# TV shows that haven't changed names, but should **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 13, 2010, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362 "2010-05-13T23:39:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Max\_the\_Immortal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/21 "2010-05-15T02:51:00Z")
> [@Larry\_Mudd](#): > > _Alan_ is the half-measure of the household, isn’t he? **Two and a Half Men** ’s title is probably the cleverest thing about the whole show. Jake is half a man because he’s just a kid. Alan is half a man because he’s been thoroughly emasculated by his divorce (and he was a real wiener to begin with). Charlie is half a man because he’s never really worked for anything for anything in his life, never been in a serious relationship (at least at the outset of the series), etc. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/22 "2010-05-18T05:13:10Z")
I don’t think anyone’s mentioned it yet, but **Smallville** should be called **Metropolis** these days. (it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s super-Woooosh) Most episodes have the action set in Metropolis, with maybe one token scene in Clark’s barn, Luthor Manor, or Chloie and Lois’s apartment. And why do Chloie and Lois even live in Smallville? Isn’t that a hell of a commute for them? Clark I get, super speed, yadda yadda. **How I Met Your Mother** more like **How I Slept With A Bunch of Women Before I Met Your Mother, WAIT These Stories Aren’t Really Appropriate For A Father To Tell His Teenagers, Also, Why Do I Sound Like Bob Saget Now?** Too late now, but they should’ve changed **Scrubs** to **Med School** like the creator wanted. It really was a totally different show with a few of the same characters. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/23 "2010-05-18T06:30:21Z")
> [@pepperlandgirl](#): > > **Mythbusters** should be called **We Blow Stuff Up But Good**. I have nothing against blowing stuff up good, but I don’t think they’ve dealt with any actual myths or urban legends for years. Or **Stuff From Movies that Couldn’t Happen Under Any Realistic Circumstances**. It’s not their fault the urban legends thing dried up somewhat; Snopes moved on from those years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Leiko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Leiko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leiko)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/24 "2010-05-18T07:43:30Z")
> [@Jim\_s\_Son](#): > > In sports, NASCAR has not had stock cars since about 1965. If you ever see some videos of races from the 1950s, one thing emphasized was how all the parts used in these cars could be bought in your local auto parts store. > > And in baseball, having only one Canadian team hardly qualifies as a World Series. I can’t justify NASCAR’s name, but on the baseball side of things, some of the way-down-the-ladder minor leagues are in the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. Does that help at all? ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/25 "2010-05-20T16:04:04Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Or **Stuff From Movies that Couldn’t Happen Under Any Realistic Circumstances**. It’s not their fault the urban legends thing dried up somewhat; Snopes moved on from those years ago. Eh, they’re still doing some things that answer actual questions. From Wiki, regarding this season: Could a medieval army have used trees to catapult dead bodies over a castle wall? Can you escape an explosive shockwave by diving in water? What’s worse, having an empty beer bottle smashed over your head, or a full one? (Also proving the point that bottles don’t smash nicely on people’s heads like in most movies.) Are some types of people more tolerant to pain? Can a BBQ propane tank heat up enough in a fire to launch through a garage roof like a rocket? They also proved the point that two cars hitting at the same speeds in opposite directions make a wreck like one of the cars hitting a wall. I teach science, but I had that one wrong. They made a good point (after getting it wrong themselves). ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/26 "2010-05-20T16:15:21Z")
> [@TBG](#): > > I don’t think anyone’s mentioned it yet, but **Smallville** should be called **Metropolis** these days. Well, only two people before you at any rate! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/27 "2010-05-20T16:36:25Z")
Not that I have (or WOULD) ever watch a minute of it, but _The Michael Vick Project_ never got a proper name. Until shows get a proper title, they’re usually called by “lead actor project” while in production. Was the title _Family Guy_ supposed to be ironic, because except in a couple of early season episodes, Peter hardly gives a rats ass about his family. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/28 "2010-05-20T16:47:15Z")
This is an old one, but the British TV series **The Avengers** only actually did any Avenging in the first few episodes. After that the show’s style, focus, and cast changed in wonderfully bizarre ways. Of the people in Avengers episodes it was possible for me to see, only John steed did any actual avenging. Of course, it’s not really clear to me what else you could’ve called the show. And _The Avengers_ sounds impressive and stylish. > **[The Avengers (TV series)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Avengers_%28TV_series%29)** > > The Avengers is a British espionage television series, created in 1961, that ran for 161 episodes until 1969. It initially focused on David Keel (Ian Hendry), aided by John Steed (Patrick Macnee). Hendry left after the first series; Steed then became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants. His most famous assistants were intelligent, stylish, and assertive women: Cathy Gale (Honor Blackman), Emma Peel (Diana Rigg), and Tara King (Linda Thorson). Dresses and suits for the... ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/29 "2010-05-20T21:10:54Z")
