Is Television Better Or Worse Now Than When You Were A Kid?

What was I watching as a kid


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Mr Belvedere
The Cosby Show
Who’s The Boss
Night Court
Charles in Charge
MacGyver
Miami Vice
Growing Pains
That’s Incredible
The Fall Guy
Quincy M.E.
Married With Children
Family Ties
The A Team
Magnum PI
Spenser for Hire


What am I watching today


Game of Thrones
The Vikings
Family Guy
The Walking Dead
Big Bang Theory
Supernatural
Rosewood
Sunday Night Football in America
60 Minutes
Survivor
Who Killed Tupac
Live PD
Oak Island Mystery

I'd say TV was better when I was a kid

 

Technology has improved, allowing such things as ultra HD, but sound often suffers as a result of low audio bit rate.
Regarding content, we will never beat the epic films of the 60s and 70s. but with so many channels it is normally possible to find something to watch, even if it is 30 years old.

 

Technology has improved, allowing such things as ultra HD, but sound often suffers as a result of low audio bit rate.
Regarding content, we will never beat the epic films of the 60s and 70s. but with so many channels it is normally possible to find something to watch, even if it is 30 years old.

 

Commercials now remind me that business is always trying to outsmart consumers at every turn. It feels like I'm being hunted!

 

the series are better....the sitcoms are worse

 

TV is so much better now, it's not even funny. Subscription-based streaming services and pay cable stations are putting out some amazing content.

Network TV has been left in the dust though.

 

Worse...stuff like Netflix has made us even more mind numbed by TV....hilarious how people wont watch a long movie but they'll waste there whole day watching an entire season of a TV series

 

I think you'll find, as it gets better, it also gets worse. This is generally an axiomatic Universal constant that can be applied to most things in today's society. There is more professionalism, but less essential talent, grit, and genuine inspiration. Whatever happened to Godard's dictum that all you need to make a film was a gun and a girl. Now you need the resources of a small nation. Most new productions lack the kind of poetry and style that can only be achieved through off the cuff improvisation and a willingness to take risks. Today's computer graphics seem strangely weightless and super-flat. Optical and mechanical effects and hand-drawn animation possessed a real artistry and magic that was grounded in a physical reality that didn't alienate the viewer. Older TV and films had a stronger connection to the theatre and actors had more class and better business.

Of course you could easily write an opposite critique in favour of the new, this is just my personal aesthetic and taste.

 

Definitely yes.

 

The content is shit.

 

The best thing about television nowadays is if you're a nostalgic type of person with low regard for modern shows, you can watch reruns of the shows you grew up on through the myriad of streaming services available. You can find pretty much every show ever created somewhere or other

 

really? in the last couple years, i've hit several dead ends trying to find old shows that i used to watch on youtube 5 years ago.

 

sorry, double post. i knew this was inevitable eventually, ever since hipforums started running slower than a dying sloth a few days ago.

 

Basically everything you listed under TV when i was a kid, i think was shit, except for Married with Children

How long has it been since you actually watched an episode of the A-team, it is sooooo hokey


I think TV this decade has been awesome, so many good shows I havent got time to watch them all, Wish we had something like the walking dead when I was a teen


I know a lot of people hate the Big Bang theory, but it has been very consistant, if you are a fan there hasnt been a single episode that is unwatchable, too experimental

Friends, Seinfeld, Simpsons, Mash etc, they all had a few too many quirky episodes you just kind of fast foward through when binge watching

 

The Greatest American Hero, someone please tell me where the fuck to get that

 

You have to take in account the mindset you were watching tv with as a kid. Tv was a greater experience for me when i was a kid than now. But if I look at quality, subjects (content matter), humor, variety etc etc. It does not seem that it was better to me.

 

Well, I guess some have to be watched illegally

However, Hulu has the entire old TGIF lineup now and thats pretty exciting

 

hulu. I dont have it but the inlaws and friends do
I swore it was Antenna Tv recently but Im on tv blockout for at least another 2weeks . other than ondemand

 

I can’t help it if you didn’t enjoy those shows but watching some of them recently you can’t help but feel nostalgic.


The Cosby Show was number 1 for five years running for a reason; it was great (sure Cosby turned out to be a scumbag but we didn’t know it at the time) I loved Night Court, Charles in Charge is like an old recliner that you should probably throw out but it’s just so comfortable, Spenser for Hire was filmed in Boston and is close to my heart, Every Friday night was Miami Vice, and Quincy M.E. although he was left of most left wing extremists, it was consistently good.


I agree Married with Children was good, conversely That’s Incredible was incredibly bad, as for the A-Team even today it’s campy fun and it has a good heart.

 

Stoned writers can go both ways quality wise