Post by Brandon Easton on Feb 7, 2009 17:37:41 GMT -5
1) FRIENDS: Not only was this show not funny, but it was set in a racially monolithic NYC with a cast of characters living a lifestyle totally impossible even by mid-90s economic standards. Convinced a generation of yuppies that intellectual discourse meant sitting in overpriced coffee shops and trying to sleep with platonic friends of the opposite sex. Waste of time.
2) AMERICAN IDOL: Who cares? Seriously. I liked it better when it was called STAR SEARCH and Ed McMahon hosted it.
3) EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND: I didn't.
4) LAW & ORDER: This show has been on forever and it seems like it is on all the d**n time. I hate this series because it ripped off far more superior shows like NYPD BLUE which ripped off HOMICIDE: LIFE ON THE STREET. Somehow, Homicide and THE WIRE disappear with little or no fanfare, but this Law & Order crap with the same plot every episode for 12 years manages to keep going strong. Bizarre.
5) CSI: Same as above. Not only is this show repetitive, but it is scientifically impossible. If you want the real thing, watch FORENSIC FILES on TRU TV. It not only is based on real events and real technology, but it doesn't insult your intelligence.
6) HANNAH MONTANA: Apparently American children are enamored with redneck kid stars on a TV show that ripped off its premise from the 80s cartoon JEM.
7) THE SOPRANOS: Basically, this show was GOODFELLAS stretched out over 10 years. People who liked The Sopranos obviously never went to the movies because the plots of the show were taken from: GOODFELLAS, GODFATHER I, GODFATHER II, A BRONX TALE, DONNIE BRASCO, CRIME STORY, and HEAT. Goes to show what happens when an artistically illiterate society has too much free time to watch cable.
8) FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS: A cult TV series on HBO featuring a couple of guys no one has ever heard of but all the critics seem to love. I guess its a musical variety/sketch show but every episode I saw looks like it was shot on an East Village rooftop in Mahnattan with a pair of deeply pretentious British Mod/Hipster types wearing white t-shirts, wool hats, and tight jeans. Maybe I missed something, but this would only appeal to an art school drop out.
9) KIDS IN THE HALL: The ultimate, pseudo-intellectual, pretentious English major variety show. That's about the only folks who seem to love Kids in the Hall. I saw it as an inferior version of Conan O'Brien-style humor packed with gay white men constantly wearing drag and performing like 40% of their sketches as transvestites. That wasn't my real problem with the show because I am not homophobic, it just wasn't funny.
10) CHEERS: I liked Cheers, but a lot of people seem to elevate the show to almost mythic status despite that fact that no one would have ever heard of Cheers if it wasn't for THE COSBY SHOW. You see, in the early days of Cheers, the ratings were dismal beyond belief and it wasn't an across the board critical success. With the addition of The Cosby Show and FAMILY TIES at the top of the Thursday night lineup, NBC created the concept of a united theme block of TV programming (i.e. "Must See Thursday Night"). While Cheers improved exponentially in following seasons, a lot of people overestimate the influence of the show and the potency of the scripts. Cheers had the right actors at the right time, a show like that wouldn't work today because the Bostonian nativistic vibe would turn off lots of viewers. Hyped way too much.
