"Most over-rated television shows (from any era)" Topic

"What do you think are some of the most over-rated television shows, from any era?…"

link

Armand

Reading six pages of posts is overrated.

But, to the question, I suppose I can start with heresy – M^A^S*H.

It had great actors with some great performances. Some good episodes, and excellent one-liners. All that sprinkled through an eternity of dreck that moved more and more away from the timbre of the movie and more and more towards a bucket of self-important actors' and writers' personal agendas. A lot of awards and success, though.

Yes, The last so many years became the "Alan Alda Soapbox".

Friends- Ok sitcom I guess but I never saw what the fuss was all about.

Another vote for Friends.

Plenty of shows lasted only an episode or two, then canceled.

Seinfeld. Never did understand why this was so popular.

Grattam54 +1

Perris0707 +1

Damoon

Big Bang Theory
Brady Bunch
Roseanne
Friends
Grey's Anatomy
Dallas
Yellowstone
Law and Order
Miami Vice
Walker, Texas Ranger

The Office. Never found it funny, maybe watched 2 episodes in it's entire run, and those were forgettable…

I agree with MASH, the worst aspects of the Vietnam war presented as the Korean War to make it palatable. As you mentioned, funny now and again, but not that often.

All of the others too. Friends is OK but not great.

The View, why is that even on anymore? All those 90218 type teenage angst shows.

The Pacific, nude scenes of Basilone and his wife, how disrespectful and unnecessary was that?

Almost everything on air in the last 15 years.

Mike Bunkermeister Creek

MASH never could stand watching even 10 minutes
South Park…junk IMHO

I have to agree about "preachy" TV shows.

Last Man Standing – this is the epitome of politics poorly wrapped as a sit-com.

About as funny as a stubbed toe (or as bad as Tim Allen's previous efforts at TV sit-com).

Oh my, a show with conservative views. Now we can't have that, can we?

Bonanza. I come from a ranching background. The Cartwrights never worked. They just sat around the house unless they were off getting captured or something. Terrible show.

The News…

Hogan's Heroes- Yeah. German POW camps were a laugh factory, right? Even as a kid I sensed it was actually in pretty poor taste.

Baa Baa Black Sheep/ Black Sheep Squadron- It fueled interest in the F4U, including mine. But except for the flying sequences, it was bad. Adding the nurses in season 2 was truly jumping the shark. Shallow characters, inane dialogue, implausible/impossible plots, Excrementally bad acting. Easy to see why the real Black Sheep were up in arms over the show.

Anything on a Hallmark Channel- All those are good for is entertaining old ladies, mutants and farm animals. Formulaic scripts, really crappy acting. Needless to say, my m-in-law will watch these shows till drool is hanging from her chin. For cryin' out loud, I am missing The Care Bears vs Godzilla while you watch a bleepin' movie about Prince Santa.

Jersey Shore- Actually, just about any reality show but this one was especially bad. Made me wish for a unilateral declaration of war on Seaside Heights, New Jersey before they started reproducing. I say we take off and nuke the entire site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

I take great offense to the negative comments about Dallas – JR Ewing is one of the best characters ever on the small screen. JR – freaking ruler. Most over-rated shows are any reality TV show. Best TV show ever – Hill Street Blues.

Space 1999

Big Bang Theory

Super Bowl Halftime Show

The Oscars (and Grammys, etc…)

I actually like a lot of the shows mentioned.

The Office, Baa Baa Blacksheep (though I'm remembering from my childhood eyes), and even Hallmark movies aren't bad once my wife ‘makes' me watch one!

"Oh my, a show with conservative views. Now we can't have that, can we?"

Good to see you got my point. I wondered…..

Deucey, Space 1999 looks good, the look of the uniforms, the space ships, the Moon Base Alpha itself, but the plots are not very good and the acting is very wooden.

I am actually, very slowly, working on building one, but the adventures were be more Starship Troopers and War of the Worlds than Space 1999.

Bunkermeister

Yes The Office and Friends as well. Never understood what people found funny about that show.

As far as Brit TV. Dr Who. Tried to watch it multiple times, just no interest.

