[Mystic Mock]

This isn't a dig at Shows like House Of The Dragon or The Rings Of Power before anyone thinks I'm attacking one of those, as tbf I haven't seen either of them.

I don't know if it's just me that's noticed that TV Shows are executed on a much more basic level? Scripted or Reality TV it mostly seems to consist of content that anyone can follow, and that anyone can like because it doesn't really rock the boat.

Now don't get me wrong I'm not someone that always watches super high brow TV, but some of the things that get classed as good nowadays truly baffles me.

In particular the current MasterChef Australia series, Chainsaw Man & Blade Of The Immortal are really shockingly bad over the last few years imo.

Oh and the boring FBI: International that makes the worst CW Show look like GOT in terms of excitement.

What do you guys think? Is 2018-2022 style TV better than Shows in the past? Or do you agree with me that TV Shows are more poorly structured nowadays?

[GoldHeart]

Mock it's been like that ever since TOWIE,MIC,GS & The Kardashians were in TV. I will never understand what is entertaining about a bunch of people ,who are playing up for the camera's with semi scripted manipulated drama.

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by GoldHeart

Mock it's been like that ever since TOWIE,MIC,GS & The Kardashians were in TV. I will never understand what is entertaining about a bunch of people ,who are playing up for the camera's with semi scripted manipulated drama.

It's bizarre isn't it?

It's like interesting dynamics that are more 3 dimensional is an almost impossible thing to find nowadays.

[arista]

"dumbed down?"


Yes also on BBC Radio 5
overnight has Dumbed down.

Years back
Richard Bacon made a real proper effort


Now a Pathetic Dotun Adebayo
has his mates calling in
talking about his own music choices
ignoring current news.


[Overnight shows at BBC Radio 5 Live have
been temporarily suspended due to a
shortage of staff at the station’s MediaCity HQ.
BBC World Service will be rebroadcast instead
until at least April 4th 2022.]

https://radiotoday.co.uk/2022/03/bbc...ht-programmes/

Sure, Covid Wrecked so much


But Also allow London to Broadcast overnight.
If the Up North can not get an overnight broadcaster.

[Oliver_W]

Have you met people lately? It's not dumbed down enough!

[arista]

Originally Posted by Oliver_W

Have you met people lately? It's not dumbed down enough!

Get Down and Funky
Watch out for the Junkies

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Oliver_W

Have you met people lately? It's not dumbed down enough!

That's scary.

[Nicky91]

Originally Posted by Mystic Mock

This isn't a dig at Shows like House Of The Dragon or The Rings Of Power before anyone thinks I'm attacking one of those, as tbf I haven't seen either of them.

I don't know if it's just me that's noticed that TV Shows are executed on a much more basic level? Scripted or Reality TV it mostly seems to consist of content that anyone can follow, and that anyone can like because it doesn't really rock the boat.

Now don't get me wrong I'm not someone that always watches super high brow TV, but some of the things that get classed as good nowadays truly baffles me.

In particular the current MasterChef Australia series, Chainsaw Man & Blade Of The Immortal are really shockingly bad over the last few years imo.

Oh and the boring FBI: International that makes the worst CW Show look like GOT in terms of excitement.

What do you guys think? Is 2018-2022 style TV better than Shows in the past? Or do you agree with me that TV Shows are more poorly structured nowadays?

i'm liking my nations reality tv content at the moment

Familie Gillis: Massa is Kassa (about a camping multi millionaire Peter Gillis from the Oostappen Group, and his entire family, how they all run the camping businesses)


Chateau Meiland (about millionaire B&B owner & tv presenter, eurovision superfan Martien Meiland and his family, how to moved to a chateau in france, now back to holland first hengelo and now currently noordwijk)


Restaurant Misverstand - Restaurant Misunderstanding (a show about people with dementia, alzheimers having to run a restaurant led by michelin star chef Ron Blaauw)


only thing what we have of an overkill is late night talk shows

Op1 (NPO) every 5 days of the week with each day a different presenting duo

RTL having Beau from spring to summer, then Renze in summer, Jinek from autumn to winter

SBS6 having Vandaag Inside with football pundits Johan Derksen, Rene van der Gijp, Wilfred Genee talking about every current entertainment news of the day, and literally criticize everything, and earlier on they have Half8 first by Johnny De Mol (but he got put on temporary leave due to physical abuse of his girlfriend scandal) so now sports presenter Helene Hendriks, and ofc news show (long running) Hart van Nederland (with former eurovision artist Marlayne as also longest reigning presenter there too now ''One Good Reason'')



must be a problem in other countries then



as for our entertainment shows we got

The Masked Singer (RTL) (new season to start as of November)

