does anyone else not watch 'shows'

i'm honestly wondering if anyone else on here avoids watching shows or movies entirely. it's not some puritanical thing, i just don't enjoy watching plotted narrative entertainments for the most part. i flat out leave the room when someone else is watching something. they make me feel nervous, like my mind is on a hamster wheel. i don't want to encounter the world these people have created for me, even when it seems fun, because the idea of it makes me feel pressed, tired, like it's a chore i want to avoid. i'm fine with this and don't make it an issue when other people are talking about shows because it's a boring and annoying thing to say. but i'm curious if anyone else has a similar experience?

I don't watch fiction TV series or movies, not because they make me feel nervous, but because I feel that they're a big time sink. Especially those TV detective series that some people seem to inhale the box sets of - like don't they realise that a lot of these are the same plotlines that have been recycled over and over again since the 1930s?

I wish some of our posters didn’t watch shows

The discourse around TV has gotten so annoying/oppressive/lame that I've basically stopped watching all TV shows except Curb, I Think You Should Leave and Joe Bob Briggs. Movies are great, watch movies.

Also I find that so many modern TV series seem to be written around cool set pieces that make for good trailers (or YouTube clips) surrounded by a load of bumbling around.

Especially those TV detective series that some people seem to inhale the box sets of - like don't they realise that a lot of these are the same plotlines that have been recycled over and over again since the 1930s?

my tolerance for scripted tv is at an all-time low to an extent, despite there being a supposed wealth of options. i do watch a decent amount but find myself getting really bored by the narratives and conventions which maybe seemed refreshing 15 years ago but now are recycled to diminishing returns. if there's something unusual about a show, or a good hook, or the quality really is genuinely superior, i'll maybe stick around. MAYBE.

movies generally continue to rule, plus there's just such a deep well from the past to dip into. moreso than with TV, obv.

I admire opting out, and I have friends who just can't deal with the artificiality of televisual narrative or whatever, and friends who just read at night.

But tbh I only watch shows when eating dinner with my wife at the end of the night, and it's mostly so we don't have to watch each other eat. And it's a nice wind-down bonding thing, no binging involved. Although it does feel increasingly difficult to find well-written shows, we're not trash tv people.

Watching more movies always seems like a nice idea but most movies are worse than series these days.

xp lol

I don't really watch any modern shows, have a few older comfort favourites that I like to have on when I'm doing other stuff. Don't think I'm particularly against the concept of shows it's just I play a lot of video games and I like movies and there's only so many hours in yr life

whiney otm about tv discourse, assuming maybe he's talking about recap culture to an extent.

It's possible that intensive online discourse about culture always kinda spoils it sorry ilx I don't mean youse

IRL convos at work about TV shows are the fucking worst.

Posted this on another site but

It really bums me out how "What are you WATCHING? What are you BINGING?!?!?!" has become the placeholder in conversation when people used to just talk about the weather or sports. All the academic stuff nerds used to understand movies and music in the 90s has been embraced by the populace at large and is used to turn consumption of these lame shows as the baseline for someone's political views. Everything is pandering, everything is fan service. I think the "I don't even OWN a TV" guys in the 90s might have been onto something, sadly

my w1fe was talking the other day about w/the wealth of TV options, everyone she knows has five shows they recommend to her and they're all different, and they're all saying "oh you have to watch this and tell me what you think", and it's this weird overwhelming feeling.

I've started to get show fatigue, mostly from watching too many.

I can understand the aversion to scripted narratives. It's foreign to my experience, but brains work in different ways. One of my college friends discovered that both he and his sister -- her much more pronouncedly -- had aphantasia. She didn't read fiction at all, mostly because the lack of visualization left her feeling she was just reading descriptions of things that weren't real.

