It’s Ash Wednesday. Party’s over, people. 40 days of self-deprivation begins now. While you’re supposed to deny yourself something that you really enjoy or depend on, it’s easier just to cut out the stuff we don’t like any more. So why not bad TV? We can just replace it with good TV, so it’s not that big a sacrifice.
It’s too easy to not watch a show that you weren’t watching before, so to add at least a modicum of difficulty, let’s cull some shows that were once favorites. It’s nothing personal. Sometimes shows fall in quality, sometimes they just get old, and sometimes we change. For whatever reason, here are a handful of shows that we have no problem saying goodbye to for Lent.
True Blood
I like(d) True Blood for what it is – a campy, soapy display of stylized violence with a fair amount of nudity. It continues to be very self-aware, but there seemed to be very little new space to explore. To recap, there have been werewolves, vampires, fairies, shapeshifters, panthers, and witches. That’s a lot of factions going head-to-head.
The shock value is gone, and while the sexiness and violence is still entertaining, it’s compromised by the total absence of a story to tell. I was able to make it through last season buoyed by the hotness of the characters, but no more. Unless they seriously overhaul their writing team, I’m going to bid the show adieu and get my nudity from the internet.
Law & Order: SVU
The show has been gradually declining in quality over the past five years. In fact, the decline was so gradual that indoctrinated viewers may not have even noticed. Now, with the absence of Christopher Meloni, it’s pretty clear that the show will keep trending downward. After 13 seasons and 286 episodes, there are only so many different ways a character can get raped and murdered. There are also only so many ways Ice-T can be informed of the nature of a crime, then respond with “That’s messed up.”
Yes it is, Ice-T. It’s very messed up. Just like your show.
