Party of One: Unpopular TV Opinions

[ChromaKelly]

According to the author, it's about the size of South America.

In the books it's pretty clear how long it takes to get places and that's why the books are over a thousand pages. Because we get the travelling in detail and it feels like people never get anywhere.

On the show, I can handwave that there's a time jump and we didn't see the whole entire journey from point A to B, because that would be boring and we've only got 10 episodes. Do you really want to see a monthlong boat ride? No? Me neither. So yes it's unrealistic but it gets the characters together instead of person travelling alone forever.

[ganesh]

And it's a fair cheat because every week, we see the show universe in the credits. 

 

Not for nothing too, all the Hound and Arya did was tromp all over the place.

[Danny Franks]

I call those 'fair cheats'. You can't have every single detail in a show because you'll never get anywhere with the plot. But a fair cheat can only be fair if the show has a reasonably established universe. On GOT people get places rather quick, but the opening theme shows the land isn't that large of a mass. Does the show have to have a scene with the Chief Map Guy explaining how big it is exactly? No, that's boring and dumb. 

 

Galactica actually did this quite well too. The ships "jump" and they have a "drive" to do it. The show requires FTL travel. Rather than have an entire episode totally about 'zomg we has to fix teh drive because Cylons are coming!!!', they had like 15 seconds in the command room where they showed there was an upper limit on how far you could jump and know where you were actually going. Good enough, let's move on. 

 

Same thing with Farscape. There's a whole bunch of aliens, how are they all speaking English? They were injected with microbes that make them understand language. Ok. 

 

But then there's just lazy writing. Torchwood's last series was notorious for this, and clearly the show concept was not thought out at all. Falling Skies too. Way too much swept under the rug. 

 

I'm not talking about in-world explanations for how things are possible. I'm fine with those. I'm talking about writers ignoring things because not ignoring them would make it more difficult to write their show.

 

Stuff like past continuity or characterisation being ignored because it goes against the story they want to tell for a particular episode. That bugs me, because I think it's incumbent on someone who is paid handsomely for writing fiction, of any kind, to stick to the truth of the characters and worlds they create.

 

Really weird unpopular opinion of mine: It doesn't upset me if a show retcons something that happened in the pilot. I don't consider pilots to be canon. The purpose of a pilot is to get a network to order a show, and so many things can and will change from then and the first episode.

 

 

This is okay with me too, despite my previous comment about writers ignoring continuity. Because I see pilots as a very overt demonstration to networks and audiences of what the show is planned to be. So characters are very archetypal and easy to get, the relationships are established on very basic, easy to grasp levels. If later development shows that those exaggerated personas don't quite fit, then that's okay. It's when the characters are more established, and then writers start futzing with them to make their jobs easier, that I get irritated.

[andromeda331]

Really weird unpopular opinion of mine: It doesn't upset me if a show retcons something that happened in the pilot. I don't consider pilots to be canon.

 

 

I give pilots a lot of leeway because they have a hard job of setting up everything, the actors are still new to their

roles and lots info dumps. Sometimes it can be hard to find the right balance right off the bat and the pilots can

often been clunky. Also of course, things can change afterwards, change roles and things around. Actors

might end up unavailable or drop out or certain characters or stories just don't work. But I do wish networks

would give shows more of a chance to find their footing and audience before yanking them off the

air.  

[Anna Yolei]

Going around the dial and discovering a TV movie about Full House brings me to a UO:

I have no earthly idea how this show became a hit in the first place or why they're bringing it back; its range stretched from bland to stupid. Also, while they grew into their looks, the Olsen twins at the time of the show looked like they'd been beat with the ugly stick, so the biggest mystery to me was how Michelle became such a phenomenon.

In my 29 years on earth, I know exactly one actual fan of the Olson twins...but that was back in middle school back in 99 or 2000.

[ByTor]

Late to Six Feet Under (caught it on Amazon Prime).  My UO is that not only was the finale not the greatest finale that ever finaled, it was just so-so.  I thought the last 10 min was pretty touching, but it didn't make up for how dull the rest of the episode was.