Expeditie Robinson/Survivor (RTL)

Wie is de Mol/The Mole (NPO/AVROTROS)


and our many quiz shows

our own Beat the Champions (which is our version of Beat the Chasers btw)



we had Sterren Dansen Op Het Ijs for many years, Dancing With The Stars for 5 seasons (and 1 strictly come dancing attempt on NPO)


as for talent shows we have had

The Voice

but before that

Popstars

Idols

X Factor

The Next Pop Talent

Op Zoek Naar (musical one, the search for) Zorro, Maria, Evita, Mary Poppins



currently we more have Beste Zangers as our main music cover show




so to answer your question, i prefer the time when we had popstars, dwts, doi but there still is enough for me to enjoy anyway, and i preferred our time at eurovision back when we had nationaal songfestival when public had a say in choosing our entries

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Nicky91

i'm liking my nations reality tv content at the moment

Familie Gillis: Massa is Kassa (about a camping multi millionaire Peter Gillis from the Oostappen Group, and his entire family, how they all run the camping businesses)


Chateau Meiland (about millionaire B&B owner & tv presenter, eurovision superfan Martien Meiland and his family, how to moved to a chateau in france, now back to holland first hengelo and now currently noordwijk)


Restaurant Misverstand - Restaurant Misunderstanding (a show about people with dementia, alzheimers having to run a restaurant led by michelin star chef Ron Blaauw)


only thing what we have of an overkill is late night talk shows

Op1 (NPO) every 5 days of the week with each day a different presenting duo

RTL having Beau from spring to summer, then Renze in summer, Jinek from autumn to winter

SBS6 having Vandaag Inside with football pundits Johan Derksen, Rene van der Gijp, Wilfred Genee talking about every current entertainment news of the day, and literally criticize everything, and earlier on they have Half8 first by Johnny De Mol (but he got put on temporary leave due to physical abuse of his girlfriend scandal) so now sports presenter Helene Hendriks, and ofc news show (long running) Hart van Nederland (with former eurovision artist Marlayne as also longest reigning presenter there too now ''One Good Reason'')



must be a problem in other countries then



as for our entertainment shows we got

The Masked Singer (RTL) (new season to start as of November)

Expeditie Robinson/Survivor (RTL)

Wie is de Mol/The Mole (NPO/AVROTROS)


and our many quiz shows

our own Beat the Champions (which is our version of Beat the Chasers btw)



we had Sterren Dansen Op Het Ijs for many years, Dancing With The Stars for 5 seasons (and 1 strictly come dancing attempt on NPO)


as for talent shows we have had

The Voice

but before that

Popstars

Idols

X Factor

The Next Pop Talent

Op Zoek Naar (musical one, the search for) Zorro, Maria, Evita, Mary Poppins



currently we more have Beste Zangers as our main music cover show




so to answer your question, i prefer the time when we had popstars, dwts, doi but there still is enough for me to enjoy anyway, and i preferred our time at eurovision back when we had nationaal songfestival when public had a say in choosing our entries

It sounds like you've found some decent entries for yourself.

Reality TV wise at the moment for myself I'd say that Strictly & The Masked franchise are currently my favourites as they're fun to watch without being overly nice.

It's weird how to describe TV Shows at the moment, but let's just say a Show like Dexter in it's prime seems to be impossible to find in the current climate.

Or just a Show that's really interesting in general.

[Swan]

Dumb TV started in the US in the early 90's, then found it's way over here. All those daytime "talk" shows like Springer and the rest of them. Now TV is littered with dumb crap.

[Crimson Dynamo]

the age of TV is a thing of the past

Dumbing down, fear of blame, wokery


5 live is unlistenable woke now as with almost all BBC content

Radio 2 is nearly at that stage with a few great shows holding on like Trev Nelson, Gary Davies, Johnny Walker, Lisa Tarbuck and Ken Bruce

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Swan

Dumb TV started in the US in the early 90's, then found it's way over here. All those daytime "talk" shows like Springer and the rest of them. Now TV is littered with dumb crap.

Oh god those Springer type of Shows really aren't my thing, but I can see why other people might like them.

There are certain Shows nowadays though that exist and I'm genuinely baffled as to why, I mean LT might have a point, but I have liked Shows in the past that would be deemed woke by today's standards, like BBUK ironically.

