Reality Shows

[Devanshu]

I caught ten minutes of the new Joe Millionare series and man, fox dug deep and found the biggest golddiggers in europe. Which one do you think is the worst?

[tgpo]

Missing Option:

All Reality Shows suck.

[jeex]

you also forgot the "tgpo sucks" option

[Will Hay]

you also forgot the "tgpo sucks" option

Oh great, another classic one-liner from jeeeeeeeeeeeecks
Will

[Gees]

Worst is whatever is clogging the channels at the time. I hate them all. :cP

[i_am_dave]

Although it can be the most entertaining, I chose Fear Factor. Man, there is a law suit waiting to happen.
If someone pulled that on me, right after they told me I was on fear factor, I would pull out a major can of whup-ass and let it rip!

[tgpo]

I wonder what PETA thinks about Fear Factor

[Faustus]

I voted other, it stands for all. They all suck and they always have. I wish people would get over this tripe and let TV go back to normal.

[Devanshu]

I voted other, it stands for all. They all suck and they always have. I wish people would get over this tripe and let TV go back to normal.

Here Here

[Craig Tucker]

What, no Big Brother

[Devanshu]

What, no Big Brother

I knew I was forgetting something.

The reason I didnt put "All of them suck" as an option because I happen to like fear factor at times...its funny to see what some people would do for money.

[tgpo]

you also forgot the "tgpo sucks" option

Yeah, that does seem to be missing from the poll.

[Tommyknocker]

Where is the option for all of the above. They stink on ice.

[VCDHunter]

I can watch Fear Factor mainly because I think Rogan is a funny standup, but infact ALL reality shows suck. Big Brother is the one that really sucked and showed just how stupid people are - a few of my friends included ! How on earth anyone can sit through an hour of complete **** heads doing nothing is beyond me, and the amount of column inches this tat commanded is staggering. I never used to watch the **** myself unless I was round a mates and it was on there, even then I sat there for the hour slagging the show off. Big Brother ? Televised Squatting.

[Devanshu]

I can watch Fear Factor mainly because I think Rogan is a funny standup

I know what you mean. Its funny to see him making fun of people on fear factor at his new job(the man show). He even made fun of the show on leno the other day.

[g_shocker182]

What's the TV programming like in England compared to the US. Maybe someone whose been to both places can tell me...

[thayne]

How about "All of the above"?

[Devanshu]

How about this, if you think "All of the above", vote other.

[rhegedus]

What's the TV programming like in England compared to the US. Maybe someone whose been to both places can tell me...

Pretty shit - most of it appeals to the lowest common denominator: reality TV, soaps, celebrity programs (like what am I meant to be celebrating, exactly?) etc.

About the only thing I watch on terrestrial TV anymore is the news and a few documentaries.

Can't wait for the new season of Top Gear!

[Faustus]

Because of the hours I work I actually listen to more Radio then watch TV, what little TV I watch usually consist of Aqua teen hunger force and sealab 2021 on Sunday night which is one of my only days off.

On odd days when I'm off and not involved in something else I grow board with the TV usually. So I watch alot of history channel and wish my Sat. provider would pump in BBC news 24/7.

[Craig Tucker]

rhegedus

I will agree that there is a lot of crap on UK TV, but there is also a lot of excellent programming.

[rhegedus]

No doubt there is, but I'm having difficulty remembering the last non-news thing I saw from start to finish on terrestrial TV.

I sat down to watch the Pompeii program on BBC the other night and got bored by the dramatisation. What ever happenned to Horizon and QED style documentaries?

[Craig Tucker]

Did you watch any of the Seven wonders of the industrial world series. I only watched a couple of them, but they were very interesting. The working conditions these people had to put up with back then does not bear thinking about.

You also have the "walking with" series of programs which were excellent, and several programs with Robert Winstone which I found enjoyable.

[rhegedus]

Completely missed it - and it looked like a damn good series too! When was it on - was it tucked away at some unearthly hour?

I saw a documentary on the Hoover Dam on Discovery a while back (good source of documentaries) and was utterly amazed by the figures involved. They had to put refrigerator pipes into the walls otherwise the concrete would still be hot and not set after all these years

[Craig Tucker]

It was not on late about 9pm, not sure of the day, could have been Sundays. The Hoover Dam was cast in box sections and refrigerated. It was stated on the program that if it was possible to cast it all in one go it would have taken 125 years to cool down

[rhegedus]

Tried to find it at the BBC Shop - fat chance! The one program probably worth the license fee, and I miss it

[Craig Tucker]

Bit early to be realesed on DVD yet, its only just been aired. Fingers crossed they may well release it.

[Gees]

I sat down to watch the Pompeii program on BBC the other night and got bored by the dramatisation. What ever happenned to Horizon and QED style documentaries?

I enjoyed that program a lot. I didn't mind the special effects combined with factual info. It does seem to be a trend.

I also like Time Commanders on BBC. It's presented as a game show, of sorts, with a team of 4 trying their hand at famous battles, but then factual info of how the battle actually played out is shown and discussed.

They use computer graphics on large screens - similar to a lot of popular RTS computer games - but it's effective and makes a subject that could easily bore me much more interesting. :c)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctwo/listings/programme.shtml?service_id=4224&FILENAME=20031023..._4224_26285_60

if anyone wants to check it out. :c)

[rhegedus]

Yes the effects were good, I just felt the program was spoiled by the actors - the lives they portrayed didn't really add to the mix. The facts were minimal - not enough geology, chemistry or archaeology to make it worthwhile, IMHO.

[Gees]

I see. :c) Well, what I did learn was a lot more than I'd always assumed - without researching it myself. I always thought they were killed by lava. That was wrong. And I'd never have guessed there were any eyewitness accounts by a survivor.

I do agree that most programming is geared toward "the masses" and you really do have to seek out specialised channels to subscribe to for more indepth information.

But, having said that, I think some of the techniques used recently do perform a service by making history and science more accessible to a larger audience.

I don't mind a little entertainment value in "educational" programming, as long as I come away having learned something.

And any of it is better than any of the shows that are the original subject of this thread. I think the whole trend of these "reality" shows isn't just trash, but worrying trash. I wish they'd die a quick death.