[SmithW6079]

I am so over hearing about Stephen Colbert being the next Annointed One of late night TV.

[andromeda331]

In my 29 years on earth, I know exactly one actual fan of the Olson twins...but that was back in middle school back in 99 or 2000.

 

 

I remember mostly elementary age girls being the ones wanting to check out their movies, back when there used to be

video stores. 

[funkopop]

I remember mostly elementary age girls being the ones wanting to check out their movies, back when there used to be

video stores. 

 

Yeah, that was me and my sisters.  We loved their home videos, detective series, and big screen debut (?) It Takes Two.  They were huge to us!

[UYI]

In my 29 years on earth, I know exactly one actual fan of the Olson twins...but that was back in middle school back in 99 or 2000.

 

I mean, I still have a soft spot for them all these years later, but I was definitely the biggest fan of theirs when I was 8 or 9.

 

But, in a related UO:

 

Their show Two of a Kind is actually VERY underrated. You wouldn't think so for a show that was featured during the TGIF lineup on ABC, but the adult cast was very, very strong; they really carried the show, and in many ways, stole it from the Olsen twins themselves. I think it deserved more than one season. 

[funkopop]

I mean, I still have a soft spot for them all these years later, but I was definitely the biggest fan of theirs when I was 8 or 9.

 

But, in a related UO:

 

Their show Two of a Kind is actually VERY underrated. You wouldn't think so for a show that was featured during the TGIF lineup on ABC, but the adult cast was very, very strong; they really carried the show, and in many ways, stole it from the Olsen twins themselves. I think it deserved more than one season. 

I forgot about their show, I'm going to have to look that up on Youtube,

[UYI]

I forgot about their show, I'm going to have to look that up on Youtube,

 

Sadly, I think copyright issues now prevent full episodes from being on YouTube. There are some short clips available, though.

[callmebetty]

My UO is that I am getting tired of people ragging on fictional characters and how they react in a SCRIPTED show and the actors interpretation of that character's motives which sometimes are provided to them by said SCRIPT and sometimes directors.  

Maybe because I am not some survivalist, but in the case of some crazy virus and it did really, truly did create people becoming zombies, I guess I would remember that you should go for the head, but that's about it.  I still think I  would have a hard time killing someone even if they are undead. Especially if it was like day two of said zombie apocolypse.

I do agree that I hate when writers create characters and forgot to put in basic dialogue.  You know the kind normal people would have, just because they want to create tension and some sort of artsy mysterious feel to it.  No, there is no reason people shouldn't be telling other people, 'holy shit we saw a dude get shot, but then he got up and just still kept coming after us until we ran over his head.'

That's understandable about getting pissed off about.  But that's on the writers, not the actors.  At least when a show first starts and the actors haven't grown into a character.

[cynic]

...

Lastly my absolute favourite was 12 Monkeys. Very good acting, storylines that kept you guessing and extremely intriguing characters. The best syfy has done in quite a while.

...

Oh, I loved 12 Monkeys! I was very impressed by how complex the characters were and how the show wasn't afraid to show some flaws and morally questionable motivations/behaviors. I also appreciated that they trusted the audience to follow a plotline that was very twisty and mythology heavy. I can't wait for it to come back. 

...

Another UO is w/r/t Fringe. I'm on the fourth season, and I am finding myself disliking the Peter/Olivia relationship more and more. I was rooting for them early on, but once almost everything about the show became about them being DESTINED to be together and Olivia being not whole without Peter, it just became too much. I always when it feels like a show is forcing me to like something or root for something. 

I totally agree with this. I really enjoyed them when it felt like they were coming together in a more low-key and organic way, but then it morphed into this huge shmoopy OTP thing where even the fate of the entire world revolved around and took a backseat to their coupling. Season 5 was the worst. I preferred Fringe when the OTP relationship was between Peter and Walter and Olivia's journey wasn't about love.

