Anyone Watching A Good Tv Show?

[CVByrne]

Well firstly I wouldn't have it as best show ever and maybe it wouldn't be in my top 5. But it was and is a great show.

 

Secondly it was really 7 seasons as Season 6 was split into two 12 and 9 episodes parts. In total is was 86 episodes and ran for over 8 years. 

 

Also many episodes and portions of the show were very isolated stuff that lacked an overall cohesion or entire story arc for the whole show. (Which is what I love the most about Breaking Bad, Battlestar Galactica)

 

So I found myself disinterested in keeping up with watching the show. So in the end, when it was all over I just got the box set and watched it all from start to finish over a few months. 

 

But originally I had been watching it weekly, it just didn't hold my interest as a weekly show during its run. Suppose a large amount of the novelty and original charm faded. 

 

 

I am excited about the future where TV shows go up on Netflix in bulk. So the shows don't have to be constrained by hooking new viewers during its run, or keeping weekly suspense to maintain viwership figures etc.. this can lead to a better structure and continuous story arc. 

[DiegoD]

Yeah getting all the arrested development episodes at once was really good and worked much better for that type of show compared to the weekly format.

[Ghost]

One thing to keep in mind with Game of Thrones (and something to it's advantage compared to other shows) is that there is an over-arching story which has a definitive ending, which George R. R, Martin (author) and the show-runners already know.

Even though the final 2 books haven't been written yet, there's still a conclusion that the show can build towards, which means less chance of the story just petering out.

It's up to the show-runners how they pace the series to get to that ending.

[Houlston]

But a TV shows sheer length of the entire run still just totally puts me off some shows. A few people said the Shield is good and worth a watch, but 75 hours of a show is too much for me. It can't hold my attention that long. I even thought The Sopranos went on too long.

 

Then have a look at Southland, 5 seasons but only 43 episodes and it doesn't weaken. In fact the 9th & 10th episode of season 5 is some of the most gripping tv I've seen and I've watched all of The Wire & Breaking Bad.

[Stevo985]

One thing to keep in mind with Game of Thrones (and something to it's advantage compared to other shows) is that there is an over-arching story which has a definitive ending, which George R. R, Martin (author) and the show-runners already know.

Even though the final 2 books haven't been written yet, there's still a conclusion that the show can build towards, which means less chance of the story just petering out.

It's up to the show-runners how they pace the series to get to that ending.

Yeah I was going to say something similar in reply to one of Conor's posts about it.

 

I do understand the frustration with watching them weekly, but I think we're unlikely to see a Lost situation where episodes (and entire seasons) are made purely as filler, because as you say the story is there.

 

I guess there's still a danger of them stretching it out too much, or fillers to be created if the show catches up with the books. But I'd like to think they'd be wiser than that. And the big HBO shows have a decent history of getting it right, to be fair.

[CVByrne]

 

But a TV shows sheer length of the entire run still just totally puts me off some shows. A few people said the Shield is good and worth a watch, but 75 hours of a show is too much for me. It can't hold my attention that long. I even thought The Sopranos went on too long.

 

Then have a look at Southland, 5 seasons but only 43 episodes and it doesn't weaken. In fact the 9th & 10th episode of season 5 is some of the most gripping tv I've seen and I've watched all of The Wire & Breaking Bad.

 

 

 

But wasn't the show cancelled? So there is no proper ending. That's a huge deal breaker imo. 

[CVByrne]

On GoT, it is kind of the perfect show that would suit Netflix and it's uploading of a series in bulk. It would mean we could enjoy it like you could reading a book. You view (read) as much as you want in a sitting. I like that it has a total overall story arc. 

 

Mad Men is a strange exception in my long running = boredom problem. But that show benefits from its setting and how it ties in the massive cultural changes of the 1960s with everything from women in the work place, civil rights, fashion etc.. combined with cast changes the reflect the changes that happen to staff turn over etc..

 

It's a very engaging and well written show. I'm not close to bored with it and it's in its 6th season. Though I did breeze through the first 4 seasons very fast. Still I've watch 75 episodes and think there should be 2 more seasons and end on 1970.  

[Houlston]

But a TV shows sheer length of the entire run still just totally puts me off some shows. A few people said the Shield is good and worth a watch, but 75 hours of a show is too much for me. It can't hold my attention that long. I even thought The Sopranos went on too long.

Then have a look at Southland, 5 seasons but only 43 episodes and it doesn't weaken. In fact the 9th & 10th episode of season 5 is some of the most gripping tv I've seen and I've watched all of The Wire & Breaking Bad.

But wasn't the show cancelled? So there is no proper ending. That's a huge deal breaker imo.

Not that I know of but if it has then it could be argued that a 'proper' ending was written.

