30 Days of Television - Day 11
Day 11 - A show that disappointed you
Heroes
I’ve been disappointed by shows before. I’ve had high hopes dashed by bad casting (American Coupling) or bad writing (Flashforward). But Heroes had so many good things going for it. I enjoyed the first season so much that I held onto the show far longer than I should have and that made this disappointment so much worse than the others.
I like a show where beloved characters can and do die. But I don’t like how it was done on Heroes. Character deaths should be huge plot points. The ramifications for the deaths should be enormous. They should compel other characters to take extreme action. The deaths in Heroes seem to be done for no other reason than to keep the audience on their toes. But if the audience knows that the people they want to watch can be killed off for any reason at all, what incentive do they have to become attached to the characters? Watching television should be fun, not stress-inducing.
I also had problems with the too-obvious product placement in the show. I understand product placement is everywhere and can help finance expensive shows like Heroes. But Heroes didn't seem to feel as though merely placing products in the show was enough. The products were worked into the dialogue and made the resulting conversations awkward. People don't talk like that. When your audience's disbelief is already precariously suspended because of the concept of the show, it's a good idea to make sure everything else happens as naturally as possible. Extolling the virtues of your Sprint Palm Treo 700 or your Nissan Rogue will only pull the viewer out of the story.
I continued to watch it through the first half of the third season. At first, I really enjoyed it. But then one of the characters started behaving in a way that I felt was extremely out-of-character. There was a plane crash and the whole show fell apart. This was, perhaps, the Heroes version of jumping the shark. I was considering giving up on the show at this point, but my DVR made the final decision for me by corrupting all of my saved shows. Since Heroes doesn’t rerun, I was lost with no hope of picking up any threads of the story. I could have watched it on Hulu, but I didn't want to.
Past
Day 01 - A show that should never have been canceled: Futurama
Day 02 - A show that you wish more people were watching: Doctor Who
Day 03 - Your favorite new show (aired this TV season): Community
Day 04 - Your favorite show ever: Doctor Who
Day 05 - A show you hate: Charmed
Day 06 - Favorite episode of your favorite TV show: Doctor Who: "Blink"
Day 07 - Least favorite episode of your favorite TV show: Doctor Who: "Planet of the Dead"
Day 08 - A show everyone should watch: The Prisoner
Day 09 - Best scene ever: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "You're beneath me."
Day 10 - A show you thought you wouldn't like but ended up loving: The Mighty Boosh
Day 11 - A show that disappointed you: Heroes
Future:
Day 12 - An episode you've watched more than 5 times
Day 13 - Favorite childhood show
Day 14 - Favorite male character
Day 15 - Favorite female character
Day 16 - Your guilty pleasure show
Day 17 - Favorite mini series
Day 18 - Favorite title sequence
Day 19 - Best TV show cast
Day 20 - Favorite kiss
Day 21 - Favorite ship
Day 22 - Favorite series finale
Day 23 - Most annoying character
Day 24 - Best quote
Day 25 - A show you plan on watching (old or new)
Day 26 - OMG WTF? Season finale
Day 27 - Best pilot episode
Day 28 - First TV show obsession
Day 29 - Current TV show obsession
Day 30 - Saddest character death
Heroes
I’ve been disappointed by shows before. I’ve had high hopes dashed by bad casting (American Coupling) or bad writing (Flashforward). But Heroes had so many good things going for it. I enjoyed the first season so much that I held onto the show far longer than I should have and that made this disappointment so much worse than the others.
I like a show where beloved characters can and do die. But I don’t like how it was done on Heroes. Character deaths should be huge plot points. The ramifications for the deaths should be enormous. They should compel other characters to take extreme action. The deaths in Heroes seem to be done for no other reason than to keep the audience on their toes. But if the audience knows that the people they want to watch can be killed off for any reason at all, what incentive do they have to become attached to the characters? Watching television should be fun, not stress-inducing.
I also had problems with the too-obvious product placement in the show. I understand product placement is everywhere and can help finance expensive shows like Heroes. But Heroes didn't seem to feel as though merely placing products in the show was enough. The products were worked into the dialogue and made the resulting conversations awkward. People don't talk like that. When your audience's disbelief is already precariously suspended because of the concept of the show, it's a good idea to make sure everything else happens as naturally as possible. Extolling the virtues of your Sprint Palm Treo 700 or your Nissan Rogue will only pull the viewer out of the story.
I continued to watch it through the first half of the third season. At first, I really enjoyed it. But then one of the characters started behaving in a way that I felt was extremely out-of-character. There was a plane crash and the whole show fell apart. This was, perhaps, the Heroes version of jumping the shark. I was considering giving up on the show at this point, but my DVR made the final decision for me by corrupting all of my saved shows. Since Heroes doesn’t rerun, I was lost with no hope of picking up any threads of the story. I could have watched it on Hulu, but I didn't want to.
Past
Day 01 - A show that should never have been canceled: Futurama
Day 02 - A show that you wish more people were watching: Doctor Who
Day 03 - Your favorite new show (aired this TV season): Community
Day 04 - Your favorite show ever: Doctor Who
Day 05 - A show you hate: Charmed
Day 06 - Favorite episode of your favorite TV show: Doctor Who: "Blink"
Day 07 - Least favorite episode of your favorite TV show: Doctor Who: "Planet of the Dead"
Day 08 - A show everyone should watch: The Prisoner
Day 09 - Best scene ever: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "You're beneath me."
Day 10 - A show you thought you wouldn't like but ended up loving: The Mighty Boosh
Day 11 - A show that disappointed you: Heroes
Future:
Day 12 - An episode you've watched more than 5 times
Day 13 - Favorite childhood show
Day 14 - Favorite male character
Day 15 - Favorite female character
Day 16 - Your guilty pleasure show
Day 17 - Favorite mini series
Day 18 - Favorite title sequence
Day 19 - Best TV show cast
Day 20 - Favorite kiss
Day 21 - Favorite ship
Day 22 - Favorite series finale
Day 23 - Most annoying character
Day 24 - Best quote
Day 25 - A show you plan on watching (old or new)
Day 26 - OMG WTF? Season finale
Day 27 - Best pilot episode
Day 28 - First TV show obsession
Day 29 - Current TV show obsession
Day 30 - Saddest character death