The End Of Network TV; For Me
I came to this conclusion a few years ago. I no longer watch network TV. Network TV, to me used to be “The Wonderful World Of Disney”. “Batman”. “The Beverly Hillbillies”. The shows on CBS, NBC and ABC. I guess I also need to include FOX, but I don’t know that I’ve ever watched anything on FOX. And you have to understand, maybe you’re like me, an age where, when growing up, everything was on three channels. The good and the bad. This is kinda weird.
Watching Network TV
This topic came up on the morning show this week as we talked about the 74th Emmy Awards. Emmys are no longer handed out to shows on network TV. Everything now goes to shows on streaming. The shows are edgier, more violent, more graphic. With the streaming format, you have the chance to get a more detailed story. A more intimate look at the characters. Things are no longer wrapped up in an hour.
And maybe that’s where it started for me. Although, as I look back, I haven’t been a big viewer of network offerings for a while now. I can tell you that I first became aware of it when I realized that I wasn’t watching any shows that were on ABC. I can tell you the last series I watched on ABC, it was called “Castle”. And honestly, I think I watched most of those on demand.
One Show
I still look at one show on NBC, it’s my guilty pleasure, it’s The Voice. Now, I’ve mentioned often, I usually just watch what they call the “Blind Auditions”. This is at the beginning of the new season. When the singers are trying to get the judges to turn their chairs. Once the teams are picked, honestly, I kind of lose interest.
There is a show I watch on CBS and I have since it first debuted right after 9/11 and that’s NCIS. The original NCIS. I’ve looked at NCIS: Los Angeles and I did enjoy NCIS: New Orleans, but I’ve lost interest in L.A. and New Orleans was cancelled. The original NCIS remains, and so do I. Even though there’s just about none of the original cast remaining. Still, it has kept my interest, at times, just barely.
Really I have no idea just how odd it is, to not watch network TV. I don’t think it’s thought of that way anymore. To most people it’s just TV, I think. Whether it’s CBS, NETFLIX, AMAZON PRIME, ROKU, it’s all the same, it’s just TV today.
Don’t tell that to Andy or Barney, or Rob & Laura or the Skipper and his little buddy. Times are different these days. Oh so very different.