4 ms·

I assume you mean it's not really worth watching if it's currently on broadcast TV? Surely there's a huge list of old broadcast TV network shows that are worth

by red369 1y ago

I assume you mean it's not really worth watching if it's currently on broadcast TV? Surely there's a huge list of old broadcast TV network shows that are worth watching, and that still suffer from the ad-break problem to various degrees. Obviously I'm pulling from a wide time-period, and I'll probably get some of these wrong because I'm not in the the US and don't quite grok the network/cable divide, but off the top of my head, I think these are/were all worth watching: Seinfeld, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Freaks and Geeks, Arrested Development, 30 Rock, Community, Schitt's Creek, The Office, The X-Files, various Star Trek series, Cheers That list could be easily improved on, but I assume it's missing your point anyway if you were only talking about current broadcast network TV (if it exists :) )

thaumasiotes 1y ago
> I'll probably get some of these wrong because I'm not in the the US and don't quite grok the network/cable divide Almost all of those are broadcast shows. I strongly suspect that all of them are, but I don't have personal knowledge of the entire list. As far as I can tell, the divide is pretty straightforward: Cable: nudity Broadcast: everything else In theory there's no requirement for a cable show to have nudity, but since they're allowed to, they all do.
- dragonwriter 1y ago
  > As far as I can tell, the divide is pretty straightforward: > Cable: nudity > Broadcast: everything else This is almost entirely wrong; non-premium cable (which is and was always the vast majority of cable) had and observed essentially the same structure and content rules as broadcast, with ad breaks and no swearing or nudity. Premium cable where each channel or later small branded group of channels is a separate surcharge on top of the broad package tended to have no ad breaks and looser content rules.
  - thaumasiotes 1y ago
    What are some shows that were made for non-premium cable?
    - dragonwriter 1y ago
      Just a few examples: Deadliest Catch (Discovery Channel, 2005-) Monk (USA Network. 2002-2009) Mad Men (AMC, 2007-2015) The Shield (FX, 2002-2008) Beavis and Butt-Head (MTV, 1993-1997 & 2011)
      - School-Cotton 1y ago
        24 and Breaking Bad are also very popular examples.
        NoMoreNicksLeft 1y ago
        24 was Fox, if I'm not mistaken, and its format is very much the same as all broadcast shows. Breaking Bad isn't the same format. No obvious commercial breaks, no saccharine Hays-Code-like bullshit. Others mentioned The Shield, which is FX, and I tend to think of FX shows as not being of the broadcast mold. Monk was USA, I think, which as a network was borderline, but seems like a few of their original programming shows were not-horrible. Then someone said Deadliest Catch, but that's just cheap reality tv sludge and I feel dirty having typed out its title. Even the worst 1980s NBC sitcom was better than reality tv shows. It's come to my attention that you're all, every last one of you, watching tv wrong.
        dragonwriter 1y ago
        > Breaking Bad isn't the same format. No obvious commercial breaks Breaking Bad (like Mad Men, also on AMC) was presented with commercial breaks on AMC in its original run, and is structured around those breaks.
        NoMoreNicksLeft 1y ago

by red369 1y ago

thaumasiotes 1y ago

> I'll probably get some of these wrong because I'm not in the the US and don't quite grok the network/cable divide Almost all of those are broadcast shows. I strongly suspect that all of them are, but I don't have personal knowledge of the entire list. As far as I can tell, the divide is pretty straightforward: Cable: nudity Broadcast: everything else In theory there's no requirement for a cable show to have nudity, but since they're allowed to, they all do.

dragonwriter 1y ago
> As far as I can tell, the divide is pretty straightforward: > Cable: nudity > Broadcast: everything else This is almost entirely wrong; non-premium cable (which is and was always the vast majority of cable) had and observed essentially the same structure and content rules as broadcast, with ad breaks and no swearing or nudity. Premium cable where each channel or later small branded group of channels is a separate surcharge on top of the broad package tended to have no ad breaks and looser content rules.
- thaumasiotes 1y ago
  What are some shows that were made for non-premium cable?
  - dragonwriter 1y ago
    Just a few examples: Deadliest Catch (Discovery Channel, 2005-) Monk (USA Network. 2002-2009) Mad Men (AMC, 2007-2015) The Shield (FX, 2002-2008) Beavis and Butt-Head (MTV, 1993-1997 & 2011)
    - School-Cotton 1y ago
      24 and Breaking Bad are also very popular examples.
      - NoMoreNicksLeft 1y ago
        24 was Fox, if I'm not mistaken, and its format is very much the same as all broadcast shows. Breaking Bad isn't the same format. No obvious commercial breaks, no saccharine Hays-Code-like bullshit. Others mentioned The Shield, which is FX, and I tend to think of FX shows as not being of the broadcast mold. Monk was USA, I think, which as a network was borderline, but seems like a few of their original programming shows were not-horrible. Then someone said Deadliest Catch, but that's just cheap reality tv sludge and I feel dirty having typed out its title. Even the worst 1980s NBC sitcom was better than reality tv shows. It's come to my attention that you're all, every last one of you, watching tv wrong.
        dragonwriter 1y ago
        > Breaking Bad isn't the same format. No obvious commercial breaks Breaking Bad (like Mad Men, also on AMC) was presented with commercial breaks on AMC in its original run, and is structured around those breaks.
        NoMoreNicksLeft 1y ago