What's With Cable Channels Majorly Sucking Lately? - Sign of the Times???

[JohnCrichton]

What's with MTV, VH1, and the Sci-Fi Chanel(and Cartoon Network, a little...)

Each seemed to have its missions and now they've all strayed off the path and are just crap lately.

I don't watch MTV or VH1 much, but I've seen their content on the TV Guide Channel and they've been playing some weird stuff.

LIke E on MTV?? Then E on MTV being on VH1... VH1 playing movies that don't have jack to do with music..... Sci-Fi Channel now being the B-Movie of Any Genre Channel.

What's going on, lately?

[czyznyck99]

Cable TV was never big on original programming. You're just paying the media for 90% of stuff you could care less about. I think there was a law that took effect in October making it legal for subscribers to pick their own channels, thus lowering the cost significantly. Anyway, it does stink.

Later.

[RogueMartian]

Cable isn't really that bad. I'm sort of glad Sci-Fi shows the B movies, its kind of cool watching them sometimes. Cartoon Network is doing okay. Their regular cartoons are getting kinda stale, but at least adult swim and toonami is there to break it up.

As for MTV or VH1, they've been going further and further downhill for years. They were barely tolearable when I was in high school, but now they seem to be completely unwatchable. MTV may be getting some of its edge back if they introduce cartoons again. I really miss the good ole days of Daria and Celebrity Deathmatch. But we have TNN now (all hail TNN for showing Star Trek: TNG), TBS and TNT late night are still the best place for watching great 80s flicks, and there's other channels.

When all else fails, there are other things you can be doing, if you find TV unentertaining, its probably a good idea to just turn it off.

[Jedigreedo]

VH1's got a good extra VH1 channel, they do some 1 hour things on the VH1 regular channel that's based around the other channel, it's called VH1 Megahits and they're pretty good. I've never seen them stray off of showing videos except for commercial breaks which are everyonce in awhile and usually they'll have VH1 related commercials but if it's not a regular commercial break then they show one commercial (VH1 related) and go right back to the videos. They also show a good range of videos, alot better than the MTV channels.

Either way though, yes cable channels do seem to be staling. I think it's mainly because instead of actually interesting things they just do things that are sure to get ratings and such.

I haven't seen PopUp Video on VH1 in awhile... :(

[Chris Wood]

The saddest thing of all is the decline of the SciFi channel. It used to be a place to watch cool anime, classic scifi shows, and MST3K. Now it's just tons of crap so awful that not even the MST3K reviewers would dare watch. Who wants to see terrible B-movies that have virtually nothing to do with scifi??? What a waste.

[DR.MID-NITE]

Lets See...

MTV: I remember when I was in high school in the 80's. MTV actually played music videos.

SCI-FI: Recently watched a show I had taped off them in the mid 90's. They had such great shows in their syndication lineup (ie-Flash,Battlestar Galactica, Amazing Stories). Now we get John Edwards, crappy movies and Abduction stories. And Steven Spielberg has the nerve to call them a great station for scifi. How they have fallen.

TNN: How can anyone be happy with this station. Great content, but they have that horrible black bar that stays on continuously during a show.

FX: Used to show great shows (ie-Vegas, Mission Impossible, In Living Color). Now they still show some good shows. But, they overun them. How much can I watch MASH, X-Files and 90210.

[Jeff Harris]

Originally posted by DR.MID-NITE
Lets See...

MTV: I remember when I was in high school in the 80's. MTV actually played music videos.
Well, MTV shows an average of 15 1/2 hours of videos per weekday, considerably more videos than a network called Video Hits One (about 10 hours per weekday, on average).

My other problem with VH1 is that they've gotten the strange behavior of showing a lot of non-music programming like movies like Top Gun and The Godfather and specials like The Funniest Game Show Moments and Before They Were Stars.



SCI-FI: Recently watched a show I had taped off them in the mid 90's. They had such great shows in their syndication lineup (ie-Flash,Battlestar Galactica, Amazing Stories). Now we get John Edwards, crappy movies and Abduction stories. And Steven Spielberg has the nerve to call them a great station for scifi. How they have fallen.Sci-Fi? Too many changes in management, too little concentration on this genre called science-fiction, and fricken John Edwards. Sci-Fi Channel used to be THE station to watch. Now? Eh.


TNN: How can anyone be happy with this station. Great content, but they have that horrible black bar that stays on continuously during a show.Great content? TNN? Two words that don't go together. Seriously, end-to-end Star Trek repeats, crappy made-for-cable "sports" like Slamball and Thunderdome, and repeats of jiggle television. Hardly great content. To be honest, I think it was better when it was The Nashville Network.



FX: Used to show great shows (ie-Vegas, Mission Impossible, In Living Color). Now they still show some good shows. But, they overun them. How much can I watch MASH, X-Files and 90210. Well, they don't air X-Files anymore (that's now on TNT and Sci-Fi), and come September, they won't air M.A.S.H.

