shows, characters, your opinion

[derien]

I've been watching M*A*S*H* (without laugh track) and it's true that there are quite a few kind of creepy points which aren't near as funny in retrospect, but that doesn't bother me too much, I find, because I did feel like they were real aware of not crossing a line. Even in the first ep, Hawkeye is after a nurse and shows up in the shower and hands her a towel when the soap is in her eyes, but he doesn't touch her at all. But we were discussing the differences between the movie and the show - in the movie the main characters really weren't nice at all. (And one of my ex co-workers wife who was a nurse worked with the doctor who wrote the book, and said he was really an asshole, so I guess that's to be expected.)

My theory is that they had to make the characters more nice for the show because people wouldn't watch a show in which you really can't sympathize with any of the characters, you don't like any of them.

Matt countered that there are lots of shows these days with an all-nasty cast of characters.

Do you all think that's true? I don't watch much TV these days. Is he right?

Comments

[darklingsluck]

While I grew to love The Big Bang Theory, there are so many moments that feel just straight up mean. This group of friends just rag on each other so much. But it’s even worse when they go after Sheldon. Does the laugh track help? Maybe as a cue that it’s “supposed” to be a joke even if it doesn’t feel that way.

[cuddyclothes]

I lost my taste for network sitcoms when I read that characters say things to each other that, if you said them to someone in real life, they'd never speak to you again. The Big Bang characters were unrelentingly insulting to each other, and in later seasons the entertainment value was definitely deflating.

[cuddyclothes]

There is a huge difference between network shows and streaming/cable shows. One great thing about the early seasons of 'House' was that he was such an asshole. Later on, when they softened the character, it wasn't as interesting. Same with Alan Shore on "The Practice" and "Boston Legal". They were concurrent characters and a real breakthrough in television leads.

In broadcast shows, it still seems like if you have an asshole character, you have to show that they were traumatized and secretly tormented. There was one show with Dwight (?) Schrute where he played a "House" like character but who cried in emotional agony!

[(Anonymous)]

I pretty much live on Tuner Classic Movies....
I sort of thought that Big Bang was like Friends with scientists....
I actually really liked Boston Legal.....I maybe crazy but they were supposed
to be lawyers.
I just binge watched Yellowstone over the holidays ....the show takes not being nice to an art form .....kind of a train wreck
LTA

[derien]

So, sounds as though shows where there's nobody you can like actually do really well!

[(Anonymous)]

It may mean that there is actually a place- even if ...it's in old black &
white films and old reruns that being disliked is ok.....'just saying': ...:)

LTA