[kurtsimonw]

Mad Men is a strange exception in my long running = boredom problem. But that show benefits from its setting and how it ties in the massive cultural changes of the 1960s with everything from women in the work place, civil rights, fashion etc.. combined with cast changes the reflect the changes that happen to staff turn over etc..

 

It's a very engaging and well written show. I'm not close to bored with it and it's in its 6th season. Though I did breeze through the first 4 seasons very fast. Still I've watch 75 episodes and think there should be 2 more seasons and end on 1970.  

One episode of Mad Men is too long! Anyone who can watch an entire episode without falling asleep deserves a medal.

[CVByrne]

I freely admit it was a struggle getting through the first series of Mad Men, then 2nd was better. But it was a mate who's film and tv taste is very similar to mine that told me it'd take some effort to get into but from season 3 onwards it's great. With the last 2 seasons being superb. The LSD episode is quite possibly my favourite TV episode ever. Up there with Pegasus episode in Battlestar Galactica. 

[bickster]

Conor, have you thought about producing heat maps to prove your watching vs boredom theories?

[GarethRDR]

Tonight is Parks & Rec night!

 

[CVByrne]

Conor, have you thought about producing heat maps to prove your watching vs boredom theories?

 

 

 

[BOF]

The ending of quantum leap still pisses me off .....could have been better for a good quality show ....oh boy

Did he ever get home?

  he never left to go

Buh?

[Meath_Villan]

 

 

 

The ending of quantum leap still pisses me off .....could have been better for a good quality show ....oh boy

Did he ever get home?

 

  he never left to go

 

Buh?

 

sam leaped into the body of the soldier who told als wife he (al) dies to tell her he was a pow and still alive  ...so she didn't remarry &  waited for him to come home therefore sam and al never met in a bar and the quantum leap project either didn't happen or whoever took als place in the project if it indeed did happen stopped sam from getting into the chamber

On another note 2 broke girls ......sounded like a porno   but the black haired girl has massive boobs and its half decent

[bickster]

The ending of quantum leap still pisses me off .....could have been better for a good quality show ....oh boy

Did he ever get home?

  he never left to go

Buh?

sam leaped into the body of the soldier who told als wife he (al) dies to tell her he was a pow and still alive  ...so she didn't remarry &  waited for him to come home therefore sam and al never met in a bar and the quantum leap project either didn't happen or whoever took als place in the project if it indeed did happen stopped sam from getting into the chamber

So how does that explain him captaining the first Starship Enterprise?

[GarethRDR]

Or playing for us?

[leviramsey]

On GoT, it is kind of the perfect show that would suit Netflix and it's uploading of a series in bulk. It would mean we could enjoy it like you could reading a book. You view (read) as much as you want in a sitting. I like that it has a total overall story arc. 

 

Mad Men is a strange exception in my long running = boredom problem. But that show benefits from its setting and how it ties in the massive cultural changes of the 1960s with everything from women in the work place, civil rights, fashion etc.. combined with cast changes the reflect the changes that happen to staff turn over etc..

 

It's a very engaging and well written show. I'm not close to bored with it and it's in its 6th season. Though I did breeze through the first 4 seasons very fast. Still I've watch 75 episodes and think there should be 2 more seasons and end on 1970.

With Mad Men, it'd be an interesting question to ask Weiner how much he had planned out at the start. Parts of the first season almost seem like that's all he started out with, but since the focus was "who is Don Draper?" it works very well as the introduction to a seven-season arc. If I'm honest, the second and third seasons are kind of meh and are maybe best viewed as setting the table for season four onward. Of course, that I let them pile up on the DVR (though I did watch season 1 live), and power-watched them before season 4 might have something to do with that impression.

I would say that Mad Men also benefits from being able to treat time the way it does, where the gap between episodes in story terms can be weeks or months as the story requires.

Edited June 12, 2013 by leviramsey

[CVByrne]

 

 

 

 

 

The ending of quantum leap still pisses me off .....could have been better for a good quality show ....oh boy

Did he ever get home?

 

  he never left to go

 

Buh?

 

sam leaped into the body of the soldier who told als wife he (al) dies to tell her he was a pow and still alive  ...so she didn't remarry &  waited for him to come home therefore sam and al never met in a bar and the quantum leap project either didn't happen or whoever took als place in the project if it indeed did happen stopped sam from getting into the chamber

 

So how does that explain him captaining the first Starship Enterprise?

 

 

Forget that, how on earth did McGuiver invent the f'n Stargate? I knew he had skills but seriously!!

[dont_do_it_doug.]

Surely the amount of series a show runs for is irrelevant, its the amount of shows. So if Game of Thrones were to run for 7 series (8 seems more likely), or 70/80 shows, it is in Battestar Galactica territory (73 episodes), a show which CV tells us he loves?

 

Very weird point of view, I can't get to grips with it. 

 

Game of Thrones ep 10 was everything I expected, setting the tone for series 4. I was happy enough with it.