Fire up the DVR, new episodes of network television shows are back after a holiday hiatus.
Actually, the DVR already is filling up. A busy schedule at work and at home usually renders the actual network lineup useless, except for purposes of knowing what to record to watch later, and when. It is extremely rare for me to watch anything live anymore, except for news and sports.
So the shows usually pile up on the recorder, left to watch in bunches over weekends. Which might tell you what kind of life I have!
A danger of having a DVR is that you tend to watch more shows, because you can watch them when you want. Network television offerings, I think, have been pretty strong the past five years or so, meaning the roster of shows we record has gotten longer.
Ive reached a breaking point, however. We record more shows that we have time to watch, given our schedule. So weve spent the past few weeks chipping away at that list.
The most notable casualty this fall and winter has been Heroes. The NBC show is officially off our roster, the dozen or so shows deleted (unwatched) from our DVR. It was a decision we put off for months. In its first season, Heroes, was a great new show. But the finale of season one was lacking, and the slump carried into the abbreviated second season. By the time Season 3 started this September, our interest in the show had waned. We put off watching the season debut, then week after week wed record the shows but never be interested enough to actually watch them. Finally, about two months after it had aired, we watched the two-hour season opener ... and were bored. A few weeks later, we decided wed never catch up, and put the delete button to work.
But some other shows are on notice. Here is my list of DVR priorities for network television shows. It would be great if, after reading my list, youd share yours. What shows cant you miss? What shows are you ready to part with?
My TV priority list:
1. The Office The only show I watch live with any regularity.
2. Lost The weirdest show on television, and I enjoy weirdness.
3. Chuck Ed meets Alias. Great stuff.
4. 24 Was in the top two before an awful season in 2007. First four hours this year have been promising.
5. ER Still strong. Archie Morris has quietly become my favorite character.
6. Desperate Housewives Guilty pleasure. Mindless, but entertaining.
7. Life on Mars Great (and slightly weird) show that nobody else seems to like. ABC promises its coming back; Im remaining skeptical.
8. House Good show, but growing a little tired.
9. Fringe Weird, interesting but still searching for a soul. Its been on the, ahem, fringe, of our cut list for a few weeks. Still on DVR probation.
10. 30 Rock Im trying to get into it, but its just not happening. Chuckles, but no gut-busters.
10. Greys Anatomy Its about time to tell my wife that shes on her own on this one.
Recent Cuts:
The Mentalist While I know its the biggest hit among new shows, and my wife loves the show, Im just not into it. I was one and done with this show.
CSI The original of the franchise got dropped two seasons ago when it became in the same time slot as The Office and Greys Anatomy. Our DVR only handles two shows at a time. We did record Grissoms farewell show, though, which I havent yet watched.
Actually, the DVR already is filling up. A busy schedule at work and at home usually renders the actual network lineup useless, except for purposes of knowing what to record to watch later, and when. It is extremely rare for me to watch anything live anymore, except for news and sports.
So the shows usually pile up on the recorder, left to watch in bunches over weekends. Which might tell you what kind of life I have!
A danger of having a DVR is that you tend to watch more shows, because you can watch them when you want. Network television offerings, I think, have been pretty strong the past five years or so, meaning the roster of shows we record has gotten longer.
Ive reached a breaking point, however. We record more shows that we have time to watch, given our schedule. So weve spent the past few weeks chipping away at that list.
The most notable casualty this fall and winter has been Heroes. The NBC show is officially off our roster, the dozen or so shows deleted (unwatched) from our DVR. It was a decision we put off for months. In its first season, Heroes, was a great new show. But the finale of season one was lacking, and the slump carried into the abbreviated second season. By the time Season 3 started this September, our interest in the show had waned. We put off watching the season debut, then week after week wed record the shows but never be interested enough to actually watch them. Finally, about two months after it had aired, we watched the two-hour season opener ... and were bored. A few weeks later, we decided wed never catch up, and put the delete button to work.
But some other shows are on notice. Here is my list of DVR priorities for network television shows. It would be great if, after reading my list, youd share yours. What shows cant you miss? What shows are you ready to part with?
My TV priority list:
1. The Office The only show I watch live with any regularity.
2. Lost The weirdest show on television, and I enjoy weirdness.
3. Chuck Ed meets Alias. Great stuff.
4. 24 Was in the top two before an awful season in 2007. First four hours this year have been promising.
5. ER Still strong. Archie Morris has quietly become my favorite character.
6. Desperate Housewives Guilty pleasure. Mindless, but entertaining.
7. Life on Mars Great (and slightly weird) show that nobody else seems to like. ABC promises its coming back; Im remaining skeptical.
8. House Good show, but growing a little tired.
9. Fringe Weird, interesting but still searching for a soul. Its been on the, ahem, fringe, of our cut list for a few weeks. Still on DVR probation.
10. 30 Rock Im trying to get into it, but its just not happening. Chuckles, but no gut-busters.
10. Greys Anatomy Its about time to tell my wife that shes on her own on this one.
Recent Cuts:
The Mentalist While I know its the biggest hit among new shows, and my wife loves the show, Im just not into it. I was one and done with this show.
CSI The original of the franchise got dropped two seasons ago when it became in the same time slot as The Office and Greys Anatomy. Our DVR only handles two shows at a time. We did record Grissoms farewell show, though, which I havent yet watched.