[Hava]

I totally agree with this. I really enjoyed them when it felt like they were coming together in a more low-key and organic way, but then it morphed into this huge shmoopy OTP thing where even the fate of the entire world revolved around and took a backseat to their coupling. Season 5 was the worst. I preferred Fringe when the OTP relationship was between Peter and Walter and Olivia's journey wasn't about love.

 

 

Exactly. It was confusing to see their relationship go from 0 to 100 over a span of a few episodes. And it really irked me how Olivia acted like a teenager in love for the first time and the show acted as though this was the first time Olivia had opened up to anyone--it totally erased the fact that she was in love once before with John Scott.  I thought it was a real disservice to her character. And I completely agree with you that Walter and Peter's love should have remained as the show's central love story and Peter/Olivia should have been just a sweet side relationship.

Edited September 2, 2015 by Hava

[topanga]

I watched the first episode of Empire and I personally don't get why the show is so successful. I feel like it's a fairly average show and I don't quite get the fuzz about it. Maybe I need to watch more episodes, but I don't think I will. However, I am happy that a show with a primarily black cast is such a blockbuster hit, because everything that helps to get people cast that normally wouldn't be cast in Whiteywood is a win for me.

I think that if most Empire fans were asked, they'd admit that the show isn't the most well-written, well-acted show ever. The music is good, the sets and the people are pretty, and the ongoing plot, while campy and clichéd, does pack some amount of dramatic tension. I think it's nice to see people of color in a setting we're not used to: successful, upwardly mobile, but still "keeping it real," whatever that means. And whether you like Cookie or not, I think Taraji P. Henson does a great job of turning a stereotypically loud, sassy black woman into a multi-dimensional character.

[andromeda331]

I watched the first episode of Empire and I personally don't get why the show is so successful. I feel like it's a fairly average show and I don't quite get the fuzz about it. Maybe I need to watch more episodes, but I don't think I will. However, I am happy that a show with a primarily black cast is such a blockbuster hit, because everything that helps to get people cast that normally wouldn't be cast in Whiteywood is a win for me.

 

I liked it in the beginning. It reminded me of Dallas and Dynasty and sometimes its really fun to

watch something over the top and campy. 

 

And whether you like Cookie or not, I think Taraji P. Henson does a great job of turning a stereotypically loud, sassy black woman into a multi-dimensional character.

 

I think my main problem with the show isn't really its fault. I loved Carter so much on Person of Interest and

was so sad when her character was killed off. I watched Empire because of the actress hoping I'd like her

new role just as much. But I don't. Some of Cookie's lines were funny. Carter was just so much more awesome.

Edited September 2, 2015 by andromeda331

[bosawks]

My UO is that I am getting tired of people ragging on fictional characters and how they react in a SCRIPTED show and the actors interpretation of that character's motives which sometimes are provided to them by said SCRIPT and sometimes directors.  

Maybe because I am not some survivalist, but in the case of some crazy virus and it did really, truly did create people becoming zombies, I guess I would remember that you should go for the head, but that's about it.  I still think I  would have a hard time killing someone even if they are undead. Especially if it was like day two of said zombie apocolypse.

I do agree that I hate when writers create characters and forgot to put in basic dialogue.  You know the kind normal people would have, just because they want to create tension and some sort of artsy mysterious feel to it.  No, there is no reason people shouldn't be telling other people, 'holy shit we saw a dude get shot, but then he got up and just still kept coming after us until we ran over his head.'

That's understandable about getting pissed off about.  But that's on the writers, not the actors.  At least when a show first starts and the actors haven't grown into a character.

 

I don't know, the chorus of "I hope the stupid bitch dies" has a certain mellifluousness to it........

 

My UO is that I can't get enough of people saying how awesome they would be in the ZA and if they provide "real life" examples I'm in heaven.  I'll confess they've put more thought into surviving the Zombie Apocalypse than I have in, well, anything, ever.

[DearEvette]

I think my main problem with the show isn't really its fault. I loved Carter so much on Person of Interest and

was so sad when her character was killed off. I watched Empire because of the actress hoping I'd like her

new role just as much. But I don't. Some of Cookie's lines were funny. Carter was just so much more awesome.

