Subtle he was NOT. But by modern standards, he kind of is.

I have only seen a little of Folyle's War. One of these days, I will have to make an effort to actually watch the whole thing.

 

[marksound]

"I wish there was a knob on the TV so you could turn up the intelligence. There's one marked 'Brightness' but it don't work." -Gallagher

 

[not]

I think TV has become more about background noise than straight up focused entertainment. It's on while you're texting, tweeting, and facebooking. There's no strict narrative on most reality shows, so you can catch something to bring out the lulz or the omg, and then go back to your 3.5" backlit social life without missing anything noteworthy.

Just a hypothesis.

It definitely is just background noise for me despite not texting, tweeting, or facebooking but the cycle of TV entertainment is over and people just don't sit around and listen to the wireless...I mean tv anymore

 

[Guy Gardener]

Surely if you figure out what you want in life, what you need to survive and be happy, all you have to do is find where whatever that is is being advertised, and whatever programming is surrounding that magic adblock is what you should be watching as a person, or the fat cats who are spending billions on market research might as well be flushing that money down the toilet.

That may seem hard, but it's really easy to figure out who you are and what you wanted a week ago, and hopefully your personality hasn't changed too much in the last seven days.

Look for the ads, and the programming will follow.

 

[Owain Taggart]

I think TV has become more about background noise than straight up focused entertainment. It's on while you're texting, tweeting, and facebooking. There's no strict narrative on most reality shows, so you can catch something to bring out the lulz or the omg, and then go back to your 3.5" backlit social life without missing anything noteworthy.

Just a hypothesis.

I'd agree with that. I do watch some Reality TV mostly when I can't find anything else to watch, because it's there, but in general, I'm not too crazy about it.

I read an article recently about the National Geographic Channel where the CEO was boasting about all the changes he was making towards more reality shows and less documentaries with a particular disdainful slant on them as "voices of god". Rather interesting because it goes on to say that while society members claim that the channel hurts the society's reputation, it's tolerated because of the money it brings in.

http://tv.yahoo.com/news/reboot-national-geographic-channel-140345259.html

 

[mswood]

I don't know I watch more documentaries then I have ever previously in my life. In fact I think just as their is literally more crap out there, there is also more quality programming. But instead of 3 networks, PBS, and a handful of Cable companies. We have five networks, PBS, and literally hundreds of channels with original programming. OF course the bulk is crap, but every year I have watched tv (started probably very late 60's), there has always been more crap then quality. And I personally think TV is producing stronger and stronger material, and also producing worse and worse material.

But seriously how hard is to find programming you like/ love. There are more resources to help locate programming then ever before. More places to get reviews of the various programming then ever before. I don't see the issue, besides having that level in a handful of localized places, and since it takes me typically a minute or less to find something to watch or to program what I want to watch it just seems rather lazy to complain about the issues of it no longer being localized.

 

[Kelthaz]

I think TV has become more about background noise than straight up focused entertainment. It's on while you're texting, tweeting, and facebooking. There's no strict narrative on most reality shows, so you can catch something to bring out the lulz or the omg, and then go back to your 3.5" backlit social life without missing anything noteworthy.

Just a hypothesis.

I never thought of it that way before, but I believe you're right. Rather than compete with video games or social media for your attention, networks created something to serve as an accessory to those activities.

 

[the G-man]

Funny. Because TV is so much better (in my mind at least), I watch less but precisely because I don't have it on in the background.

As for reality TV, I will admit that sometimes right before bed I'll watch "Pawn Stars" or "American Pickers" as comfort food, but that's the extent of it.

 

[E-DUB]

My wife won't watch anything on TV because she says there's never anything good on. This becomes a self-fufilling prophecy. I think that even though there's more crap now, there's also a lot of good stuff, too.

 

[the G-man]

Your wife is wrong and you are right. For what that's worth in a marriage my friend.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Who said "A man can be right, or he can have sex."?

 

[Melakon]

The Professor on Gilligan's Island?

 

[Guy Gardener]

According to the BTS Movie, which is fantastic, Sherwood Schwartz had Russell Johnson audition for the part of the professor quite shirtless... Which means that you're probably right.

 

[Davros]

Nope.

Intelligent TV has just moved to Cable.

Honey Boo Boo is on cable

 

[Guy Gardener]

A woman I know who I download crap for because just obeying is easier than being nice or arguing, assures me that she only watches Toddlers and Tiaras IRONICALLY... Yet I still feel complicit and dirty.