Stale TV
- Lukas Kendall
- Apr 18
- 1 min read
I’ve been watching some returning TV series and I don’t want to say which ones (I know that’s annoying, sorry) but it just feels like they’ve gone stale.
I find my mind wandering, and checking the timeline to see how much is left.
It feels like the series architecture was never designed to go this long—that new crises are manufactured and thus not very interesting. Characters have long, static, sit-down scenes about their huge life dilemmas, and the filmmaking points towards cathartic emotion, but little is actually felt.
I may bail...but it doesn’t have to be this way. I found a lot of my favorite shows (the all-time greats) captivating right through the final cut to black, as it were (The Sopranos).
But others, like True Blood in particular, seemed to spin into all sorts of tiresome tangents.
Hard work for the creators, to sustain excellence!
It doesn't help that the average gap between TV seasons in the streaming era has become two or three YEARS. In the second season of Wednesday, the actor who played Pugsley absolutely TOWERED over Jenna Ortega, despite being set only one year later. And putting aside awkward growth spurts for child actors (Aang in season 2 of the Last Airbender Netflix show now looks like he should be scheduling a colonoscopy), it just destroys any sense of dramatic momentum. A movie sequel taking two or three years is one thing, but a TV show has to crank 'em out in order to hold an audience's attention.
It used to be that a network or basic cable show would deliver a…
Great analysis of why modern TV feels so "stale" lately. It really makes you miss the days of exciting, appointment television! Since most of us are stuck watching reruns or lackluster new shows at home anyway, we might as well make the "home cinema" experience better. For anyone hosting viewing parties or just tired of messy snacks on the couch, I’ve started using these large white paper bags for homemade popcorn and takeout-style spreads: https://www.mcdonaldpaper.com/safepro-senw-13x7x17-inch-white-paper-bag-with-handles-250-pk. They are super sturdy with handles, making it easy to prep "concession bags" for friends. If the TV is stale, at least the snacks don't have to be!