Television Show Recommendations

[Escapay]

Is this thread about old television shows, or new ones?

Both. Panfan says in his first post "In this thread we can recommend shows to each other, and ask about shows you might be interested in watching" without differentiating between old shows or new shows, and the thread title reflects that too (using the generic "Television Show Recommendation" without including "old" or "new").

In my last post, I mentioned 7 canceled/finished shows and 4 shows currently in production.

And why all the love for reruns, or shows that haven't been on television in first-run for years?

Well, nostalgia is a very powerful thing.

Plus, it's harder and harder to find a good show worth watching today versus 10-20 years ago, when it was simply hard to decide which good show to watch. Anyone can make a list of 10 great shows (regardless of genre) currently on the air now, but that can easily be countered by a list of 20 lousy shows (also regardless of genre) also on the air. For every "Army Wives" there's also a "Pretty Little Liars".

albert

[BelleGirl]

I suppose there were also lousy TV-shows in the past, but probably they've been forgotten. (rightly so)

I did mention some present Tv shows. But since I live in The Netherlands the only TV-shows I can recommend here are American or British shows we've imported, (Was there ever a Dutch sitcom broaddcasted in the USA?), and probably most Ud'ers know them already. (On the other hand I often don't know what other Ud-ers are talking about: what the hell is "Pretty little Liars"?) My choise is limited, so excuse me for recommending old shows too.

[Escapay]

I suppose there were also lousy TV-shows in the past, but probably they've been forgotten. (rightly so)

We can remember good shows from 15 years ago, but hardly any of the bad ones. And when we think about current shows on today, I run through them in my mind and think "Crap, crap, crap, good, semi-crap, good, crap, crap, etc." most of the time, since the recent shows are more fresh on my mind than an older one.

(Was there ever a Dutch sitcom broaddcasted in the USA?)

To be honest, I don't think there was ever any Dutch television show broadcast in the USA.

(On the other hand I often don't know what other Ud-ers are talking about: what the hell is "Pretty little Liars"?)

"Entertainment Weekly" summed it up best:

• "Imagine the pitch for Liars: It's I Know What You Did Last Summer meets Gossip Girl, but like not so subtle. The new ABC Family drama, based on the popular young-adult book series about a high school clique whose missing leader continuously causes problems and she ends up dead comes back to haunt them via locker-room notes, IMs, and text messages, hits every racy teentertainment mark so hard (everyone's hair is so full — of secrets!) that it feels like the only thing missing is a visit from the ghosts of Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze, Jr."

albert

ETA: fixed quote tag.

[BelleGirl]

I suppose there were also lousy TV-shows in the past, but probably they've been forgotten. (rightly so)

It was not that I expected a Dutch sitcom to be broadcasted in the USA. It was kind of a rhetorical question. Anyway, just a few of them are any good, and if they are they are mostly derived form British sitcoms.

[Escapay]

To be honest, I don't think there was ever any Dutch television show broadcast in the USA.

It was not that I expected a Dutch sitcom to be broadcasted in the USA. It was kind of a rhetorical question.

Oh, sorry! I took it seriously.

Unfortunately, the majority of people in the US are far too unaware of television and movies outside the country, which is why so few foreign shows get imported here. There's only BBC America for UK stuff (though some US/UK co-productions air on Showtime, HBO, or IFC), and of course, the telenovelas from Mexico, South America, etc. that end up on Univison and Telemundo. The only other example I can think of are K dramas that air on local stations during certain programming blocks, and the Filipino Channel, which is on cable (and only if you pay enough for it).

It really sucks, because the only way I can watch German soap operas and K dramas (that aren't run on the local stations) is online.

albert

[Goliath]

What is with everyone mentioning shows that are no longer on television and can only be seen in reruns or DVD-on-TV sets?

And why all the love for reruns, or shows that haven't been on television in first-run for years?

Because most of what's on tv nowadays is crap.

[BelleGirl]

Escapy,

The conclusion I draw from your comment about TV shows imported in the USA is that they are either English or Spanish-speaking. Maybe the TV broadcasting companies just don't like dubbing or subtitling.

So you watch German TV-shows on Internet. Ever saw a German "krimi"? They used to be quite popular in The Netherlands. Like 'Derrick" for instance.

[Goliath]

And of course (how could I forget?):

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Real Time with Bill Maher

Pure brilliance. How two comedians turn out to be the only two people on tv asking the tough political questions...

[littlefuzzy]

Ya know, this has been bugging me for a little bit (see dvdjunkie's second quote)

What is with everyone mentioning shows that are no longer on television and can only be seen in reruns or DVD-on-TV sets? There have been a lot of shows that are on today that are just as good as those "oldies" that all of you have mentioned.

Is this thread about old television shows, or new ones? That's all I need to know. And why all the love for reruns, or shows that haven't been on television in first-run for years?

Just curious.

(taken from the What complete TV Season did you just watch" thread)

Finished watching my complete Monkees Collection for the second time. That was one of my favorite shows, and still ranks up there pretty high.

Those two quotes aren't quite compatible!

[Escapay]

Maybe Bill's criticisms only apply to everyone else? One of those "do as I say, not as I do" kind of things.

albert