FBI: International and Blade Of The Immortal are classic examples for my point, two Shows that hated character development or any kind of fun or interesting plot that's even semi-well developed.

Without meaning to sound like a boomer, but I remember back in the day when the only thing to dread in a TV Show was a terrible romantic relationship that's overfocused on.

Now it's praying for a Show to have a bit of life to it.

[GoldHeart]

Originally Posted by Mystic Mock

It's bizarre isn't it?

It's like interesting dynamics that are more 3 dimensional is an almost impossible thing to find nowadays.

I will admit though,that 90 day fiancé is probably my guilty pleasure. But it's still a pretty bizarre TV show,and it's so scripted & cringe at times it's painful.

But yeah there's alot of rubbish on TV these days, I also feel like kids shows were better when I was growing up. Those also feel very dumbed down & silly these days.

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by GoldHeart

I will admit though,that 90 day fiancé is probably my guilty pleasure. But it's still a pretty bizarre TV show,and it's so scripted & cringe at times it's painful.

But yeah there's alot of rubbish on TV these days, I also feel like kids shows were better when I was growing up. Those also feel very dumbed down & silly these days.

Thankfully the guilty pleasure Shows do still seem to be in tact to some extent.

Kids Shows are really bland at the moment imo, I know tbf that we're not the target demographic, but controversially I'd gladly have Sanjay & Craig and Breadwinners over Big Blue and The Patrick Star Show.

[Mystic Mock]

As someone that's grew up on American entertainment in general, I feel it's really a shame to see what was once a great country for entertainment has now become this horrible boring industry that can't come up with exciting products if it slapped them up the face.

Now yesterday I checked out the first two episodes of Tokyo Vice on BBC iPlayer, and whilst it's a step up from FBI (another Show that I've watched recently) it has one fatal flaw that's the same as FBI for the most part, and that's being overly political.

Like I get it he is a white man living in Japan, I don't get why we needed so many scenes of Japanese characters being racist towards him, one or two scenes at most was all that was needed, but basically he is written as just the white guy without any real depth to his character imo.

Basically America needs to let it's hair down again, as the country that used to be the best output for Live Action TV, it's quickly being taken away from them imo.

They need to stop thinking that their TV Shows are an 8-10 episode Movie, and actually start writing them as TV Shows again with proper TV Show pacing, actual interesting characters & character dynamics, plus an interesting plot on top would be really nice.

Is all of that really too much to ask for?

[user104658]

IMO there's just a lot MORE of it. There are still good shows that crop up regularly, it's just getting harder to pick them out from all of the "filler" that's used to pad out the endless channels and streaming platforms.

You may be looking at TV with slightly rose-tinted glasses in terms of quality I think, there are some examples of amazing television in say the last 5 - 10 years and a lot of scripted TV from 20+ years ago is abysmal in terms of quality.

Of course it's a double-edged sword in some ways; there's a lot more money in TV than there used to be - big stars do TV regularly now, it's not that long ago that it was very unusual to see a movie star doing a TV series, or vice versa... now they switch back and forth - but with more money comes a compulsion to appeal to a broader audience.

Same thing has affected cinema with anything "big budget" afraid to go beyond "PG-13" because it cuts off a big part of the box office. So you get daft things like Terminator movies with limited violence/gore. And they're terrible .

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Soldier Boy

IMO there's just a lot MORE of it. There are still good shows that crop up regularly, it's just getting harder to pick them out from all of the "filler" that's used to pad out the endless channels and streaming platforms.

You may be looking at TV with slightly rose-tinted glasses in terms of quality I think, there are some examples of amazing television in say the last 5 - 10 years and a lot of scripted TV from 20+ years ago is abysmal in terms of quality.

Of course it's a double-edged sword in some ways; there's a lot more money in TV than there used to be - big stars do TV regularly now, it's not that long ago that it was very unusual to see a movie star doing a TV series, or vice versa... now they switch back and forth - but with more money comes a compulsion to appeal to a broader audience.

Same thing has affected cinema with anything "big budget" afraid to go beyond "PG-13" because it cuts off a big part of the box office. So you get daft things like Terminator movies with limited violence/gore. And they're terrible .

You do make some interesting points that have some truth to them.

And to me with the Movie scene it's too reliant on the MCU, and I actually do by and large like the MCU, but choice is key imo, and there's not a lot of choice away from sequels, like the new Terminator Films to go with your example.

It's not good for the industry imo for them to not have new big IP's coming out.