I'm sure there are more if I try.

I'd say almost everything on NBC, CBS and NBC, show wise anymore is bad. Fox TV as well. Sitcoms are just not funny any more, police and medical shows all the same and reality TV 🤮. Once in a while AMC, FX, SFY and paramount come out with something. If they don't put it on their ++ channels.

Actually it the same with the big screen. Cant think of the last really good big screen movie came out that I felt like I had to go to the theater to see before it came out on tv.

What's a "Friends"?

All Sports Programing.

Three's Company
Lost
24
Legend of Korra
The Book of Boba Fett
The X Files
Heroes
Dollhouse
Batman
Anything involving "Housewives"

Many thanks!

Armand

To be "overrated" I guess the show must be "rated highly". I said Dr Who, I guess technically they are more of a cult following and was never a rated high show, so would not qualify. Others up here would not either.

So "MASH", "Friends", "The Office" would. If MASH had ended before Alda made it his personal platform, it would not be on my list. I watched it and it had good comedic moments and was fun before Alda's ego trip. I never watched Friends regularly, but my niece and daughter did, so so saw episodes. I could watch it, but never hooked me. The Office, my daughter and friends watched.. 🤮.

I'm amazed anyone in the Us ever watched Dr Who, after all he doesn't shoot anyone, so what's the point.

So UNIT was put in for us backwoods Americans?

Thanks also…

Armand

There's been a major cultural shift in this country in the form of accelerated Americanisation in the last thirty or so years, part of which has been the rise in the popularity of US TV programming amongst younger viewers – virtually to the exclusion of Australian and British productions, which dominated the ratings 'back in my day'.

Like me, my peers struggled to find the humour in American TV comedies, but today the under fifties lap it all up with relish (American, of course!) and its characters and dialogue lines are their televisual cultural reference points; where we endlessly quoted lines from Monty Python, for them it's South Park.

When I've occasionally attempted to find the comedic merit in these shows I've soon given up after they've failed to elicit more than a smirk or two at best. Seinfeld does nothing for me,

Dr Who was always intended for children, who could be relied on to overlook its plot contradictions, cheap special effects, and ridiculous aliens and scenes (if you want a good laugh have a look at the scene in which Tom Baker tries to fight off an attack from a 'naked' Dalek. Seaweed has never been put to a more outrageous use). Despite better effects the post-2000 revival maintains the same tone, if at a more frenetic pace supposedly better geared for the post-industrial age.

The Doctor might not have resorted to gun play Mark, but the Jon Pertwee incarnation was a sword-swinging swashbuckler always ready and able to 'foil' the Master's evil plans.

With so-called 'reality TV' the medium really sank to scraping below the barrel, but that format that was originally so attractive to networks because of its low production cost has become so dominant, and the competition amongst its variants so strong, that it's come full circle to the point where much of it is now scripted and almost as expensive as traditional programming.

"It had great actors with some great performances. Some good episodes, and excellent one-liners. All that sprinkled through an eternity of dreck that moved more and more away from the timbre of the movie and more and more towards a bucket of self-important actors' and writers' personal agendas. A lot of awards and success, though."

Totally agree.

Can't stand any 'reality' shows.

Match of the Day
Grandstand
World of Sport
Anything else with sport in it
Another vote for Friends & MASH
Anything Guardian TV critics like
Anything Guardian readers like
Minder
Upstairs Downstairs
Grange Hill

The TV is not called an "Idiot Box" for little reason (doubly so since the advent of "Reality" TV). I was going to comment that it would be easier to choose programmes that did live up to their advertising blurbs and ratings, but apart from a few (not History Channel) doco's and a couple of British quiz shows, I couldn't think of any.

"Endeavour" and "Vera" aren't too bad, I suppose. They keep the missus distracted for a while, at least.

Final confirmation that the Age of Idiocracy has descended upon us was the moment a network gave the green light to a TV show that allows viewers to watch other people watching TV.

Dude…!

Armand

Well, I do like Season 1 of Space 1999. Season 2 not so much. Great spaceship models though.