Their only redeeming show is the Emmy-winning series The Shield. Pretty raw, but it is a diversion from the various "World's" specials they air ad-nauseum.

[JDuncan]

I think that Comedy Centrals gone more downhill than any other cable station. They only have two original live-action shows (excluding game shows and news shows) and South Park which, with the exception of a good episode every now and then, has gone incedibly downhill. Crank Yankers is just a bad idea poorly executed, and The Man Show has run out of ideas. What happened to the days of Upright Citizens Brigade and Strangers With Candy?

[Andy Mancini]

Originally posted by Jeff Harris
Great content? TNN? Two words that don't go together. Seriously, end-to-end Star Trek repeats, crappy made-for-cable "sports" like Slamball and Thunderdome, and repeats of jiggle television. Hardly great content. To be honest, I think it was better when it was The Nashville Network.
Hmm... Would I rather be watching reruns of "The Real McCoys" and Dolly Parton, or "Slamball" and Pamela Anderson-Lee-Kid Rock? Well, the jury's still out on this one, but at the prestent moment, I'm leaning towards the McCoys and Parton.

As far as networks on the downhill slide goes, I'm surprized that no one brought up Nickelodeon yet. Heck, that is the crappy cable network as far as I'm concerned.

[Condiment King]

MTV: Music Television is the name. Sure, they show some music but not enough.

VH1: Strange specials, movies that have nothing to do with music...etc.

Sci-Fi: Not really Science Fiction anymore. John Edwards? How could you? :p

Nickelodeon: Why do people call this network Nickelodeon still? This is obviously MTV Jr. Too much TeenNick and SNICK junk that is supposed to be aimed towards teenagers but clearly isn't the right age level there. Not much cartoons either. Music videos every day on supposedly on "The First Kids Network" is annoying beyond words.

Cartoon Network: Too many Cartoon Cartoon showings. Other than that, thumbs up.

TNN: Overloading on new shows. Star Trek, CSI, Slamball, etc.

FX: They took off some classic shows....

[mbaker]

Di$ney Channel: With the exception of maybe "Kim Possible", and "House Of Mouse", Di$ney Channel has been going downhill for many years. You shouldn't limit your audience to just kids you know, and lame ideas can only last so long!

MTV: It's called "Music Television, you idiots!!. Not "Miscellanies Television"!! Now start playing more videos, Okay?!? Some good animation couldn't hurt either!


VH1: Start airing programs that are "MUSIC" related!! Some more video airplay couldn't hurt either.


Sci-Fi: Your A Channel devoted to Science Fiction, not "The All B-Movie Network"!

Nickelodeon: Get yourself, A backbone! Stop pandering to the lowest common denominator, Stop being dependant on Klasky-Csupo, and give some of your other shows A second chance! (Zim, anyone?)

Cartoon Network: Not much to complain about here. (Although the Promotions for Unicef, and Verb have me spooked.) Thumbs up.

TNN: Not much here. Hope your adult animation block is any good. By the way, The New The National Network dosen't sound like good grammer if you ask me.

FX: I couldn't hurt to bring some of your shows back on the schedule.

[Chris Sanders MSX]

It depends on what you watch on each Network.

Like on MTV I stick to The Real World, The Osbornes, Occasionally Tough Enough, 3-South and when it's on Undressed. Intrestingly none of these "technically" shows has anything to do with Music.

On VH1- Well I watched the Battle of The Cover Bands and Bands on The Run but this was last year and haven't found anything
worth watching on it lately.

On CN, there's nothing wrong with CN except that we can't get those last 4 Zoids episodes. Other than that, no complaints...CN gives us what we want and what we wish for pretty much most of the time.

On TNN, I used to watch WWE, but I've lost intrest for now. But that Game show where the people don't know it's a game show is pretty good.

Disney Channel, there's nothing wrong with this either but what soem of you guys fail to realize is that they aren't making a network for us.....It's really a kids network. Keep that prespective and you shouldn't have a reason to complain. They have quite a few good shows..It's like CN but just for tweens and under.

Nick- Kiss off, what you guys did to Zim (Points at Avatar) you are the worst in my eyes. But if I wasn't so biased I'd say your doing alright but you were much much much better in the early days when you were actually dedicated to making shows kids and your "teen" fans love. Now iit just seems all you care about is cashing in.

Comedy Central, I can't complain. It's funny, every movie and every show. You can't exclude The Daily Show or anything else when you say Live Action Original Content. And with the addition of UnderGrad's, the return of Duckman/The Critic and The Upcoming ClerksTAS TV airings, I say again, I can't complain !

[ZorBrak]

What pisses me off is that my reception seems to be fuzzier than it used to, I am going to start taping off of my friend's Digital cable instead of my own if they don't fix this fuzzy crap.