I feel like I've gotten that way about reading long-form nonfiction because I lean to the other end of the spectrum and I'd rather read shorter things that describe a specific event if I'm not going to be fleshing out this fictional world with my mind.

there are too many damn shows, though

I agree, as much as I like & watch shows, I hate it as a conversation topic. Like, it's fine if everyone's seen White Lotus and it comes up naturally, or it can be fun to analyze something right after watching it (the old 'going out after a movie' vibe). But I try to avoid ever saying "so, what are you watching" or "seen anything good lately?" with friends, so boring.

xp

even movies though, which i agree are great! never actually watch them though. i feel kinda guilty about it, like i should watch more, experience more excellent craft or w/e, but i'd just rather stare into space or post random shit on the internet. there's something about the commitment, or i think it's sitting down for a long time. also maybe adhd.

i didn't want to neg on shows itt but i guess that's fine, who cares lol

Personally can’t relate (😎) but you tend to get that kind of chat from people with nothing much to say. It’s as annoying as any other kind of small talk placeholder and they should be viewed with compassion.

tbf my least favorite part of talking about movies or tv is when people miss obvious or major plot details. we all do that on occasion, the human brain just isn't meant to always pick up everything, but some people are repeat offenders.

the second least favorite part is people arguing about things that are obviously left ambiguous in a narrative. not discussing the nuances of what it would mean if the events went one way or the other, but strongly insisting that their interpretation is correct. let the world have some ambiguity

imo the world needs more people staring into space anyway and I'm glad you're here for us

The series-long story arc that modern shows have almost uniformly saddled themselves with is generally a negative imo, for all sorts of reasons beyond the improved enjoyability of just being able to watch a contained 50 minute story with familiar characters. I think the pressure of the arc and the relentless chat it generates probably makes the standards of writing worse on balance

I do watch shows & movies, though I agree with the sentiment that the quality level has dropped despite the glut, and I would like to watch less. I also feel a bit queasy when the "what are you watching?" convo starts.

But I'm curious, map, do you enjoy plotted fictional narratives in non-video forms? (e.g., novels) Or do you generally avoid fictional media? Do you play video games? What about documentaries or sports?

I mention the latter because a friend once told me the reason he likes watching sports on TV (which I have almost never done with regularity) is that unlike narrative TV it's totally unpredictable. I think that's arguable — someone always wins the game at the end in US sports, there's obvs a circumscribed range of events & outcomes — but it stuck with me as an explanation

xps - I don't think you'll find many, if any, ilxors who entirely avoid scripted fictional movies and television, both. The number of ilxors has dwindled to a fairly small number, so your sample size is against you.

I'm mainly a consumer of fictional narrative in the form of books or movies. Although now and then I might spend a few idle moments watching a snippet of a television 'show', it's very rare, and I need to be feeling very aimless indeed.

i loooove talking about the weather. of course i learned a long time ago it's small talk for everyone else. but if i'm like seeking comfort in an interaction i'll talk about it for a little bit too long haha.

there's something to what map is saying that i get though which maybe is just wanting to intentionally remove yourself from devoting your mind to thinking about the lives of these people who don't exist, or be invested in and stressed about things that don't actually happen, and it's a stress or feeling that you don't get in the same way when reading a book. and for me at least it's also different from watching a movie, where there's a limited time-sink and when it's over, it's over. they're not gonna "grey's anatomy" tar or no country for old men.

sorry map not trying to put words in your mouth of course, just watercooling here about TV shows

ha omar yes that's totally part of it for me.

Ts: people who watch a lot of shows or films but need to be spoonfed basic plot points vs people who watch shows and no films

Personally I’m usually this guy, but only for map-type reasons! It takes me a while to decide on stuff and I usually don’t watch that much in a week, like a couple of hours.

Don’t ask me if I’ve seen a movie cause I haven’t

— Triston Casas (@mvptc37) July 23, 2022

I feel like a lot of online discourse is the show-ification of human interaction and maybe that impulse comes from being used to having narratives presented to you in show format

then again, people have always been gossipy about their neighbors

i loooove talking about the weather. of course i learned a long time ago it's small talk for everyone else. but if i'm like seeking comfort in an interaction i'll talk about it for a little bit too long haha.

― ꙮ (map), Wednesday, March 8, 2023 3:41 PM (three minutes ago)

I used to feel guilty about bringing up the weather as it was really drilled into me that only terminally dull people do that (not by my parents though, they love talking about it). But then weather got super dramatic!

imo the world needs more people staring into space anyway and I'm glad you're here for us

But I'm curious, map, do you enjoy plotted fictional narratives in non-video forms? (e.g., novels) Or do you generally avoid fictional media? Do you play video games? What about documentaries or sports?

