Television: What I Watch

My personal television schedule is ever changing. And the television landscape also continues to change. There are very few shows that go for full seasons any more, at least not in the way we used to mean (September through May). Now programs may only go eight or thirteen episodes instead of 22 to 24, giving way to mini-seasons. And since most people have DVRs, it kind of doesn't matter. You can set your DVR to remember to record something if/when it ever returns after being gone for six or twelve or eighteen months.

So here are the shows I watch . . . When they're on . . .

• Almost Human - yeah, I'm still keeping one eye on this show, though it's a big question mark as to whether it will return next season.
• Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. - (see above)
• Brooklyn Nine-Nine - I find this one ridiculously funny, though the first half of the season was better than the second.
• Revolution - Uh . . . kinda. I haven't been able to get into the past couple episodes, and though I was determined to see out the season, I may not be able to. I just can't care any more.
• Community - Loving Hickey. But I do miss Troy. Think we need a "Collaborative Screenwriting 101" episode. (Speaking from experience here.) Also one that takes place entirely at a 4-way stop. It's the Mexican standoff of driving!
• Elementary - My weekly Sherlock Holmes fix. The plots are kind of ugh, but the characterizations and development arcs are very well done.
• Best Week Ever - Just because. Sometimes you need mindless drivel.
• Game of Thrones
• True Detective - Truly some of the best writing, directing, and acting on television.
• Broadchurch - Runner up for some of the best writing, directing, and acting on television. And I'll probably take a look at Gracepoint when it comes out.
• American Horror Story - Though Coven was not nearly as good as Asylum. And the idea of circuses and freak shows doesn't appeal to me at all. But that's the wonderful thing about a show that reinvents itself each season; you can take or leave each go-round. It's like watching à la carte.

Oh, and yes, Doctor Who and Sherlock. But let's not go into those here.

I had been watching Intelligence, but as with Revolution, I've found I just can't invest. So I dropped it.

But I've been enjoying re-watching Babylon 5 lately, too. Getting the discs from Netflix.

There are, of course, so many shows people say I should watch, but I'd rather not spend my life chained to the television. I've got lots of work, and I like to read, and I do also like to watch the occasional movie. So I try to limit my TV schedule. Though I wouldn't mind finding another good comedy. I miss 30 Rock and The Office, and I used to watch Modern Family, but it ceased to be all that funny, so I quit it. I also used to watch Mad Men and have been thinking of catching up with it again. If and when I find those extra hours . . .