Board 8 > Sometimes shows really gotta end.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I'm watching early season of SVU right now, and the random extras who find the bodies at the beginning of the episodes are better actors than any of the main characters currently in any of these dozens of procedural on TV today.

I watched a couple recent of episodes of The Blacklist and it's just embrassing.

What on earth happened to Network television?

But maybe if they keep going they'll make something that isn't awful. For example, The Simpsons has gone on 500-ish episodes too long, but people liked that Death Note parody segment last year. Was that not worth it? We need to keep all the bad shows going forever just in case something like that happens.

shows that go on forever eventually go rotten

Counterpoint: Doctor Who has been going for 60 years (with a couple of big breaks in the 90s) and despite ups and downs is still going strong. Of course that show gets away with it by basically rebooting itself every few years.

LightningStrikes posted...

is still going strong

the Chibnall seasons disagree with that...

I said ups and downs!

Well even the Chibnall run had its moments, Id rather have the handful of really good episodes we got than nothing. Of course the issue with that run is each season gets a little better then it actually ends on a really great episode that makes you wonder wow, why wasnt it all like that?. Very odd era that definitely had production issues.

I bet some of the ppl who were found guilty in S1 are now out of fake prison

I think your argument suffers from a major lack of one particularly important piece of context. There were roughly 200 scripted television series in 1999. There are 600 this year - if you think the acting pool isn't EXTREMELY diluted as a result...

At first I thought this was about the Pokemon anime, which really did need to end after 25 years. The reboot is happening just a few weeks later, sure, but it was necessary.

The reason shows should end isn't due to the cast's poor acting. It should end because the scripts become tired, the story isn't going anywhere, and there's nothing new left to do. This all can cause poor acting but I much prefer shows that are meant to be X number of seasons. Like you write an outline for 5-6 seasons, ink the cast to contracts based on how long their character survives, and have a coherent final product that doesn't feel like it goes on for too long.

Not many shows are like this, instead being dictated by cast contracts, which is why I don't watch much scripted TV. I prefer movies.

Xeybozn posted...

But maybe if they keep going they'll make something that isn't awful. For example, The Simpsons has gone on 500-ish episodes too long, but people liked that Death Note parody segment last year. Was that not worth it? We need to keep all the bad shows going forever just in case something like that happens.

I haven't seen the death note parody but I'm sure it wasn't worth it

shows can end and still have "specials"

but also I don't understand how or why network tv is still a thing. I haven't watched any non-sports program live on a regular basis in a decade

Shows that still do 20+ episode seasons (like SVU) need to die off but they still get consistent ratings. Until that ends they will keep pumping out garbage.

colliding posted...

but also I don't understand how or why network tv is still a thing. I haven't watched any non-sports program live on a regular basis in a decade

Cuz ads make a lot of money.

Aecioo posted...

Shows that still do 20+ episode seasons (like SVU) need to die off but they still get consistent ratings. Until that ends they will keep pumping out garbage.

Eh, I think TV in general is too serialized nowadays. Give us more episodic series.

I've really noticed this with The Blacklist - not just the acting, but everything feels so "cheap" too. At least this is confirmed to be its last season.

It's one of those things I don't really think about but was highlighted in this article speculating on which tv shows could be renewed, in particular if CBS's "Blue Bloods" would be renewed for a 14th season (which it was yesterday):

As Deadline reported last month, the size of the cuts CBS had been pushing for on the show were pretty deep, as much as 25% for some above-the-line talent, which includes actors. Blue Bloods employs hundreds of crew and other support personnel whose livelihood depends on it, and I hear the cast and producers have agreed to salary reductions in order to keep the show going. Some deals are still being finalized, but I hear they are expected to close shortly and the venerable family cop drama will return for a 14th season.

So it's been on for 13 seasons, is pretty steady ratings-wise for CBS, and yet still needs to make deep cuts just to get another season. And I noticed this in particular since earlier this year, I watched a few episodes from past seasons in that show, even going to like season 8 or 9, and then watching a few of the current (season 13) episodes - everything is just so much worse, everything just feels so cheap.

I figure SVU's in a similar boat, it runs that long that there's pressure to decrease costs, hire cheaper talent, spend less on the little things. I also think the writer's room probably suffers from weaker talent churning out weaker scripts, they get the B-team working on these longer-running shows with built-in audiences. That's just me speculating though.

MartinFF7 posted...

I figure SVU's in a similar boat, it runs that long that there's pressure to decrease costs, hire cheaper talent, spend less on the little things. I also think the writer's room probably suffers from weaker talent churning out weaker scripts, they get the B-team working on these longer-running shows with built-in audiences. That's just me speculating though.

What's super wierd is something like Law & Order Classic returning. They specifically decided to bring back this dead show that's been gone for years, a staple of 90s and early 2000s television, you'd think they'd have plans to make it a big deal, right?

Wrong. It's arguably the cheapest looking drama on the network and is the worst it's ever been. Law & Order definitely got rocky towards then end there but even by those standard these newer episodes are a joke. Why did they even bother?

MartinFF7 posted...

So it's been on for 13 seasons, is pretty steady ratings-wise for CBS, and yet still needs to make deep cuts just to get another season. And I noticed this in particular since earlier this year, I watched a few episodes from past seasons in that show, even going to like season 8 or 9, and then watching a few of the current (season 13) episodes - everything is just so much worse, everything just feels so cheap.

I figure SVU's in a similar boat, it runs that long that there's pressure to decrease costs, hire cheaper talent, spend less on the little things. I also think the writer's room probably suffers from weaker talent churning out weaker scripts, they get the B-team working on these longer-running shows with built-in audiences. That's just me speculating though.

Part of this is due to rising costs, since demand is so high for TV crews.