Party of One: Unpopular TV Opinions

[scarynikki12]

57 minutes ago, JustHereForFood said:

I meant, why were Buffy characters called that.

In early season 2 Xander refers to Team Buffy as the Scooby gang to Cordelia and the audience took to it. It wasn't initially presented as the show deciding this would be their nickname but just Xander making a pop culture reference. If the audience hadn't latched on it wouldn't have become a thing.

[roamyn]

Ok, I’m not a huge Scooby fan, but Supernatural  took one of their episodes (that I vaguely remembered) and did a crossover.

It was one of the best episodes out of 327 and it was in year 13.  It made the Scooby episode so much fun watching Sam & Dean try to figure out the mystery along side the Scooby Gang.  (“Fred’s traps never work”; “Ruh roh, Jinkies, Oh no, Zoinks, Son of a B-itch”)

 

Edited February 7, 2022 by roamyn

[Mabinogia]

16 hours ago, roamyn said:

It was one of the best episodes out of 327 and it was in year 13.  It made the Scooby episode so much fun watching Sam & Dean try to figure out the mystery along side the Scooby Gang.  (“Fred’s traps never work”; “Ruh roh, Jinkies, Oh no, Zoinks, Son of a B-itch”)

Okay, that sounds awesome!

[Stats Queen]

17 hours ago, roamyn said:

Ok, I’m not a huge Scooby fan, but Supernatural  took one of their episodes (that I vaguely remembered) and did a crossover.

It was one of the best episodes out of 327 and it was in year 13.  It made the Scooby episode so much fun watching Sam & Dean try to figure out the mystery along side the Scooby Gang.  (“Fred’s traps never work”; “Ruh roh, Jinkies, Oh no, Zoinks, Son of a B-itch”)

 

That was one of my favorite TV series episodes ever.

[Gharlane]

On 2/4/2022 at 1:58 PM, Ohiopirate02 said:

I would hate to give all of the credit for that to Hannibal.  Some of the women Cosby raped were vocal about it for years, but they were painted as "difficult" or led less than perfect lives.  Janice Dickinson comes to mind as someone who publicly talked about Cosby, but was immediately dismissed if anyone even noticed what she was saying.  

Sorry, but Janice Dickinson is a lunatic and not a reliable witness for anything.

 

On 2/4/2022 at 5:02 PM, Blergh said:

Except, of course, during the initial network runs of the cartoons, virtually all the purported 'supernatural' foes got unmasked as   purely mortal human criminal frauds despite Scooby and Shaggy wholeheartedly believing they WERE 'supernatural' until Scooby's actual unmasking of  them - even after the 500th or so said unmasking. 

I cannot think of any specific examples right now, but I noticed there were always things that could not have been explained in a mundane manner. 

 

On 2/4/2022 at 10:26 PM, Crs97 said:

I enjoyed Scooby, but Scrappy can take a long walk off a short pier.

Ditto for Scooby's inbred cousin and cross-dressing cousin. 

[JimmyJabloon]

I only realised a few months ago that the show is called Down-Ton abbey and not Down-Town abbey.

[Gharlane]

12 minutes ago, JimmyJabloon said:

I only realised a few months ago that the show is called Down-Ton abbey and not Down-Town abbey.

And I just realized that. 🤣

[BlackberryJam]

3 hours ago, Gharlane said:

Sorry, but Janice Dickinson is a lunatic and not a reliable witness for anything.

 

The "problem" with victims of sexual assault is that it fucks them up mentally and emotionally, making them unreliable witnesses. Or even worse, abusers prey on those who already have mental health/drug/alcohol problems precisely because those victims will not be believed.

[peachmangosteen]

22 hours ago, JimmyJabloon said:

I only realised a few months ago that the show is called Down-Ton abbey and not Down-Town abbey.

Yea, I thought that for a very long time lol.

[Picture It. Sicily]

I only learned it was Downton when Modern Family made a joke about it.

[Zella]

After the discussion about the writing on Downton Abbey, I feel compelled to leave this gem here. :)

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/every-episode-of-a-television-show-written-by-julian-fellowes

[Hiyo]

My favorite:

"And I’ll counter that with a viewpoint that there is no conceivable way I would have held unless I was a time traveler, but will show me to be in alignment with the viewing audience’s core beliefs."