I mention the latter because a friend once told me the reason he likes watching sports on TV (which I have almost never done with regularity) is that unlike narrative TV it's totally unpredictable. I think that's arguable — someone always wins the game at the end in US sports, there's obvs a circumscribed range of events & outcomes — but it stuck with me as an explanation

that's a good question! i do like novels but i'm really picky and don't end up finishing very much. the novels that work for me are ones where the plot maybe isn't as central. i guess generally that's easier to do in a novel than a tv show.

i never watch sports but when i encounter baseball at a bar or something i can get into it. i can see how the unpredictability would be refreshing.

anyway it's nice to hear about & be reminded of everyone's different preferences, just scrolling thru socials you can get the feeling that you're the weird one.

xp lol i wish

alfalfa is made entirely for laying down in iirc

I... just lose any degree of caring for a show after awhile.

I started watching "Better Call Saul" with my wife. It's a good show! I got to the end of one of the seasons, and I don't know. Just stopped giving a shit.

Has nothing to do with the quality of the shows. A lot of the new ones look like a lot of fun! But sitting down and sitting through an entire 54 minutes about some make-believe people -- yes, it feels very weird to be put out by it!

By the way, I replayed all the Dr. Dre missions solo this weekend in GTA Online and made $2 million because it's a x2 week for agency missions.

I'm an infrequent show watcher - now that the ex is out of my life, I don't think I've turned the TV on in two months

I have it on a cart that I wheel into a closet and cover with a cloth, so it's not a big part of my space and subsequently don't think too much about it

Wait I do have a buddy's Criterion login info so I'll sometimes watch movies on that - but even that has been awhile

as far as video games go, i've played the same game over and over on my laptop (it's called 'deathstate') for two years now and nothing else.

Prestige TV started out okay 25 years ago, now everything is prestige. Just give me garbage.

I feel like the only time I've ever seen Big Bang Theory is when I'm in a taqueria waiting for my order

Tv hasn’t been good since that show with Adrian Pasdar where he lived in a box inside his luxury apartment and was in love with his sister or stepmother or something

It’s funny I almost mentioned better call Saul, I recognize it’s objectively a “quality show” but I find it really tough going. I find it predictable in its narrative unpredictable-ness, somehow. And the Vince Gilligan house style was for me kind of wearying and stultifying after awhile.

I recognize I’m way in the minority there. I’ll probably finish it at some point in 2027.

no, I know a number of people who got a case of fatigue with that show!

I tried with BCS and made it a couple seasons in. Then tried again watching with my wife and we tapped out at about the same point.

"I started watching "Better Call Saul" with my wife. It's a good show! I got to the end of one of the seasons, and I don't know. Just stopped giving a shit."

I don't think I finished a show since Breaking Bad. Last couple of years I've watched bits of Better Call Saul, BoJack, Ricky & Morty. I re-watched a couple of seasons of Seinfeld. There was some amazing Japanese cartoon thing from the 90s that I got recommended on ilx slack, whose EPs are on YT. All good stuff but I just lose the will to go on.

Mostly it's because I feel at the point I get the concept I find I just don't care about spending another few hours with it. And it could be a lot of hours.

I don't see a big novel or finding a poet in those terms, if I tune into the writing. Nothing beats that experience. A film is a more boxed in experience. You are usually done after a couple of hours.

during the pandemic I watched the first two seasons of twin peaks + the first few episodes of ozark (?) but in general, nope, I don’t watch shows.

I tried watching the wire in 2007 but could t understand what anyone was saying or what was going on #dumb

i keep it simple

- jeopardy
- cbs sunday morning/60mins
- real housewives
- rupaul

THATS IT

speaking of prestige tv

I have an apparently inexhaustible appetite for history documentaries where Mary Beard or Simon Schama or somebody tells you why a dusty something is seismically significant. Christopher Clark, Alice Roberts, doesn't matter, I just let their voices lap over me for comfort. Have I seen this one? Dunno. Cuneiform, the spice trade, the Renaissance, doesn't matter.

