I’ll watch the full pilot of almost every show.
After that, if the tv reviewers that I like say good things about a show or the show has a good pedigree (actors, showrunners, writers that I like) I’ll often try another episode or two just to see if it gets better.
Some shows start with a great pilot, some don’t. So just watching the pilot shouldn’t be enough … but some shows are so bad out of the gate that you can Stop Right There. Tried the pilots of ~3 sitcoms this season that were clearly bad. (E.g., The New Girl.)
Went about ~3 episodes in on Whitney. One episode of A Gifted Man. Two episodes of The Playboy Club.
One hour dramas I sometimes try out longer: E.g., Parenthood I stuck with for over a year. (Just because of the cast.)
I gave up on Modern Family about a month ago. Too high a ratio of predictable to fresh stuff.
The later two are rare cases of something I watched for a significant time before giving up on.
For sheer perversion I sometimes watch episodes of a really awful show just to be amazed at what the put on the air. E.g., $#! My Dad Says* from last year. I also tried doing that with Running Wilde but that was too painful to watch MST2K style.
I dread the day I will stop watching The Simpsons. It is coming soon. South Park is close behind.
I gave up on Modern Family about a month ago.
I did that with Desperate Housewives. Followed the show and actually liked it for awhile. Then I realized I watched it because Terry Hatcher is the foxiest woman on the Planet and that the show sort of sucked. it has been on 7 more years but havent watched an episode since Angela Basset and kids were on.
What happened to Bree’s son. He was a piece of shit.
Well, Mr. Sunshine sucked. But I admire your wife’s tenacity.
If I’m interested enough to try a new show I usually give it at least half a season. Seinfeld didn’t hit it’s stride until somewhere in the second year.
I think it takes awhile for a show, if it has any meat on it’s bones, to become comfortable in it’s own skin. It’s kind of like falling in love; the relationships that last usually grow on you over a period of time.
Just remembered…
Months after Seinfeld ended I dreamed about an episode of my own concoction. It involved Kramer getting run over by a skateboard.
When I woke up, I think I felt like an ex-heroin addict who’d got a dose of Methodone.
I didn’t mention it before but I’m also a good judge as to what I like, so I know what shows I will probably like in advance.
My ultimate example of not giving up too quickly is Bob’s Burgers. The pilot was only so-so and even the next 2 episodes were a bit dull, but once it got into it’s own I LOVED that show.
American Dad took a couple seasons but that show is gold to me too
-1 season. If it’s good enough to get to a 2nd season I’ll give it a shot, and then it has 3 episodes to impress me.
Assuming that the premise sounds interesting in the first place, I’ll give a show two episodes to see if it clicks. That’s what I gave Terra Nova and Whitney.
I couldn’t even get that far with New Girl. I watched ten minutes of it, and didn’t even understand what the characters were talking about. When a show needs a translator, I’ll pass.
The only new program this season that’s held my attention longer than two episodes is Person of Interest.
On the other hand, when The Big Bang Theory premiered, I didn’t bother watching because the premise sounded hokey. I started watching on a friend’s recommendation when season 1 was in reruns. It soon became one of my favorite sitcoms ever, up there with The Odd Couple, Taxi, and Barney Miller.
I try not to judge a show by its pilot. In about four out of five cases, the pilot is the most atypical episode of the series. Too much time is spent setting up the basic situation to judge what a typical episode will be like, and the actors haven’t had enough time yet to develop any chemistry and timing.
I haven’t watched any of this season’s new shows, but last spring I finally gave up on House. Did it get better? I mean I love Hugh Laurie in all the British comedy stuff I’ve seen him in, and I liked House for years, but then it got old and became a chore.
But to address the subject, when I do try out a new series, I generally give it 4-5 episodes to find its place before dumping it if I think it sucks.
It takes me a long time before I’ll even sample a drama. I’ve had too many of them I like get canceled on me.
It depends with sitcoms. If I find the characters appealing, I’ll forgive lame writing for a couple of episodes. If the writing is exceptionally good, I may let unappealing characters slide, at least for awhile.
I believe my fastest channel change for unappealing characters and bad writing was 12 minutes.
I switched off “Drive” when about 20 minutes in a character made a comment about being in Florida and there were arid mountains in the background.
Until it starts sucking for half as long as it was good. If season 1 was good, I’ll give it half a sucky 2nd season to improve. If it had a great run for several years, I’ll hold out hope for a season or two more. If the cold open sucks, that’s it.
If a friend who has good taste has recommended it, I’ll give it a few extra episodes.
Opal, I finally gave up on House a few episodes ago. The last time I thought it was regularly good was a few seasons ago.
Thanks, glad to hear I didn’t drop it right before it got amazingly great or something.
This is how things work for me too. I usually watch at least the pilot episodes in their entirety but there were a couple this year that didn’t make that milestone. I’ve found a couple of shows this year that I was unimpressed with the pilot but that watching later ones changed my mind - Person of Interest and Prime Suspect both fall into this category.
It depends really. If a channel shows a commercial for the new show during every commercial break, chances are it’s going to suck, but I’ll still give it 1 episode to prove me wrong. (Bob’s Burgers, Allen Gregory, I’m looking your way.)
Scifi and fantasy shows I’ll usually give it a season to get going. If I didn’t do this, I wouldn’t have watched Charmed, Buffy, Angel, Stargate SG1 and Atlantis, Eureka, Warehouse 13, etc.
Cartoons I’ll usually give it 15 minutes or so.
That was both The Sopranos and Battlestar Galactica for me. Watched the pilot for the former, the miniseries for the latter, didn’t feel compelled. Every critic in the world went insane for The Sopranos, so I gave it another shot a few years later and fell in love. Battlestar was something my girlfriend sold really hard, so I decided what’s the worst? Now it’s one of my all-time favorite shows.
I can usually tell by the promo that I won’t like something. My husband is more patient than I, so I end up seeing much more than I would on my own, and I have yet to be won over. He loves Bones and Criminal Minds, and I find both to be tedious and predictable, or utterly annoying when a miraculous solution pops out of thin air. He’s always loved Two and a Half Men - I barely tolerate it.
Since I heard so much about Mad Men, I started watching it on Netflix. I’ve seen 2 episodes. I don’t think I’ll waste any more time with it.
Honestly, I find myself more drawn to documentaries these days. Mostly they don’t insult my intelligence.