[Zella]

24 minutes ago, Hiyo said:

"And I’ll counter that with a viewpoint that there is no conceivable way I would have held unless I was a time traveler, but will show me to be in alignment with the viewing audience’s core beliefs."

There are so many great lines, but I think the one I most want to incorporate into my daily life is a mildly exuberant "Cook's made goose!" Especially when I am the one who has cooked and it is most certainly not a goose.

I can just hear Cora drawling that in her is-she-high-on-laudanum voice. LOL 

Edited February 12, 2022 by Zella

[Shannon L.]

7 hours ago, Hiyo said:

My favorite:

"And I’ll counter that with a viewpoint that there is no conceivable way I would have held unless I was a time traveler, but will show me to be in alignment with the viewing audience’s core beliefs."

Same here.  My second favorite is:

"I’m just popping in to make a blanket statement about race. So I can learn a lesson later in this episode. See you at dinner!"

 

[supposebly]

I never understood what people saw in Downton Abbey. I saw maybe three episodes and then noped out after I realized I had seen this show (Upstairs Downstairs) before. And Maggie Smith's reaction at 2:50 and 3:29 says it all.

Maggie Smith are you glad it's over?

[sistermagpie]

4 hours ago, supposebly said:

I never understood what people saw in Downton Abbey.

Four words: What. Is. A. Weekend.

[Haleth]

12 hours ago, sistermagpie said:

Four words: What. Is. A. Weekend.

She said it like 5 words- what is a week END?

[Hiyo]

 

[DrSpaceman73]

17 hours ago, supposebly said:

I never understood what people saw in Downton Abbey. I saw maybe three episodes and then noped out after I realized I had seen this show (Upstairs Downstairs) before. And Maggie Smith's reaction at 2:50 and 3:29 says it all.

Maggie Smith are you glad it's over?

I watched downtown abbey for awhile got bored with it. 

I tried to watch upstairs downstairs because of the comparisons literally could not make it through one scene. 

[Blergh]

I only liked Upstairs, Downstairs in the first few years when it made a realistic effort to depict how all these very different social classes co-existed under the same swanky roof with the employers deliberately oblivious to HOW their employees were living their own lives  while the employees knew every single possible tic of said employers.  Of course, it should be noted that the creator, producer, head writer, and star Jean Marsh had progenitors who  been servants  during that time so she made a determined effort to depict things this way- at least the first few years.  After that, it got too soapy AND, from what I gather Downton Abbey always was heavy on the soapy side. 

 

Edited February 14, 2022 by Blergh

[Hiyo]

If you want a more accurate depiction of the upstairs/downstairs dynamic among the English aristocracy, check out Fellowes' own Gosford Park (directed by the late Robert Altman). Much more cynical but also probably more realistic as well.

[Constant Viewer]

11 hours ago, Hiyo said:

If you want a more accurate depiction of the upstairs/downstairs dynamic among the English aristocracy, check out Fellowes' own Gosford Park (directed by the late Robert Altman). Much more cynical but also probably more realistic as well.

I LOVE Gosford Park!

[Spartan Girl]

I have two UO that kind of contradict each other:

1) I really wish Buffy had just let Spike stay a villain, he was more fun that way.

2) That being said, as much as I hated his storyline in season 5 and beyond of that much, I loved him joining the final season of Angel because it was so fun watching him constantly go at it with Angel. The bit where they were screaming at each other over cavemen vs astronauts was just hilarious.

[proserpina65]

6 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

1) I really wish Buffy had just let Spike stay a villain, he was more fun that way.

I am so glad I stopped watching Buffy while he still was.

[scarynikki12]

8 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

 

1) I really wish Buffy had just let Spike stay a villain, he was more fun that way

 

I wanted Spike to be the final Big Bad. That made more sense to me than him getting his soul back.

[Jaded]

Since getting YouTube TV last year and rewatching In Plain Sight I still hate that they wrote in Mary the actress's real life pregnancy and made Mary the character pregnant. I can kind of see why they had to considering what kind of a show it was. I didn't want the baby to die but I wish they had gone through with the adoption angle.

Of course they didn't so most of the few episodes from the last season had nonsensical baby related scenes. One of the main reasons that I liked the show for most of it's run was that Mary was someone who had a good life, good career and was seemingly happily childfree. 

