Why can't TV be like this anymore?
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PrometheusTree64 — 10 years ago(March 01, 2016 06:22 PM)
But I don't see "character development" as being part of Gunsmoke's story telling. At the end of the series, Matt, Doc, and Kitty aren't much different than they were two decades earlier.
Yeah, that's what we're saying.
LBJ's mistress on JFK: -
Jennie_Portrait — 10 years ago(March 01, 2016 07:15 PM)
I think a certain amount of character development is important for people to stick with a series. Consider
Law & Order
, which is almost entirely plot driven. And yet, we do feel a sense of connection with the characters. We get snippets of their back stories with most episodes. The show is not
about
the characters, and yet our feelings about them make us more interested in returning to the show.
PrometheusTree64 - thanks for the comment about
Gunsmoke's
change of orientation. I have never seen the 1/2 hour episodes. I only started to watch the show in 1970. I was kind of indifferent about it for the reasons cited above. -
PrometheusTree64 — 10 years ago(March 03, 2016 06:15 AM)
Interestingly, GUNSMOKE and LAW & ORDER are tied for longest-running, live action, Americian, primetime, scripted TV series at 20 seasons. (You have to say "live action" now that THE SIMPSONS has been on for 27 years).
LBJ's mistress on JFK: -
canadazbest — 9 years ago(October 12, 2016 01:59 AM)
Hey,
Jennie- just came across this thread tonight. regarding your
Law & Order
commentI've watched that show since it's premiere air date in Sept 1990 and I've seen every episode of the original show, and L&O/SVU (I saw 1 ep of "Criminal Intent" and hated Vincent D'Onofrio's guts within the first 10 minutes!!).I watch SVU these days out of my fondness for Mariska Hargitay, but I don't think I'll ever forgive Dick Wolf (like he caresHA HA!HA!!) for the hateful storyline that led to the exit/death of ADA Claire Kincaid - while truly one of the best "shocking season ending moment" of any show I've ever seen, all the other "cliffhangers" had the gd common courtesy in the following season premiere to EXPLAIN/JUSTIFY/AT LEAST FREAKIN' COMMENT on such a huge moment from 6 months before..but NOT. ONE. WORD. WAS. EVER. SAID. ABOUT. CLAIRE - EVER.
(what's that? hold a grudge? MOI? nah..just a long memory, and Jill Hennessy's a compatriot, lol!)
Better to keep your mouth shut and be thought an idiot - than to open it and remove all doubt!
- just came across this thread tonight. regarding your
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Jennie_Portrait — 9 years ago(October 12, 2016 06:32 AM)
It's funny, when the L&O series began in the early 1990's, it wasn't getting very high ratings, but it was a really good show and the network wanted to keep it. So they started to add some recurring female characters leading to the decision that all female ADA's must be ravishingly beautiful women.
I find that the L&O series is totally addictive and I have watched it since it started. Whenever a marathon is on like on some channel any day, I just sit and watch it. The stories are so well told. And I agree that Criminal Intent is not as watchable, but I still watch it.
Never say never
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Jennie_Portrait — 9 years ago(October 12, 2016 01:44 PM)
I agree that SVU is very disturbing. I think that is one of the reasons there is much more character development of the leads. It connects you more to the show.
I heard a really interesting factoid once: that the average amount of time a real life detective will spend in the SVU is about 2 years. It is just so depressing, they don't want to stay.
Never say never
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doug65oh — 9 years ago(October 12, 2016 02:17 PM)
I think youre right. The extended character development provides at least
some
relief from the horrendous storylines. (Pick any random episode of SVU and it just might make the
Twilight Zone
episode Young Mans Fancy look like a cakewalk.)
Have you ever noticed that the older she gets, the more Mariska Hargitay looks like her mother?
I wouldn't be at all surprised to know that the "lifespan" of an SVU investigator is very short as compared to other units. It would only make sense in a way. -
Jennie_Portrait — 9 years ago(October 12, 2016 04:58 PM)
Yes, SVU is brutal. Also, you can see that the writers frequently use a sexual attack to segue in to a different topic entirely.
