Group Post

Must (Not) See TV

Last week we shared our our current favorite TV shows. We’re flipping the script this time to share what cult classics we’ve never watch—and why. Spoiler Alert: You won’t catch us watching Game of Thrones or Walking Dead on Sunday nights.

Kellye Garrett

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I actually view not having seen beloved television shows as a badge of honor. I’ve even (proudly) described myself as the only black woman in America who doesn’t watch Scandal or Empire. There are several other shows I’ve never seen a single episode including ER, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones and (though thanks to Twitter, I know way too much about what’s going on). I’ve seen exactly one episode of Seinfeld—the finale. If you’ve seen the finale, you’ll understand when I say it went completely over my head. On the flip side, I’m also addicted to spoilers. Like I stopped watching Walking Dead over season two, yet I’ve read articles on subsequent seasons solely because the word spoiler was in the title. No shame in my must-know-everything game.

Vickie Fee

vickieDare I admit that I’ve never seen an episode of Game of Thrones or the Walking Dead? I just looked at TV Guide’s online list of some currently popular shows. I can add Empire and Riverdale to the list of shows I’ve never watched—or in this case, never even heard of. I’m reluctant to commit to a whole season of weekly viewing, if it turns out I really like a show. And hubs and I don’t have cable or network channels, so our TV viewing is pretty much limited to what’s available through Roku or Amazon Fire Stick. On the plus side, unless the show in question is an Amazon or Netflix original series, I usually don’t have access to it until the season’s over, so—binge watch! The one show I WILL commit to watch, and WILL actually stream through the computer to watch before the season is over, is X-Files, which has 10 new episodes starting Jan. 3, 2018, and about which I am ridiculously excited! #thetruthisoutthere

Marla Cooper

CotC Marla Cooper

I regularly experience FOMO (fear of missing out) when it comes to popular TV shows. I feel a pang of jealousy when everyone excitedly talks about the latest Walking Dead or Game of Thrones, but they’re just not for me. (Of course, I didn’t think a show about a dying science teacher who makes meth was for me either, but I finally ended up binge-watching Breaking Bad and it was one of the best shows I’ve ever watched.) Since I worked in advertising, I always felt like I had no excuse not to watch Mad Men, but I just couldn’t get into it. And of course, everyone I ever worked with watched it religiously and loved it, leaving me to wonder, What’s wrong with me? But the show I’ve never felt guilty about skipping was Lost. I quit after the first season, and I always said if JJ Abrams ever explained that damned polar bear that maybe I’d go back. He never did, and I saved a full 100 hours of my life. No FOMO there!

Cynthia Kuhn

cynthiaThe more I think about this question, the more I realize that I’ve missed out on a pretty long list of popular shows. Have not seen the following: 24, Lost, Walking Dead, Family Guy, Shameless, This is Us, Game of Thrones, or Breaking Bad. Some of them have been discussed and/or parodied so often, however, that they have seeped into my consciousness through pop-culture osmosis.  It’s sort of odd to recognize that you’re enjoying an allusion to a show you never saw…

 

 Ellen Byron

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I can literally quote all the shows listed above as ones I’ve never seen, although I loved Mad Men so much I wept when it ended. Sorry, M! But my dad was a literal Mad Man on Madison Avenue, so that show was my childhood. Without the philandering, happy to say.

But I’ll throw in a whole genre I’ve never seen: reality TV. That’s right, I’ve never, ever made it through an entire episode of a reality show. A few moments here and there of Dancing with the Stars, So You Think You Can Dance, or Average Joe – there goes that theme – and that’s it. A) I find them boring,  and B) I find shows like The Bachelor manufactured and annoying. But really, it’s mostly C: I hate to see adults yelled at, and then cry. Which seems to happen a lot in reality TV. And in sports play-off games. Oh, that’s another Must (Not) See TV event for me. Anything sports-related. Except the Olympics for gymnastics and ice skating. (I’m such a girl.)

Readers, what shows are you proud to say are on your “Never Seen” list? Drop us a note in the comments below!

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20 thoughts on “Must (Not) See TV”

  2. I have never watched a single episode of the Kardashians or any of those NAME THE CITY Wives shows. I just don’t get why anyone would waste their time on those. I’ve never watched Game of Thrones or Walking Dead — just hold no appeal.

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  3. The very first shows that popped into my mind for me are The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones. No desire to watch either. I’ve never watched Grey’s Anatomy or any other shows that creator has done either. Empire and Star are on my skip list. Just so many shows I don’t watch.

    You really didn’t miss anything if you missed Lost. It was a compelling show that felt like 20 minutes instead of an hour when you were watching, but they left so many questions unanswered that it was unsatisfying.

    However, I’ve been a fan of 24 since the first hour. It’s quite a change for this cozy guy since it is a dark thriller, but the concept is very well executed even if they ignore things like traffic. (Seriously, he never gets stuck in one traffic jam, even in rush hour, in LA?)

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    1. Mark, I really liked the original 24, too. But after the first season, I just couldn’t commit to get caught up in it again. I have commitment phobia when it comes to TV!

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  4. I haven’t watched any of the most talked about shows either. I did watch Dancing with the Stars for a few years but gave up when I had no clue who most of the “stars” were. I think I watched about 10 minutes of Lost.

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  5. I can’t handle shows that are overly violent, or where the characters constantly make bad decisions. Thus, I watched only a couple episodes of Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and Breaking Bad. But my wife managed to binge-watch all seven (eight?) seasons of GoT (as its fans call it) in just a few weeks by fast-forwarding through all the battle and sex scenes–which apparently makes each episode about a quarter of its actual length.

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  6. Leslie, that’s a smart way to watch TV! I’ve sat through plenty of shows that would have benefited from some fast-forward edits! 🙂

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  7. I’m about to start watching Stranger Things. I probably should have started earlier so I’d know what everyone was talking about (“Earmuffs!”) but I thought maybe it was a remake/spinoff of Goonies.

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  8. I feel that many TV shows, just like the current political climate, have gone way beyond the bounds of what I want to see. The only reality shows I enjoy from time to time are House Hunters and Fixer Upper. I don’t touch sports events on TV (that’s what happens when your ex-husband was a sports nut:) I love British/Australian shows on Acorn and Masterpiece on PBS. My newest favorites on network TV are Designated Survivor and This is Us. Basically, though, I’ll just never forgive the powers-that-be for cancelling Castle, which was the best all around program ever!

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    1. Teresa, like Once Upon a Time for you, there have been a number of shows that I enjoyed the first season, then stopped watching the next season when they seemed to lose their way.

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