Edited February 18, 2022 by Jaded

[SJC]

My unpopular opinion:
Miss Ellie on Dallas wasn't likeable. She would fuss about Jock's ruthlessness in business, but she sure didn't mind living in wealth! The wealth that he earned!

And yes, I prefer older shows.  lol

[Gharlane]

8 hours ago, SJC said:

My unpopular opinion:
Miss Ellie on Dallas wasn't likeable. She would fuss about Jock's ruthlessness in business, but she sure didn't mind living in wealth! The wealth that he earned!

I think Mad Magazine was on target when, in their Dallas spoof, someone pointed out that most of the plots on the show wouldn't happen if they learned not to trust J.R. Ewing and do business with him. 🤣

[Hiyo]

Quote

She would fuss about Jock's ruthlessness in business, but she sure didn't mind living in wealth! The wealth that he earned!

She may not have Jock Ewing money, but wasn't she from a well-off family? Didn't she own Southfork and all the land?

[bluegirl147]

59 minutes ago, Hiyo said:

She may not have Jock Ewing money, but wasn't she from a well-off family? Didn't she own Southfork and all the land?

Yes Ellie's family owned Southfork. Her maiden name was Southworth.  During the Depression her family was on the verge of losing Southfork and she married Jock who was just starting to make money.  She had been Digger Barnes girlfriend so that started the Ewing/Barnes feud along with Digger believing Jock cheated him on some oil deals.

[SJC]

1 hour ago, Hiyo said:

She may not have Jock Ewing money, but wasn't she from a well-off family? Didn't she own Southfork and all the land?

I believe she did.

[DrSpaceman73]

37 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

Yes Ellie's family owned Southfork. Her maiden name was Southworth.  During the Depression her family was on the verge of losing Southfork and she married Jock who was just starting to make money.  She had been Digger Barnes girlfriend so that started the Ewing/Barnes feud along with Digger believing Jock cheated him on some oil deals.

Wow.

Bravo.  I don't recall Any of that. 

In fact the sum total of what I recall from the show is the 

JR was a ruthless oil man

Kristin shot JR. 

[bluegirl147]

2 minutes ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

Bravo.  I don't recall Any of that. 

I did a complete re watch during the pandemic. Including the Dallas the Early Years.

5 minutes ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

In fact the sum total of what I recall from the show is the 

JR was a ruthless oil man

Kristin shot JR. 

There was so much more.  It really was a fun show to watch. They really did make the season finale cliffhanger a big deal.

[SJC]

They had awesome cliffhangers.

[Blergh]

While Jock was openly ruthless, the character was someone who had zero charm or tact which JR DID have and used to get his victims to let their guards down. I firmly believe he learned that part of his persona from Miss Ellie herself (and she may not have been   above deliberately using it as trap bait herself in her younger years). Oh, and she made no objections to JR having tracked down Lucy's young, impoverished mother Valene and tearing the baby out of the mother's arms to give to her (Miss Ellie) so I don't consider her as nice or trustworthy as she wanted others to think. 

[SJC]

3 minutes ago, Blergh said:

she made no objections to JR having tracked down Lucy's young, impoverished mother Valene and tearing the baby out of the mother's arms to give to her (Miss Ellie) so I don't consider her as nice or trustworthy as she wanted others to think. 

YES !!!

[bluegirl147]

1 minute ago, Blergh said:

Oh, and she made no objections to JR having tracked down Lucy's young, impoverished mother Valene and tearing the baby out of the mother's arms to give to her (Miss Ellie) so I don't consider her as nice or trustworthy as she wanted others to think. 

Oh yeah.  She didn't care that a baby was ripped from a mother's arms simply because JR thought Valene was beneath the Ewings.  

She saw how many people JR hurt.  But her attitude was mostly to think "well what can you do? JR is going to be JR". 

I could not stand her when she let the Jock impersonator worm his way in.  She almost ruined her marriage to Clayton over him.  

