SNL, what else could it be? And it’s still on - whether it ever improved, I dunno.
Fringe. I don’t like any of the characters. Which is a shame, because it seems to otherwise be a great genre show that people love.
I have given it multiple tries, but gave up halfway through season 1.
Inversely I love the characters in White Collar, but think the episodes are poorly structured and directed and I lose interest.
After Lem died on The Shield, I stopped watching. I loathed Shane so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so much that I just couldn’t stomach another second of that show. I keep telling myself I’ll watch the last 2 (? I think) seasons one day and I’ve never read spoilers for how the series ended. But I honestly don’t think I ever will. I could barely stand to watch Justified because just seeing Walton Goggins brought back all that deep, deep loathing.
Deadwood. I love all the characters except the main protagonist. He’s flat and uninteresting to me. I can’t understand his popularity.
Data from TNG.
I’m sorry - I know the fans like him, and Brent Spiner is a fine actor, but as written, that whole superhuman-yet-naive, what-is-this-thing-you-humans-call-love persona of his drove me up the wall. Everytime he’d say something “funny” about not understanding emotions, I’d imagine a trombone going *wa-wa-waaaaaaaa *in the background.
I liked Coupling, but I really didn’t like Jane (not enough to abandon the show, however). I think the character was supposed to be a little bit annoying, and a lot funny; to me, the proportions were reversed.
Until she showed up with Jake the Truth Snake. Gina Bellman is absolutely freakin’ hysterical in that scene. For a moment like that, all was forgiven.
Peggy made King of the Hill unwatchable for me. I’ve caught a few episodes that I thought were pretty good (that featured little or no Peggy), but I soon found that it wasn’t worth tuning in. Come to think of it, most of the female characters are unpleasant in some way.
The King of Queens would have been a watchably run-of-the-mill sitcom, except most of the B-plots are “Arthur ruins everything by being horribly unpleasant”.
Any American programme that features someone who is supposed to be a West Indian, whether its Buffy or Futurama.
I don’t stop watching but it really,really grates.
Americans just can’t seem to do the accent.
Have yet to see one programme where they’ve done it evenly remotely convincingly.
How about these young ladies?
I couldn’t make it past episode 1 of Treme because of Steve Zahn’s character. I’ll probably go back to it one day but he put me off the show completely.
Ross from Friends is unbearable sometimes, as I’ve gotten older I’ve drifted away from the show anyway but Ross is a bit part of why I realised it wasn’t as funny as I thought it was. I still like the rest of the cast.
I don’t have a cite but I remember reading that the show’s creator Ilene Chaiken based the character of Jenny Schecter on her navel-gazing self. Can’t stand Jenny, though I do think Mia Kirshner’s a pretty fine actress.
Also: I don’t love love CSI: Miami though it’s generally fun for what it is - a pretty Music Video O’ Science. But hells bells I cannot stand David Caruso.
Thought of another one: Grey’s Anatomy. Now, it wasn’t a great show that I “loved”, but it was entertaining. The plots were a bit overblown, but I get sucked into medical drama. Then all of a sudden I realized - none of these characters have any redeeming qualities whatsoever. It’s a show about the most selfish people on television. I couldn’t watch another episode.
It was actually Brenda (Crazy Lady, played by the otherwise wonderful Rachel Griffiths) who turned me off SFU. When she started her nympho-cheater phase I couldn’t stand her. I think that was around when I stopped watching, although I do remember personally seeing the confrontation when Nathan twigged to her crap.
Royal Pains:
I watched this when it first came on, and found myself enjoying it. Except…
The idiot brother of the main character. I found myself muttering 'shut up, shut up, shut up" whenever the character was on the screen. So I decided to stop watching.That’s the one.
2 1/2 Men would be so much better without Charlie.
Family Guy: I can only stand Stewie and Brian.
Ha. No one’s mentioned mine - I pretty much find the Simpsons painful because I really hate Homer. I used to find him semi-funny but every year as I grow older I find the “dumb guy” character more and more painful to watch and I just don’t do it anymore. I don’t care if he is the butt monkey. He’s still annoying.
My wife detest the character of Tony DiNozzo on NCIS so much that even though it is one of our favorite shows, she constantly gripes about how much she hates the guy.
What is really interesting is that the actor, Michael Weatherly, played one of her favorite characters, Logan Cale, on Dark Angel.
Weatherly is obviously quite good at this acting thing. He probably should do it for a living.
I liked Data just fine. But I can’t stand to watch Brent Spiner play any other character, and I particularly disliked it when he took Data out of character, due to possession or a glitchy emotion chip or whatever.
I nearly stopped watching Six Feet Under because I was creeped out by Arthur, the mortuary intern who was snuggling with Ruth.