 

Truthfully?  I think a lot of my satisfaction with the runaway success of Empire and Cookie is because of how pissed I was that POI killed off Carter.  True or not, rational or not, I will always feel they jettisoned TPH to make room for Sarah Shahi & Amy Acker.   So I watch and enjoy.

[kathyk24]

I hate Walter Bishop from Fringe. He kidnapped Peter from his real family and experimented on Olivia and we are supposed to feel sorry for him? I love science fiction shows so I am willing to suspend my disbelief but I can't suspend my sense of right and wrong.

[GreekGeek]

I've mentioned this before, but I was never crazy about Joan on Mad Men. I didn't feel an  episode was lacking if she didn't have a big role in it. I never liked how poorly she treated other women and looked to men to fix all her problems. It took 10+ years of leers, condescension, rape, abortions, indecent proposals, divorce, and crude jokes for her to get her consciousness raised.

 

Edited September 3, 2015 by GreekGeek

[andromeda331]

Truthfully?  I think a lot of my satisfaction with the runaway success of Empire and Cookie is because of how pissed I was that POI killed off Carter.  True or not, rational or not, I will always feel they jettisoned TPH to make room for Sarah Shahi & Amy Acker.   So I watch and enjoy.

 

Oh I understand that feeling although for me I wanted Person of Interest to go down after they killed off

Carter. I have also always believed they did so to bring those to on too. I never liked them in the first place

I loved what that they had. Reese, Finch, Fusco, and of course Carter.  Carter was awesome. 

[TaraS1]

The first character that came to mind when I read the title of this thread was Peggy from Mad Men.  I didn't hate her, but I certainly didn't care about her "journey" from secretary to copywriter to woman of the world.  I just thought she was boring and annoying.  In related news, I never thought Elisabeth Moss was anything special acting-wise.

[Popples]

The next season of Person of Interest was reduced to like 15 episodes, so I think this might be the end of it. Such a shame, because when it was good, it was so very good. I can't even describe how livid I was when they killed off Carter.

 

I loved what that they had. Reese, Finch, Fusco, and of course Carter.  Carter was awesome. 

 

Don't forget about Bear!

[Neurochick]

Oh I understand that feeling although for me I wanted Person of Interest to go down after they killed off

Carter. I have also always believed they did so to bring those to on too. I never liked them in the first place

I loved what that they had. Reese, Finch, Fusco, and of course Carter.  Carter was awesome. 

 

I never watched Person of Interest after Carter was killed off.  I thought it was a shitty thing to do, so fuck that show and long live Empire!

[TaraS1]

My unpopular opinion is that ER got even better after Clooney, Marguiles (boo!hiss!) & Co. left, thanks in part to TPTB's wise decision to put a lot of the show on Maura Tierney's shoulders.  She was more than up to the task and did brilliant, Emmy-worthy work in a role that was pretty thankless in a lot of ways, with the writers piling more misery onto Abby at every turn.  The Abby haters always whined about her eating up the show (which she really didn't, since there were several seasons where she had very little story), but I loved every second of it because Maura was the best actress on the show and deserved to be featured that much.

Edited September 3, 2015 by TaraS1

[andromeda331]

Don't forget about Bear!

 

I can't believe I forgot Bear! Bear is just as awesome.

[ABay]

I didn't mind that they killed Carter, but I did mind that they waited until she'd become interesting to do it instead of doing it in season 1 when every scene she was in ground the story to a halt.

[mansonlamps]

In my UO, the Carter story had run its course so I can't get too worked up about them killing the character off.

[Danny Franks]

My unpopular opinion is that ER got even better after Clooney, Marguiles (boo!hiss!) & Co. left, thanks in part to TPTB's wise decision to put a lot of the show on Maura Tierney's shoulders.  She was more than up to the task and did brilliant, Emmy-worthy work in a role that was pretty thankless in a lot of ways, with the writers piling more misery onto Abby at every turn.  The Abby haters always whined about her eating up the show (which she really didn't, since there were several seasons where she had very little story), but I loved every second of it because Maura was the best actress on the show and deserved to be featured that much.