[Mabinogia]

My UO, I preferred Dynasty to Dallas. Never was a fan of Dallas. All I know of it is it took place in Texas and someone shot JR. Actually, thanks to DrSpaceman73, I now know it was Kristin...whoever that was. Oh, and there was a shower and it was all a dream, and that I coveted Charlene Tilton's hair. I guess I know more about Dallas than I thought. lol

[bluegirl147]

43 minutes ago, Mabinogia said:

My UO, I preferred Dynasty to Dallas. Never was a fan of Dallas. All I know of it is it took place in Texas and someone shot JR. Actually, thanks to DrSpaceman73, I now know it was Kristin...whoever that was. Oh, and there was a shower and it was all a dream, and that I coveted Charlene Tilton's hair. I guess I know more about Dallas than I thought. lol

I liked Dynasty too. And Falcon Crest and Knot's Landing.  

Not sure if it's unpopular or not but if I was told I could only watch those shows in reruns or new episodes of any current show I would choose the reruns.

Edited February 21, 2022 by bluegirl147

[Hiyo]

Quote

I preferred Dynasty to Dallas

Dynasty definitely bring the luxury more than Dallas (or any of those other 80s prime time soaps) did. You could have probably fit the whole Southfork house in one wing of the Carrington mansion.

[JustHereForFood]

Count me in for all the Jock and Miss Ellie hate. They were both horrible people who deserved each other and it's no wonder now that I think about it that JR turned out the way he did with those two as parents. It's actually more of a shock that his brothers wre mostly decent men.

[Mabinogia]

3 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

Not sure if it's unpopular or not but if I was told I could only watch those shows in reruns or new episodes of any current show I would choose the reruns.

I actually find myself watching reruns more and more lately. I think it's a combo of all new shows being rehashes of old shows and I'd rather just watch the old version (Like, I have no desire to watch the new version of Dynasty but I would watch the old one again in a heartbeat), or the fact that those really depressing dramas about horrible people are super popular now and I'd rather just watch a sitcom even though I know all the jokes by heart, or just how horrible the world is right now and I just want the comfort of a familiar show to snuggle up to. 

[SVNBob]

15 hours ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

Kristin shot JR. 

In a sense, everyone shot JR...including JR himself.

They filmed every single cast member (and apparently the crew members too, per the Dallas wiki) as doing the shooting in order to circumvent spoilers.

Edited February 22, 2022 by SVNBob

[DrSpaceman73]

19 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

I did a complete re watch during the pandemic. Including the Dallas the Early Years.

There was so much more.  It really was a fun show to watch. They really did make the season finale cliffhanger a big deal.

I'm sure there was.   But I was only like 7 or 8 when it was on and was more interested at the time in the dukes of Hazzard on before it.  

[Hyacinth B]

On 2/11/2022 at 7:51 PM, Zella said:

After the discussion about the writing on Downton Abbey, I feel compelled to leave this gem here. :)

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/every-episode-of-a-television-show-written-by-julian-fellowes

In the name of all Downton Dislikers, THANK YOU !!!

 

(Now hurry up and put it back in Sir Julian's safe before he realises it's missing)

Edited February 22, 2022 by Hyacinth B

[andromeda331]

On 2/21/2022 at 1:37 PM, JustHereForFood said:

Count me in for all the Jock and Miss Ellie hate. They were both horrible people who deserved each other and it's no wonder now that I think about it that JR turned out the way he did with those two as parents. It's actually more of a shock that his brothers wre mostly decent men.

I agree. Given how JR and Lucy, who they raised turned out. Bobby and the other brother got off lucky.  

[BlackberryJam]

The first three or so seasons of Falcon Crest were better than Dynasty or Dallas.

[kathyk24]

2 minutes ago, BlackberryJam said:

The first three or so seasons of Falcon Crest were better than Dynasty or Dallas.

Angela Channing was great I loved the scenes with her and Richard. The last seasons stunk I hated what they did to Julia.

[Hiyo]

Quote

The first three or so seasons of Falcon Crest were better than Dynasty or Dallas.

I would say all of the big 4 80s soaps - Dynasty, Falcon Crest, Dallas, and Knots Landing - were really good TV when they were good. Granted, we all have our opinions on when the shows were good, for example for me, Dynasty's best years were seasons 2 to 5.

Almost all of them though really declined rather badly in their last years, and were also what I would call bad TV. But when they were good, damn, they were fun, addictive, enjoyable TV.

[Crs97]

Richard Channing was the making of Falcon Crest.