First off, here are two shows I gave up on, which are actually still showing.
The Following - I think I watched about seven episodes before I realized I really wasn't interested. The show relies way too much on techniques that made 24 famous. The twists became so convoluted that they were almost predictable. Also, the writers seemed to be too much intent on pushing the envelope on how violent a TV show could get. Sometimes this is fun, like Kubrick in his movies. But in the case of this show, I just wanted to see more story. Instead I just got empty boredom.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D - I lasted about five episodes. My kids watched it with me. But with the other TV shows going on, this show didn't kindle enough interest to keep watching. My kids loved to tear apart the science. Other than that ... we all just lost interest. Each episode was more of the same. But of course, it's being renewed because of its franchise value ... I suppose.
Also, I'll throw in an honorable mention for Zero Hour, which got cancelled after only a couple of episodes. I saw two episodes, and found it to be somewhat interesting. It was like National Treasure for TV. I think this show could have found a home with a larger audience, but when the show was on TV, it seemed as if nobody knew it was on. Perhaps it died because of poor marketing. For those who are interested, 13 episodes are currently available on Hulu Plus.
Now for the shows I watched till the bitter end...
Alphas (SyFy) - Technically, this ended at the end of 2012, but somehow I missed sending this off. Overall, I was impressed with the cast and the complex relationships. Some of the episodes were hit or miss, and we often saw a lot of "Strange of the Week." But even with these weaknesses, the writers were able to get a good overall arc to the whole show.
My only complaint was that it had not finished when it ended. The bad guy had won (temporarily). Everyone was dead-ish. But you knew that in the next episode, everyone would come back to life. The baddie would be caught, and Season 3 would go underway. However, this isn't what happened, and we have yet another good show that left us hanging.
Thanks a lot, SyFy!
The Office (NBC) - This show went on about seven seasons too long, but the show always seemed to find a way to keep me going with it. When Michael left the show, the remaining characters were sufficiently funny. Though, toward the end, there were a lot of plot lines that didn't do much for me.
The biggest slap to the head was the whole thing about Jim and Pam having marriage "issues." I just found the setup to be heavily convoluted, and we all knew they'd work it out in the end. Kudos for trying to tear them apart, but I wish they had gone with something a little more believable.
The final episode was satisfying. We got to see Michael again, but not as much as I would have liked. We finally got to see the end of the documentary, and how most everyone's life ended up, including a couple of good tear jerkers. It was almost as good as the British final Christmas special.
The show had lots of memorable moments ... the Fire Drill, the Parkour, Dwight and all his antics, Jim and Pam's practical jokes on Dwight, Kevin sticking his feet into the hotel's ice bin, Pam's stupid mural, and so on.
I think I might watch the whole show on Netflix again ...
Touch (FOX) - Several times I complained about the science/math of this show. It's all complete bunk, even though the writers tried to tie everything to the Fibonacci sequence (which does indeed govern all of nature, but can in no way be used to predict what's going to happen). Pythagoras would have eaten up the doctrine, but ... I watched it despite this major annoyance. The story lines were actually interesting. Give me a good story, and I can overlook the <groan> pseudo-science.
In two seasons, I think the show came to a good stopping point. It could have gone farther, but at least we weren't left with a big cliffhanger. Martin is the new protector of the 36. Jake can live with his father. Amelia can lead a normal life. The terrible Aster Corps is destroyed. Yeah!
Though ... I have to say ... weren't there some parts where Martin was a lot like Jack Bauer? Didn't you love the parts where he's all, "Don't hurt me--I'm just a dude watching over his son" and then he's all, "I told you not to mess with me"? Jack Bauer trying to act like a wimp? Yeah, right. Sutherland is now permanently typecasted. Especially when the baddie Ortiz was introduced in Season 2, I had to keep reminding myself that I wasn't watching 24.
Now the show is over, I'll have fond memories. Good luck, Jake! Go do your thing!
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