> [@fusoya](#): > > Was the title _Family Guy_ supposed to be ironic, because except in a couple of early season episodes, Peter hardly gives a rats ass about his family. The first few episodes are solely about Peter’s interactions with his family (he really was a Homer Simpson ripoff at first). Right up until “Da Boom”, the Y2K apocalypse episode. After that, anything goes and the Family Guy title more or less doesn’t make any sense. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/30 "2010-05-20T21:48:18Z")
**Heroes** ↓ **Whiny Self-Absorbed Idiots Occasionally Do Things Heroic And Villainous, But Mostly Just Keep Unaccountably Bumping Into Each Other And Failing To Do The Obvious Thing When Presented With It, While Continuing To Forget To Use Their Powers When The Situation Screams For It** ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/31 "2010-05-20T21:55:25Z")
By contrast, _Lost_ becomes more and more apt with each passing episode, at least for me. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/32 "2010-05-20T22:39:34Z")
> [@Jim\_s\_Son](#): > > In sports, NASCAR has not had stock cars since about 1965. If you ever see some videos of races from the 1950s, one thing emphasized was how all the parts used in these cars could be bought in your local auto parts store. > > And in baseball, having only one Canadian team hardly qualifies as a World Series. 😕 I count the Montreal Expos and the Toronto Blue Jays as two teams. Do the Canadians use different numbers for something to qualify as a plural? ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/33 "2010-05-20T22:44:28Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > 😕 > > I count the Montreal Expos and the Toronto Blue Jays as two teams. Do the Canadians use different numbers for something to qualify as a plural? Do you mean the Expos who moved to Washington five or six years ago and became the Nationals? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/34 "2010-05-20T22:49:32Z")
On a more serious note, I’ll always wonder how many potential viewers turned away from this stupid name: **Happy Town**. Really? That’s the best name they could come up with? Maybe with a different name they might have gotten enough people to watch it to keep it from being canceled 3 episodes in. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/35 "2010-05-20T22:56:13Z")
> [@Nametag](#): > > I think you mean _deicide_. He couldn’t deicide whether to use the Greek or Roman root. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/36 "2010-05-20T22:57:17Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > 😕 > > I count the Montreal Expos and the Toronto Blue Jays as two teams. Do the Canadians use different numbers for something to qualify as a plural? > [@Shoeless](#): > > Do you mean the Expos who moved to Washington five or six years ago and became the Nationals? 😉 They did? Dang, I stopped paying attention when the O’Malleys sold the Dodgers to the devil himself, but I could swear I left instructions to be notified when they bought them back, and not to change anything until I returned to the stands. Oh, well. At least being in the National League, they won’t have to play with that horrible designated batsman thingy. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/37 "2010-05-20T23:28:09Z")
> [@Candyman74](#): > > Well, only two people before you at any rate! 🙂 Oh come on, I even pointed out it was a woosh right after what you quoted! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/38 "2010-05-21T07:22:01Z")
> [@Cardinal](#): > > Eh, they’re still doing some things that answer actual questions. From Wiki, regarding this season: Several of the ones you mentioned come from movies and I enjoy the show regardless. A lot of it is movie stuff. I really liked the two cars, though, because they did really get into the physics of it. I’d accepted Jamie’s story about the equivalent forces. Once they revisited the myth and explained the fans’ objection, I thought ‘crap, that sounds right. They screwed it up.’ ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/39 "2010-05-21T08:44:16Z")
They should have renamed The Mentalist when they moved it to the UK. That word is used to mean someone who does cold reading and the like, yes, but it’s much better known as meaning someone who is completely, ridiculously, stupidly insane. It’s still a better title than Painkiller Jane. Seriously, who thought that title was OK for anything but a parody? > [@fusoya](#): > > Was the title _Family Guy_ supposed to be ironic, because except in a couple of early season episodes, Peter hardly gives a rats ass about his family. Yes. This is the theme tune: It seems today that all you see Is violence in movies and sex on TV But where are those Good old-fashioned values On which we used to rely? Lucky there’s a family guy Lucky there’s a man who Positively can do All the things that make us Laugh and cry He’s … a … family … guy! This on a show where there’s tons of sex and violence and Peter flips between actually caring about his family and doing things like sending his teenage daughter off to be murdered by burglars because he wants a sandwich. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362/40 "2010-05-21T10:19:02Z")
> [@Nametag](#): > > I think you mean _deicide_. So Malcolm-Jamal Warner didn’t make a guest appearance? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-havent-changed-names-but-should/539362.md?page=3)