But then my wife tells me about a new highly regarded "show" and I'm like meh. Can't muster the mental energy for a show right now.

people do seem chiller about recommending "shows" nowadays. might be because there are too many shows and everyone understands no one can conceivably watch even the ones that are supposed to be pretty good. might be because my frienda are 10-15 years older than they were 10-15 years ago, and have just mellowed out in general.

A good friend of mine is always recommending me shows..and its always some Amazon Prime slop, stuff like Bosch ("its not amazing or anything but Im really into it")

Shows are generally terrible now, Im sorry. I'll check out DTF St. Louis at some point (maybe).

But the idea of investing 30-70 hours into watching a TV show just to "be part of the conversation" is psychotic behavior imho.

I was telling the kid about how whereas Succession had something like what 40 episodes, all of those network shows that ran for 7-8 seasons have hundreds each. And we had to schedule our lives around them. He thinks my generation was absolutely insane. Moreso after explaining the concept of “will they or won’t they”.

Xpost Last year I went back and got into prime prestige shows I missed out first time around. Deadwood and The Shield, fuck yeah. Ok maybe The Shield isnt proper "prestige tv" but what a show.

I don't feel like there are as many "shows" vying for my attwntion as there used to be. Every so often I'll subscribe to a specific streaming channel so I can bingewatch Succession or Severance or Pluribus or some other prestige show with a single-word multisyllabic title, then cancel my subscription after a week. But there really isn't much I am desperate to see, and a lot of stuff that does get put in front of me, like endless Game Of Thrones and LOTR spin offs, look like incredibly naff money spinners

Following the discussion in the “things you just don’t care about” thread, shows went from a kind omnipresent background element in my childhood and adolescence, to a something I liked a lot but was selective about in my teens and 20s, to something I, well, just don’t care about in my 30s.

At this point, it feels like watching shows is a distraction from life, rather than something that adds to it. TV discourse, and just talking about shows in general, is something I have no interest in. Watching my coworkers talk passionately at length about the fine points of dozens of reality tv shows is something that, while I get how and why it’s absorbing, is just not something I’d rather do than sleep or clean my apartment.

otm. sometimes i do get a weird feeling, like a little moment of self awareness, when watching tv, like i’m just pissing into a corner, or an old person in a retirement home who can’t find someone to play cards with.

many novels aren’t so different though. i just finished an ian mcewan novel and i was like.. i could have been raking leaves.

it’s all so relative. a show like “The Studio” would have been a miracle of television and talked about endlessly if it had aired in like 2013.

I'm watching S1 of X-Files for the first time since it's original run, which has been fun. Other than that mostly watch movies on Criterion.

Sometimes I get the idea that watching shows or movies at home is like watching stuff on an airplane: I’m doing it because I’m stuck in a cramped, uncomfortable space - an experience I want to be over ASAP - and it’s the easiest way to make the time go by faster. Except here the proverbial plane ride is my life.

many novels aren’t so different though. i just finished an ian mcewan novel and i was like.. i could have been raking leaves.

this is an interesting point. I don't read as many novels as I used to, but I think I would read more if I felt like there were more "must-read" novels that "everyone" was talking about. maybe i just don't spend enough time in spaces where people are talking about novels, but it feels like that sort of thing is increasingly rare. at least as far as literary fiction goes. Sally Rooney is the only author I read as soon as she publishes a new book, and it's partly because each new book of hers feels like an event.

with TV, there is certainly a lot of stuff these days that feels inessential, even among shows that are "prestige" products with big stars (a lot of Apple shows are like this). but there are still a handful of shows each year that generate cultural discourse, and that's often what prompts me to watch them. for instance, I don't think I would've watched The Pitt if I hadn't seen people talking about how good it was. (of course, I may be more tuned into these conversations than others bc of the specific people I follow online, podcasts I listen to, etc.)

i just finished an ian mcewan novel and i was like.. i could have been raking leaves.

I feel like the "what am I doing" effect was much stronger in the old days of TV, where you could really find yourself plopped down and just watching any old shit for hours on end. If there's an advantage to streaming it's that you have to actively choose to watch something.

I do feel like I'm always verge of not having any more shows worth watching, but there's usually something (although we're rotating streaming services more frequently now to find it). And there's always more Taskmaster, thank god.

It's harder with contemporary novels, for sure.