 

Eh, at first it was okay. I didn't miss Carol, Doug or Benton too much when they left. But even though I didn't care too much for Mark by the time Anthony Edwards left, I did feel it left a void in the show. And once Carter headed out, it was done for me.

 

The entire original cast was gone, and it just didn't feel like the same show any more. I didn't really think any of the replacements were better than the originals. The thing that always annoyed me the most was them losing Maria Bello after just one (and a bit) seasons. I really liked her character. I always felt they should have done more with Maggie Doyle as well, but I guess Jorja Fox was too busy on CSI or whatever it was she was a regular on.

[Julia]

I loved Carter, and I hated that that rare-on-tv creature, a single mother with a blue collar job making her life into a success and setting a moral benchmark for the people around her to follow (which happens all the damn time IRL - those women are the backbone of the world) got thrown out for yet again another Whedon retread character with superhuman ninja powers who's still bitter about high school.

 

I think, though, if they'd been able to keep Sarah Shahi and lose Amy Acker, I might have kept watching. Shaw had the potential to be an interesting character. Root was literally a deus ex machina, every week, and good lord writer people, how thick do you have to trowel this shit to be sure the reviewer at the AV Club gets it?

[Neurochick]

I agree, but they should have gotten rid of Shaw and Root and kept Carter.

[Haleth]

I quit watching after Carter died too.  I couldn't stand Shaw and Root who I felt took away from the unique talents of John and Finch.  Carter had a different skill set that complimented the guys' talents.  It would have been a more interesting show to see her become an increasingly valued member of the team.  But it seems to have worked out well for TPH.

[Neurochick]

My UO for today:

 

I don't find WOC on TV annoying.  If I had a dollar for every time I've read that Gabby on Chicago Fire/Olivia Pope on Scandal/Melissa Harris Perry/The black girl on Supernatural who had the NERVE to sleep with Dean Winchester/Tamron Hall is SO annoying, I'd be a rich woman.  I don't even know what they're talking about, even when I ask I get crickets.  Maybe some people have a hard time seeing black women and WOC as something other than just "the help" or "poor girls from the ghetto" or "the sidekick."

 

I don't want to be one of those older folk who complain about shows like the VMA's because they're not what they were 20 years ago.  Full disclosure, I'm 55 and sure, things aren't the same but that's okay, doesn't have to be.  I watch the VMA's because I think the shows can be interesting  

 

The only thing I miss about 20 years ago was that I was 20 years younger.  

Edited September 4, 2015 by Neurochick

[Julia]

Olivia Pope on Scandal/... is SO annoying,..

 

Maybe some people have a hard time seeing black women and WOC as something other than just "the help" or "poor girls from the ghetto" or "the sidekick."

 

I have to admit, after a strong start, what Olivia Pope has become annoys the living crap out of me. She used to be a powerful woman with a ton of agency and a sense of ethics, even if they were compromised. Now she careens between the sway of her cold-blooded killer father, the two cold-blooded killers she's sleeping with and her best friend the cold-blooded killer and leads a happy band of cold-blooded killers who like to torture people. In her copious free time, she helps keep the people who stole the White House in office.

 

I wish that Scandal was a series about someone like Judy Smith the way it was supposed to be. I think it's kind of disgusting that Shonda Rhimes had that chance and threw it away.

Edited September 4, 2015 by Julia

[Chaos Theory]

Honestly the only time I find Olivia Pope annoying is when she is Twu Luving it up with Fitz. I don't know my brain shuts down during those scenes and I forget the show was ever good.

[Chaos Theory]

I hate Walter Bishop from Fringe. He kidnapped Peter from his real family and experimented on Olivia and we are supposed to feel sorry for him? I love science fiction shows so I am willing to suspend my disbelief but I can't suspend my sense of right and wrong.

The show was ultimately about the redemption of his character and him facing up to the horrible things he did in his youth. The show never condoned his actions. The exact opposit. The show forced him to face the ramifications of his actions on two different universes.

