Is it possible to watch a show from the beginning and love it all the way through?

[morganlucas41]

Written for month_of_meta's Meta Month of March challenge.

I came to most of my fandoms pretty late in the game - either after they were over completely, or after they’d been on for a few seasons. The few shows I try to watch from the beginning either get cancelled, or I end up abandoning for various reasons. Moreover, I’ve seen a pretty near-universal disdain

Comments

[morganlucas41]

I don't think I know a single long running show which is still the same show in the last episodes as it was in the first season. And the changes rarely happen organic enough to take the audience on the ride.

I agree with your first sentence wholeheartedly. For me, the reason I tend to like later seasons of a show more is because I like those changes. I like seeing characters grow and develop. If it's a good show, there's going to be character development, and I'll probably like the characters more as they grow over time.

Admittedly, many shows jump the shark and make changes which do not feel natural or organic, but I don't think that all change is automatically bad. I love seeing characters grow and change.

I guess I'm a bit different than you in viewing preferences - I love shows with ongoing mysteries, and find myself a bit bored by shows that don't have it. Though it's daunting, I always prefer shows that you kind of have to watch every episode of to get the full effect.

And just real quick, I have to get on my Lost soapobox for a second, lol. I know that plenty of fans were disappointed by the ending, but I wasn't at all. I felt like it was exactly the payoff I wanted. Also, I really think that watching the show all at once, without the long breaks, theorizing and speculating, would help to see the whole big picture. So if you're ever inclined, you should give it a try :) And there's always a risk in taking other people's opinions about a show. If you think you'd like it, you should try it! I still love the show.

[swanpride]

I agree, it's nice to see characters develop, and that might be part of the reason, I often prefer the second season over the first one. By then, the writers had time to establish the characters and the world they are playing in. But I also think that writers often lose the original premise over time. Ie Psych - I liked Juliet the best when she was still quirky and girly, by now she is more a younger version of chief Vick. I don't mind that the writers allowed her to harden, but I think that there was no reason for her to loose the quirky and girly site nearly entirely. Or Castle: I originally watched the show because I liked the meta on writing they used in the cases. Now it's all about silly love stories and UST. The writers put emphasis exactly on the aspect of the show, I wasn't interested in. They fall in some sort of run-of-the-mill pattern. That doesn't mean that one can't watch the episodes. But what made the show special, is lost, and that's always sad to see.

I don't mind ongoing mysteries - but I mind it when there is some sort of goal which is constantly dangled in front of my nose, but I know, that the show will never reach it until the very end. Ie Once upon a time: The whole premise is that all this fairy tale figure are stuck in the real world. The only possible ending is to break the curse. Which will never happen until the very last episode of the show. Or Akte X, where Mulder was constantly searching the truth about his sister, and it was clear that we would never get this truth anytime soon. Such things annoy me to no end. (For the same reason I really dislike UST, because the writers rarely have the balls to change UST into a realationship, and if they do, they are rarely good in writing said relationship).

Compare this to Grimm: There is also a mystery set up, but I have no idea what the mystery is about and where the writers will end up with this. I don't have the feeling that some sort of goal is dangled in front of my nose, because I don't know what the goal is - I just go with the flow, and I'm curious were I'll end up. I also enjoy the White Collar Format: One story-arc for each season, which are built up on each other, but I have never the feeling that I'm stuck at some place because the writers keep stalling. Whatever mystery they introduce, I know there will be a solution sooner or later.

[morganlucas41]

But I also think that writers often lose the original premise over time.
Yes, this can certainly happen in some shows, and I agree, it's really frustrating when it does.

Re: Once Upon a Time and one possible ending - I see what you're saying, and how that might be frustrating. But for me, shows like that still have the potential to surprise you. Sure, ostensibly they want to break the curse, but what would that mean exactly? The characters are no longer in the real world, and just in the fairy tale world? I guess I see the potential for a lot of things to evolve, and what the characters' goals are initially might completely change.

And oh, I completely disagree about UST - I ADORE UST and could never get enough of it. I'm definitely a shipper, just as a general rule, and the reason I start to root for a couple is based on UST (whether it's a canonical couple or not). Buildup is what makes the payoff that good! I will say that once a relationship turns canon, sometimes it's not quite what you'd want, but I suppose that's why we have fic. And non-canonical couples that are wildly popular, too - usually they have tons of UST in canon but either would never/don't ever happen.

I'm not familiar with Grimm or White Collar, so I can't speak about those shows. I like the idea of a long, overall arc for a series, which each season plays into. But even if the end game might seem obvious, I feel like shows may still keep you guessing.

[swanpride]

Oh, if you want a show which keeps you guessing, try white Collar. I'm normally very good with predicting what happens next, but the writers have managed to surprise me in every single mid-season finale and every single season finale so far. Everytime I think the go zick, they end up going zack. And that's definitly a show you have to watch when it airs - you're really missing something our when you don't have the opportunity to spekulate, and to bite your nails while you wait for the next season.

With Grimm - well, you have to stick around a while. The first episodes were a little bit meh. I think mostly because the writers needed the time to set up the world they intend to play in a little bit. But the show had me with episode 5, and if you're more for mystery, you might have to stick around even a little bit longer to get what you want, but it really pays off in this special case. I can't wait for the next episode.

I admit, I also like both shows because they are very low key on romance - unlike you, I always thought that the question who comes together with whom is the last interesting aspect of a story. It's one of the reasons I tend to stick to gen-fanfictions. There are few pairings I find so interesting that I want their love story in the center of a story.

[morganlucas41]

Thanks for recommending both those shows! They sound interesting and I'll definitely keep them in mind. I have a lot of shows right now, so it may take me a while to get to them, but yeah.

Well, I'm definitely a hopeless romantic, and I've always been most interested in love stories. Now, shows that I like need to have something more than that, too, but I'm definitely interested in romance. It's not really a question of "who comes together with whom" - for me, I ship couples who really grab me and make me think they'd want to be together. I don't care at all what anyone else ships, though, and I've never understood why anyone would get into a ship war.

And though I do like reading gen fic on occasion, I mostly read fic with pairings just because that's what I'm most interested or invested in. I seek out fic for pairings that I like, based on what we get in shows.

It seems like we do have different tastes - but I've enjoyed discussing them with you! :)