And with the TV debate, I get what you're saying that there were some **** Shows years ago, but there were also great Shows to watch as well, and I mean some actual 10/10 or 9/10 Shows for me that just isn't happening as often nowadays, especially in America.

And even their **** Shows used to have a bit more life in them years ago, now the **** Shows try and act profound with dead pacing and a borderline non-existent plot.

[user104658]

Originally Posted by Mystic Mock

You do make some interesting points that have some truth to them.

And to me with the Movie scene it's too reliant on the MCU, and I actually do by and large like the MCU, but choice is key imo, and there's not a lot of choice away from sequels, like the new Terminator Films to go with your example.

It's not good for the industry imo for them to not have new big IP's coming out.

And with the TV debate, I get what you're saying that there were some **** Shows years ago, but there were also great Shows to watch as well, and I mean some actual 10/10 or 9/10 Shows for me that just isn't happening as often nowadays, especially in America.

And even their **** Shows used to have a bit more life in them years ago, now the **** Shows try and act profound with dead pacing and a borderline non-existent plot.

I think cinema is forever-changed by Covid in all honesty... the box office draw vs the cost of film making means that movies need to make a staggering amount of money in the cinema in order to be profitable, and only the big franchises (or big name directors) seem to have the power to do that now. I think we're entering an era where cinemas are more about that "big, loud, action-packed" experience and more nuanced and interesting movies will be published by the various streaming platforms.

I mean look at the Ryan Reynolds/Will Ferrell Christmas movie that's been done by Apple. Not that it's a masterpiece but it's a fun Xmas movie with two huge stars - UNTHINKABLE prior to 2020 that a film like that wouldn't be in cinemas... or indeed that the stars involved would have signed up to make a straight-to-streaming movie at all.

[Nicky91]

Terminator films went worse yes true


whereas with Predator they are doing things right, that prequel Prey was just awesome for example


and i am also looking forward to the new upcoming Alien film, seems quite promising as well, to go back into full on horror (on par with the first one, and a more original storyline)


and as for MCU, i myself am liking all of the mini series and series so far, am happy Ms Marvel got renewed for a second season, find Moon Knight way too underrated, and i like the sitcom touch to she hulk



as for the Jurassic Park/World (and whatever new title they come up with in the near future) i like both trilogies and I love love love camp cretaceous (and its interactive special episode hidden adventure)



i am not much of a critic as i easily like something

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Soldier Boy

I think cinema is forever-changed by Covid in all honesty... the box office draw vs the cost of film making means that movies need to make a staggering amount of money in the cinema in order to be profitable, and only the big franchises (or big name directors) seem to have the power to do that now. I think we're entering an era where cinemas are more about that "big, loud, action-packed" experience and more nuanced and interesting movies will be published by the various streaming platforms.

I mean look at the Ryan Reynolds/Will Ferrell Christmas movie that's been done by Apple. Not that it's a masterpiece but it's a fun Xmas movie with two huge stars - UNTHINKABLE prior to 2020 that a film like that wouldn't be in cinemas... or indeed that the stars involved would have signed up to make a straight-to-streaming movie at all.

Oh being completely fair I do agree with you that Covid is hurting the Movie scene a lot, plus many other industries (including TV) I just wish that the writers could at least create something that will divide the public, and not due to Politics, but because the writing is having the characters say and do things that get me as a viewer really invested in the work.

I haven't really felt like that for a western made product chronologically since GOT.

Dark was also a clever series as well imo.

And tbh it hasn't happened with the Movies for a long time, that's not to say that I haven't loved Movies recently, but for totally different reasons to what I'm currently looking for.

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Nicky91

Terminator films went worse yes true


whereas with Predator they are doing things right, that prequel Prey was just awesome for example


and i am also looking forward to the new upcoming Alien film, seems quite promising as well, to go back into full on horror (on par with the first one, and a more original storyline)


and as for MCU, i myself am liking all of the mini series and series so far, am happy Ms Marvel got renewed for a second season, find Moon Knight way too underrated, and i like the sitcom touch to she hulk



as for the Jurassic Park/World (and whatever new title they come up with in the near future) i like both trilogies and I love love love camp cretaceous (and its interactive special episode hidden adventure)



i am not much of a critic as i easily like something

I'm jealous of the fact that you're pretty easygoing on this stuff.

I am trying to be more understanding of certain works though, and tbf some have worked out quite well for me with that mental adjustment, but some styles are just impossible for me.

[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Mystic Mock

It sounds like you've found some decent entries for yourself.