[GodsBeloved]

The next season of Person of Interest was reduced to like 15 episodes, so I think this might be the end of it. Such a shame, because when it was good, it was so very good. I can't even describe how livid I was when they killed off Carter.

They have 13 episodes.

 

Regarding Carter/TPH, its funny because the show is now airing on WGN and they are promoting Carter quite a bit. 

 

UO: I didn't hate Walking Dead's Lori. I came to the party late and was surprised when I went back and read episode threads and saw the Lori hate.

I never watched Person of Interest after Carter was killed off.  I thought it was a shitty thing to do, so fuck that show and long live Empire!

LOL!

[Spartan Girl]

Two words: SpongeBob SquarePants.

He is so utterly annoying that I actually feel sorry for Squidward.

[Chaos Theory]

I never watched Person of Interest after Carter was killed off. I thought it was a shitty thing to do, so fuck that show and long live Empire!

From what I understand it was her decision to leave. Hell she moved up from a secondary position on a male dominated show to a virtual lead where she is the talked about character.

Edited September 4, 2015 by Chaos Theory

[Neurochick]

From what I understand it was her decision to leave. Hell she moved up from a secondary position on a male dominated show to a virtual lead where she is the talked about character.

 

No, I think that was just spin.  I mean what was she supposed to say, "they kicked me off for Shaw?"  

 

After Carter was killed off, there was such an uproar on the Internet that TPH appeared on David Letterman's show but you could tell that it was a last minute thing, like CBS freaked out or something and they didn't want to look like a bunch of racists.  

[Haleth]

I pretty much only watch Scandal to see what Kerry/Olivia is wearing.  I covet her wardrobe.

 

UO:  I like Tamron Hall.  I think she is cute and spunky and the right personality for the light 9:00 hour.  

[amensisterfriend]

I definitely hear you guys on Annie Edison---all the Community characters are really flawed, but her obnoxiously cutesy, deliberate "sexy school girl" bit got indescribably tiresome, as did the reminders that she's always everyone's "favorite" (even the misanthropic Pierce!) One of my favorite scenes from that whole series is when Britta (whose characterization was wildly all over the place, by the way!), called Annie out on how she purposefully plays up that 'wittle girl' preciousness and this ingenuous "naive but super sexxxy" stuff to manipulate people and get her own way. Annie agreed, and as this was the beginning of S2, I had high hopes that from then on that aspect of her character would be toned down a bit. Sadly, it got worse! And the 'widely loved' not-officially-a-romance ship between Annie and Jeff (I can't stand him either, by the way!) became my least favorite thing about the show. 

 

Here's another one: Maeby from Arrested Development. She could have been a good character, but IMO they wasted her in that same endlessly repetitive, one-joke "she's a young girl passing as a Hollywood studio exec...get it?!" stuff for half the series. (Like far too many things on Arrested Development, at least in my unpopular opinion, for me it was a limited joke/storyline that should have lasted maybe an episode or two but which was trotted out over and over ad nauseam instead) It doesn't help that I found the cousin incest stuff kind of gross and unfunny (and also really old and stale after awhile) and that Maeby was played by an actress I found the weakest link in that cast. I always see so much love for her (and, really, for that whole show---AD is one of those programs can't criticize anywhere but on threads like these without getting hammered for daring not to worship every single aspect of it!), but she just didn't do it for me. I also could have very happily done without Oscar beyond just one episode or so, the dreadfully dull Marta, Sally Sitwell, and even the much loved Kitty, who I found incredibly shrill and unfunny.    

[ribboninthesky1]

I have to admit, after a strong start, what Olivia Pope has become annoys the living crap out of me. She used to be a powerful woman with a ton of agency and a sense of ethics, even if they were compromised. Now she careens between the sway of her cold-blooded killer father, the two cold-blooded killers she's sleeping with and her best friend the cold-blooded killer and leads a happy band of cold-blooded killers who like to torture people. In her copious free time, she helps keep the people who stole the White House in office.

 

I wish that Scandal was a series about someone like Judy Smith the way it was supposed to be. I think it's kind of disgusting that Shonda Rhimes had that chance and threw it away.