For the non-shows people -- what do you do while eating dinner?

I stopped watching shows and movies during the pandemic. Especially dramas, everything just seemed like stress and conflict that I didn't need in my life at that time. I never went back to it.

? While eating dinner my wife and I face each other screenlessly and talk.

But since the children have grown we don't do a proper sit-down every night. We still roughly alternatw cooking, but one night in three or four is scrounging or leftovers or takeout or some other asynchronous thing.

The couple in the movie "About Last Night" - Rob Lowe and Demi Moore - have a thing where two nights a week he cooks, two nights a week he cooks, they go put two nights, and then there's "sandwich night."

The line provides the setup for a crass sexual joke later in the movie, and my wife and I sometimes drily speak of "sandwich night."

I stopped watching shows and movies during the pandemic

there was this overlooked sci-fi/cold war drama called 'Counterpart' that I thought was pretty interesting and well made but nobody watched it because it was on Starz, I guess. Anyway there's a whole pandemic subplot with fake TV commercials about keeping your distance and wearing masks and it was freaky because the show was made in... 2017

Yeah, my wife and I have a no telly during dinner rule. It's a nice little time to debrief about the day and stuff.

Sadly not all TV shows are good.

Ok fair, we sit down and talk before making dinner every night. That's mainly because my wife prefers not to watch people eating when possible, but also because watching a good show while eating good food at the end of the day is an incomparable pleasure. I certainly wouldn't be working on music or raking leaves during that time.

one of my big memories of the 00s is the experience being at social gatherings and people going apoplectic at the idea that i wasnt watching one of the Big Important Shows, inevitably saying some version of "you're missing the BEST SHOW ON TV RIGHT NOW", as if that alone would be enough to make me drop my glass and rush to the nearest streaming device.

not sure how well you’re remembering the ‘00s tbh

xp at Andy - I was one of the Counterpart fans and I think we have posts about it somewhere on the board

[ii'm honestly wondering if anyone else on here avoids watching shows or movies entirely. [/i

omg, pulled me in at the first sentence here, will be interesting to read through this thread. just stating at the beginning that i suddenly stopped watching ALL shows a couple years ago (have been fine with that) and also hardly watching any movies (something i’m more sad about; i love a good movie). also less interest in novels, narrative things, “stories”.

i think a lot of it has to do with my life situation but i’m gonna shaddup and read the thread first. but interesting thread idea!

I was one of the Counterpart fans

ahh good... I remember trying to talk to friends about it and nobody knew what the hell I was talking about

My wife and I no longer have any shows in common. She watches her stuff, I watch my stuff. Sometimes we watch a movie together. During dinner we put a CD on because she likes to listen to Underworld or something similarly high-energy while cooking.

also hardly watching any movies (something i’m more sad about; i love a good movie).

yeah this also describes my feelings about movies. i like the idea of watching a movie. i like reading about movies that i might like. but i never watch anything!

i.. cannot remember the last movie i watched. it may have been over a year at this point!

on the other hand, i have watched, or really 20% watched, many train cab videos on youtube.

on reflection, i don't think there's any single answer to why i stopped watching tv/movies. it's intersectional haha.

for dinner, it's important that my partner spoon the food that he has made into my mouth while i post to ilx. (i'm kidding if that wasn't clear.)

Haven’t read Ian McEwan, but as far as raking leaves goes, one reasons I don’t watch shows is because listening to an audiobook while doing household chores is so much more satisfying

I would read more if I felt like there were more "must-read" novels that "everyone" was talking about.

Funny, I’ve had the opposite experience: I got sick of media “events”. It started to feel like I was going through the motions just to stay in the loop, and the pressure to keep on top of new shows became a deterrent. When I realized Absolutely Nothing would happen if I missed X new show, I lost motivation to be part of the conversation. This has also happened with new music and visual art, which is a more melancholy loss, but with TV (and most media), it can feel like I’m just a machine that consumes content in order to spit out discourse that’s fertilizer for more content.

seems like 'OH MY GOD YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT?? YOU MUST WATCH IT' has gradually morphed into 'Really? You should check it out, you'd probably like it...'

nothing is that essential anymore

I got sick of media “events”. It started to feel like I was going through the motions just to stay in the loop, and the pressure to keep on top of new shows became a deterrent.