On the topic of Mariska Hargitay, I agree that she is getting to loook more like her mother. this is a video of Jayne Mansfield on a talk show with 4 of her 5 children:
Never say never
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the_notorious_bid — 10 years ago(February 29, 2016 11:54 AM)
Why have things gone downhill so much? How did it get this bad?
Too many options!
Back when there were only three networks, you took what they gave. Today, we have too many choices. We'll never get ratings like that again.
AND There was some murder and crime in Twilight Zone episodes.
In addition to all of the variety on TV, we have PPV, On-Demand, DVR, etc.
As for non-TV issues, we have competition for our free time which include phones, Internet, etc. We didn't have these options in the '60s. If you missed a show, you just missed it! Wait for the rerun. -
LucusNon — 10 years ago(February 29, 2016 10:51 PM)
As for non-TV we have phones, Internet, etc.
We didn't have these options in the '60s.
We had phones! But not mobile ones.
We had movie theaters. Live theater also.
Oh, and books, lots of books, libraries full of 'em.
And radio too, and radio dramas. (Serling wrote for radio before TZ) -
the_notorious_bid — 10 years ago(March 07, 2016 03:36 AM)
We had phones! But not mobile ones.
We had movie theaters. Live theater also.
Oh, and books, lots of books, libraries full of 'em.
And radio too, and radio dramas. (Serling wrote for radio before TZ)
Point is
With all the competition for our time, then and now (TV related or not), the competition is significantly greater today.
We had theatres, live theatres, books, libraries and radio. We still do!!
Not sure why anyone would pay for radio programming but, today, people actually do. There's actually "free" Internet radio. One of my favorite stations features all Beatles and former Beatles songs (with limited commercial interruption). -
grizzledgeezer — 10 years ago(March 01, 2016 07:15 AM)
I'm 68, an ex-engineer/technical writer. I've also taken formal training in screenwriting. The latter obliges one to think about how stories are told. (Note that Robert McKee's standard work on screenwriting is titled
Story
.) Stories I might have found acceptable a half-century ago now seem shallow, unimaginative, filled with logical and dramatic errors,
etc
. (I actually had the chutzpah to rewrite
The City on the Edge of Forever
to correct its many problems. If you're interested, contact me.)
Last night I watched "The Trade-Ins". This is exactly the kind of story TZ
should
have been telling, but rarely did. A somewhat fantastic premise is treated as legitimate drama, with an ending not dependent on surprise, twists, or irony.
Which brings me to "Eye of the Beholder". One of the IMDb reviewers dismisses it, remarking that it's a little too obvious. Though I consider it one of the very best episodes, he has a point. For example Why not have one of the nurses say "I'm glad they keep this part of the hospital so dark. I can't stand looking at such horribly deformed people." -
mgreen9715 — 10 years ago(March 04, 2016 05:08 PM)
There are plenty of amazing TV shows out there. You must not be researching hard enough because there is so much more out there besides just drama shows. They do make TV shows that are great just like Twilight Zone was. It's a masterpiece and is a groundwork of how a TV show should be, but it's not the end all-be all.
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MissMargoChanning — 9 years ago(August 29, 2016 04:32 PM)
It's hard to figure out how to get the Kardasians to read for a Twilight Zone type script without sounding slutty
You may have a point about the not sounding slutty part but an episode of the Kardashians is a trip through THE TWILIGHT ZONE! For that matter, you really have to ask yourself why they are on the air and why people watch them..
Maybe we are all living in The Twilight Zone if it comes to that!
Seriously, it's just a matter of taste and personal opinion. As someone above said, we really have loads of choices that we didn't have back in the "Good Ole Days". We can stream shows as well. We can watch whatever we feel at any hour of the day or night.
Don't care for TZ? There is always another option!
"Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night" -
canadazbest — 9 years ago(October 12, 2016 01:10 AM)
Mentioning
The Big Bang Theory
on a
Twilight Zone
thread is nothing short of pure blasphemy! I can't think of two shows with LESS in common - am I missing your pointor (w.a.d.r.) did you not make one?
Better to keep your mouth shut and be thought an idiot - than to open it and remove all doubt!