 

As much as I like Joe Morton, it was his character combined with Melliepalooza that sealed my disinterest.  I get what Shonda was going for - powerful black man - but it failed miserably.  Also, I'm one who HATES retcons, so the Mellie propping served to send my appreciation of the character into permanent dislike.  Scandal would have benefited from a summer-like schedule - 13 episodes or less per season.        

 

Thinking on it further, with the amount of content available now, I think that should be the standard, whether for network, cable, whatever.  It doesn't guarantee good writing, but I'm willing to hang with a 13-episode season much more than I am with a 22 or 24 episode season.  I'm probably one of the few TV watchers who prefers summer season over fall because of this.     

Edited September 5, 2015 by ribboninthesky1

[amensisterfriend]

Pam Beasly from The Office. By the end, most viewers seemed to dislike her a lot, and I'll freely admit that she was a flawed character who didn't have many shining moments in those last few seasons.  And, as nearly always seems to happen, she and Jim were more relatable and root-worthy before they actually got together and became less interesting and a little more smug. But I just have so much residual affection for that Pam of the first few reasons that I could never bring myself to dislike her. I also have a pet peeve about generally decent but humanly flawed characters getting raked over the coals and eviscerated for every single perceived misstep while the blatantly awful people, like Dwight and Angela, are so readily excused and embraced for far, far worse. (And I get it---Angela and Dwight were supporting characters, they're so blatantly screwed up that our expectations of them are lower, they're often more amusing than the semi-"straight" characters like Jim and Pam, etc...but still, it was sometimes hard for me to swallow that Pam was the 'terrible person' she was often made out to be by fans with people like that as a standard for comparison!) I also have a soft spot for Pam because there are so few genuinely introverted main characters on TV. She's sarcastic yet genuinely compassionate, a relatable mixture of cynicism and hope, and I really related to how she had a creative passion (art) that she sometimes pursued but couldn't magically parlay into a wildly successful career. Perhaps most importantly, I get her S1-S3  half-curly, half-straight, can't-really-wear-it-down hair issues all too well :)   

[Neurochick]

I prefer a 13 episode season, or less, too.  Cable got it right.  22 or 23 episodes, too many for me.  

[Ohwell]

The Brits do even fewer than 13 episodes, right?  Don't they do something like eight episodes for 90 minutes each ep?  I'd love something like that but no way will networks do that here.

[Kel Varnsen]

The Brits do even fewer than 13 episodes, right?  Don't they do something like eight episodes for 90 minutes each ep?  I'd love something like that but no way will networks do that here.

Yea, I'm pretty sure uf networks in the US tried this all the rest of the time would bd filled with crappy reality shows and other filler, since my opinion is there aren't that many good writers. Personally i would rather have filler episodes of a good show i like than year round Big Brother or The Apprentice.

[DearEvette]

  Also, I'm one who HATES retcons, so the Mellie propping served to send my appreciation of the character into permanent dislike. 

 

My UO is that I can't stand Mellie.  Never could.  Never will.  No she's not funny.  No she can't "get it girl!'  No I don't feel bad that her husband is cheating on her.  None of that.  The retcon does not stick with me.  I remember S1 Mellie very clearly. 

 

I actually would have appreciated her more if she had been allowed say something like 'Yeah you can sleep with her all you want, Enjoy.  But I am not divorcing you.  I like being married.  I liked the power.  I like being first lady.  Move her into the Lincoln bedroom and frolic all night if you want for all I care.  Just shut it with the divorce talk."  Mellie started out kinda like a baby Claire Underwood from House of Cards.  I wish SR had doubled down on that.   I would have liked that Mellie.

[Ohwell]

Yea, I'm pretty sure uf networks in the US tried this all the rest of the time would bd filled with crappy reality shows and other filler, since my opinion is there aren't that many good writers. Personally i would rather have filler episodes of a good show i like than year round Big Brother or The Apprentice.

 

Yeah, you're right.  The extra time would be filled with more crappy shows.

Edited September 5, 2015 by Ohwell