By the end of the day, in fact once I've cooked and eaten dinner, I'm not good for much of anything except relaxing in front of the TV.
I'm delighted my reality shows are back especially Dancing with the Stars. My daughter-in-law always comes to watch with us, and hubby is much better at seeing the missteps than either of us. We're always enthralled with the great costumes. It's also fun to watch the chubby ones shed the pounds.It doesn't take us long to choose our favorites either. I'm rooting for Kristi Alley.
That's not the only one I watch, Amazing Race is well...amazing. I can't believe what those people have to do. They'd all do better if they took the time to read the directions through before dashing off through the foreign city they've found themselves in. I have a granddaughter and her husband who are determined to do the Amazing Race. She's a speech therapist in a public school, her hubby a deputy sheriff. They have two young kids. They are grooming the grandparents (my daughter and son-in-law) to be ready to take over if and when they get to go.
Oh, and there's also Survivor. Now this one I can't watch when it's on because I have my writers' group to go to on Wendnesday nights, but I can watch it on my computer the next day.
I try to watch Celebrity Apprentice (can't believe how rude and obnoxious all those so-called celebs are) but I usually fall asleep before it's over.
My sister (she's old like me but tapes everything and watches the next day) and my eldest daughter are also addicted--and I can count on them to tell me the outcome in case I don't stay awake until the end of any of these shows.
My excuse? Where else can you observe such interesting characters?
Marilyn
http://fictionforyou.com/
Marilyn, we like the same shows! I can only get the family to sit down for Amazing Race with me, but they've deserted me on my other favorite: Survivor. I have always been a big tv watcher and have my favorite shows. Maggie
ReplyDeleteYou guys are kidding me, right? Seriously, what is it that makes you sit through that stuff? I just don't have any way to understand it, and I try now and then specifically because people who I know are smart and diverse tell me they watch these shows. I think they are just plain dull in most cases and down-right creepy and mean in some cases.
ReplyDeleteInteresting characters??!! I don't think so--these attention hogs are all the same: they want to be on TV and are willing to sell all their dignity to do it. Once you've seen someone doing that a couple of times, aren't you sort of done?
OK, at least with something like a Dancing With (so-called) Stars people have to do something, perform in some way (this was kinda true of something like Project Runway, too), but I still say it's a pitiful display. And, most of these shows are so rigged and in some cases even scripted so that the word "reality" is being used as if people who don't speak English and never heard of a dictionary are doing the using.
I still say it's got to be more worth your time to find better TV--there are entertaining, candy-esque programs that are more worth time and attention. Programs that tell stories and don't glorify cheap sensationalism and exploitation of a lack of real talent or drive.
Down with "reality TV"!
Except for sports, which is some of the best reality and a true source of surprise and drama you can enjoy. Come back to me soon, Football Season! I love you and miss you so much, Baby.
I'm afraid I just can't get into "reality" TV. I still like old fashioned fiction, so I head for the scripted shows. But my dear mum-in-law loved Dancing With the Stars. It was one of the few things she still watched while she was in Hospice. (She was rooting for Jennifer Grey but didn't get to see her win.) The ads always make me think of her.
ReplyDeleteI know, it's considered "low brow" to watch reality TV, but I think it's fun. Hubby and I watch a lot of Netflix too, and I like to get scripted TV series on Netflix like The Good Wife. (It's on way too late for me to stay awake and watch it real time.) We've been watching The Guardian on DVD too, and it's excellent. We're movie lovers, so a couple of times a month, we'll hit the movie theaters. The Lincoln Lawyer was the last one we saw. During the day, I write.
ReplyDeleteMarilyn
I don't think it's so much low-brow as it is that there are so many things that compete for our time, and I know writers are like everyone else in that you have limited free time, and I think these are not the most fun or interesting choices. Plenty of fun and just what people call "popcorn" entertainment exists that still seem gentler, kinder, more positive, etc. than those reality shows. They just seem so voyeuristic and to often exploit people in difficult moments.
ReplyDeleteSheer, silly fun is not at all a bad or low-brow pursuit. We all need and even profit from some of that here and there in our lives, of course.