Reality TV wise at the moment for myself I'd say that Strictly & The Masked franchise are currently my favourites as they're fun to watch without being overly nice.

It's weird how to describe TV Shows at the moment, but let's just say a Show like Dexter in it's prime seems to be impossible to find in the current climate.

Or just a Show that's really interesting in general.

God my comment about Strictly has aged badly.

And in the worst era of TV, The Witcher: Blood Origin not only has scored a 4.0/10 on IMDB, but it also has an 8% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Obviously it's still early days so maybe the reviews will be kinder in the coming days, and tbf I haven't watched the Show so it could be getting over hated like how I feel like ROP is over hated, or how some people felt like Resident Evil, Halo & She-Hulk were over hated.

However even the critics have scored this Witcher spin-off lukewarm, and this is a franchise that normally is positively received by most people, so it's highly unusual to see this kinda score for something The Witcher related.

And to me if it's anything like most American Shows over the last few years I'll say what I personally think might be harming this spin-off.

And no I don't think that all of the blame can be put on Shows casting more diverse, because whilst it sometimes can be out of place, I do also think there's been times where Actors/Actresses of minority groups have been fantastic for the Show that they're apart of. I honestly believe that writers are hiding behind the minority communities to disguise the fact that they're hacks, and they always will be.

I personally think that the real issues are:

1. Most modern Shows have dire pacing, most of the time you have to wait until the last two episodes for anything interesting to happen.

2. Action, most Shows are either devoid of action scenes entirely, or you're lucky to get one a Season.

3. Comedy is largely absent from most new American Shows.

4. Characters in most American Shows today have bland personalities imo, and character dynamics are either non-existent or bland.

5. Whatever plot is there is normally forgettable nowadays, I think the only examples recently of memorable storytelling to me have come from The Sandman, From, and ROP. Whatever you might think of any of these Shows that I've mentioned, I would say that they all had plot points that can be remembered.

6. The episode count needs to be higher again, most Shows today are 8 episodes a Season, and personally I think that it's really hard to do much with certain concepts in 8 episodes, it just ironically leads to problem number 1 because the writers know that they can't tell a good story in such a short time frame. I think it at the very least needs to go back up to 12 episodes for a Season.

If The Witcher: Blood Origin does suffer on any of these issues, then it deserves it's reaction imo.

[Mystic Mock]

Apologies for keep bumping up the thread.

But can anyone name a Live Action Show made in the west that was made in the last three years that'll be as well made or as memorable as the Shows that I'm about to name? And look not all of you will like the Shows that I name (I don't even like some of them myself) but these Shows were loved by most audiences at the time, and tbh I could understand their appeal to some extent. And then there are a lot of Shows that I'm about to name that I just simply really enjoyed.

Angel
Buffy
Battlestar Galactica (00's version)
Dexter
Farscape (technically Australian, but was American funded)
Life On Mars UK
Desperate Housewives
Grey's Anatomy
Stranger Things
Dark
Mindhunter
The CSI franchise (minus Cyber)
Criminal Minds
Cold Case
Monk
The Closer
Psych
Parks & Recreation
Community
Arrested Development
Malcolm In The Middle
The Big Bang Theory
Game Of Thrones
The Walking Dead
Falling Skies
EastEnders - And I never thought that I'd praise EastEnders, but at least it's memorable.
Law & Order franchise
13 Reasons Why's first Season
The Expanse
Sense8
Merlin
Atlantis (BBC One's Merlin replacement one)
The Stargate franchise
True Detective Season 1
The first two Seasons of American Horror Story
Bates Motel
Big Brother UK
The X Factor
Even Two And A Half Men
Harper's Island
Lost
The Bill
Holby City
Neighbours
Home & Away
The Power Rangers franchise
Dark Matter
Killjoys
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Enterprise
Firefly
The Fades
The Chicago Code
Sinbad
Gilmore Girls
The Secret Circle
Charmed (the original cheesy one)
Smallville
Supernatural
Sanctuary
Relic Hunter
My Family
Aaron Stone
Pair Of Kings

Yes I went for Kids Shows towards the end, but my point still stands.

Can anyone find a Live Action Show from the west within the last three years that is as memorable as the Shows above?

Tbh the only ones that I can think of are The Traitors UK, The Masked Singer UK, and there could be a good argument for The Sandman, From, and ROP, but time will tell with them three.

But basically if you can then I'll definitely try to check the Show out, as I'm running out of good Anime to watch.