This is why I like having a subscription to Apple TV. Other than maybe three or four titles, their shows - and there are a ton - get basically zero publicity and thus zero media coverage, so you can always find some weird thing that you've never even heard of. It may not be any good, but you'll see the little icon on the screen and ask yourself, "When the hell did that come out? And how are there three seasons of it?"

I have no more patience for this world of man. All I’ve wanted to watch lately is Golden Girls.

― Cow_Art, Tuesday, April 7, 2026 6:10 PM (yesterday)

you might like Pluribus lol

I still watch shows but the general level of quality has declined recently IMO and more and more often I'm watching an ep or two and then bailing

I tried watching three different shows that have all received postive remarks from folks on the streaming thread, or on a dedicated spin-off thread for the show and... I guess they're OK? But there's no way I can commit to a seven or thirteen episodes of it when the main arc can be wrapped up in four. Nevertheless, "shows" are forced into "seasons" and midway through episode two I lose interest in the B and C plot superstructure that props it up. Then I feel like I should bail out and watch something on the AFI list I haven't seen or on the Criterion Channel I'm paying for.

I'm aware that it's filmist reactionary talk, but I just can't do it with the look, feel, and relative standardization on how it's all made now.

i think a part of it is the digital everything experience. i'm not like a 'film is better' or 'video is better' guy at all but i think there's something ineffable about the experience of watching those formats that doesn't translate to 'choose something on netflix' at all. i'm not sure it's necessarily all 'endless choice' or whatever. big hypothesis but i think there is something in us that wants to see something a little more direct to the source, materially speaking.

Sign me up as one of the "doesn't watch shows or movies" people, basically. I sometimes give in and watch highly recommended things long after they're over and everyone else has already finished with them: Schitt's Creek & The Good Place are probably the only two shows I've watched all the way through in many years. Otherwise I'll make it through some eps and then get bored.

If I could have anything, it would be more actual companionship in my time at home, someone to talk to, to have more connection and sharing in my days. Like map I feel quite a lot of active antipathy to the tv being on. Definitely will leave the room rather than have my flow of thoughts hijacked by something that demands attention.

Idk it's just not interesting although if I do have to choose some kind of tv it's likely to be an archeological or scientific discovery kind of thing. I don't mind paying PBS even though I never watch it. I should cancel Netflix actually.

more actual companionship in my time at home, someone to talk to, to have more connection and sharing in my days

i hope this comes your way. i bet it will.

I just need a better roommate lol

I watch a new movie or enjoy an old one just about every day; when it's over I watch Unsolved Mysteries or Thundercats episodes.

but I'm also in bed by 9:30 p.m. or earlier if I don't go out.

Coming into this late but I just love shows

I also rarely feel like I HAVE to stick with them; the only one I’ve consistently followed is Doctor Who and that obsession extends back into childhood

I also love plays, movies, musical theater, dance, concerts, basically any iteration of people performing is my shit, I find it invigorating and inspirational

I know upthread I said I was unwillingly being dragged into shows. Which if you saw all the TV threads you'd assume was a blatant lie on my behalf, ha. I still resent the timesink a lot of TV represents. Even though I'll happily waste an entire Actual Day on a video game or book. I cant explain the difference.

but I'm also in bed by 9:30 p.m. or earlier if I don't go out

God I feel heroic if I'm bed by 11pm

can't really get into "good" shows, tv is better when it's trashy imo

more actual companionship in my time at home, someone to talk to, to have more connection and sharing in my days

While it isn't really mutually exclusive to watching TV, I'd trade all the shows in the world for a moderate amount of this.

can't really get into "good" shows, tv is better when it's trashy imo

A lot of the prestige stuff is actually trashy as hell tho, just not marketed as such.

I want the old Game Show Network back, with all the 60s panel shows

I finally got round to watch the last season of Twin Peaks a few months after Lynch died. That's my answer to this question.

Also shows are TV. Films are films.

It's mostly time, so I watch the latter.

The last show I bothered with was State of Play, which was six hours, and that was a near struggle as I think TV shows are far too long, like most films are as well but three hours is shorter than fifty.