Jessica Alba–Dark Angel
Allison Hannigan–Buffy
Kristin Kreuk–Superboy Suck-Fest
Eliza Dushku–Tru Calling Nadia Bjorlin–Days of Our Lives
Vanessa Lengies–American Dreams (Every time I see that nose I almost plotz.)
Samaire Armstrong–Thee O.C. (Because it’s thee Orange County.)
Jolene Blalock–That Damn Star Trek Show W/ That Quantum Leap Guy (As long as she isn’t a blonde.)
Catherine Bell–Single Female Military Lawyer
Jennifer Garner–Alias
Katie Holmes–Dawson’s Crick
Jessica Biel–The Preacher & Family Show
Kelly Monaco–General Hospital
Stacy Keibler–Wrasslin’
Jennifer Love Hewitt–What was she on??
Portia DelRossi–Single Female Lawyer
Exceptions:
Portia DelRossi–Arrested Development
Paige Davis–Trading Spaces
Shego–Kim Possible (But she’s a cartoon, dammit!)
More evidence that the universe hates me.
It is odd. I’ll tune into a movie or TV show I normally wouldn’t care about if it has one of my favorite actors (someone like Johnny Depp, Ed Norton, Bruce Campbell, or Christopher Walken), but an actress I like is usually not enough to get me to watch.
I’ve never made time for Charmed, despite starring the gorgeous Rose McGowan AND Alyssa Milano. The idea of watching Dawson’s Creek turned my stomach, so too bad, so sad, Katie Holmes. Jennifer Connelly is one of my favorite actresses, and probably my #1 celebrity crush ever since she made The Rocketeer, but I STILL won’t go see her in terribly depressing-looking films like House of Sand and Fog or Requiem For a Dream.
My biggest exception is 30-Minute Meals With Rachael Ray. I’ll usually stick around, whether I’m interested in what meal she’s making or not. However, she’s so awesome at what she does, I’m usually as interested in the meal as I am in her!
The actresses you’ve listed are all young, pretty women. You’re not interested in them because you think that they’re great actresses but because you think that they’re really hot. That sort of eye-candy actress is, for obvious reasons, mostly found in mediocre TV shows where the emphasis isn’t on the weak plotlines but on the looks of the actors and actresses. As long as these shows have lots of viewers who think the actors and actresses are hot, why should the networks bother with getting good scripts for the shows?
Kelly Rippa is another one. She’s on that show with that other hot chick. I don’t even know the name of the show, but I really don’t like it, but I end up watching it after a long day of work just to veg out.
Actually, I said that they’re in mediocre TV series, not that they are mediocre actresses. As to the quality of their acting, well, all I said was that at the moment they’re just eye candy. Who knows whether they will be great actresses? They’re not being challenged in the parts they have at the moment. Probably some of them will eventually mature into great actresses. One or two of them will probably eventually get an Oscar and give interviews in which she makes fun of the silly roles she did as a young actress. And that will be somewhat disingenuous, since the only reason she was hired for those silly roles was because she was hot-looking when she was young.
The producers of those TV shows don’t care whether the leads are great actresses because all they care worry about are good ratings, and they’ve found that a hot young women is sufficient to insure good ratings. The actresses themselves don’t care as long as they are getting well paid for a steady acting job (and getting some experience toward the day when they can get better roles). And you apparently don’t care that the scripts are no good, because you watch the shows anyway. As long as the quality of the scripts doesn’t affect the ratings of the shows, why should the networks care that such shows are, at some level, not very good?
js_africanus: looking at your list, I almost wonder whether there is anyshow you like. I mean, Buffy, come on!
BTW, Jennifer Love Hewitt was (like Jennifer Garner) on the sitcom Time of your life. I know because I watched a couple of eps.
I find it impressive that you actually are able to watch a show with a hot babe and still manage to keep your critical faculties up and running. I tend to go ‘Wow’ and not care about the quality of plot or writing anymore.
I’m confused. How do you know that the shows are bad if you’ve never watched them? In any case, somebody out there is watching those shows mostly because he thinks the actresses are hot.
Wow, if you hate all those shows, you must have terrible taste. I mean, I watch/watched five of those shows, and I have great taste so… What do you watch, reality TV? CNN? Cop shows?
Jenna Elfman is extraordinarily hot, and quite a charming actress, but I’ve never been particularly impressed by Dharma and Greg. I’m not even sure if it’s still on.
Perhaps the greatest ever confluence between a talented and gorgeous actress and a fantastic show was Claire Danes in My So Called Life.
I didn’t say they’re bad, I said I hate them. I didn’t say I’ve never seen them, I said I don’t watch them. Now stop gas-lighting me. I don’t do Happy Crazy, so don’t make me snap. Think of the children.
I’m not a writer. It took effort to craft that straight line. Throw me a bone!
Arrested Development, Trading Spaces, & Kim Possible. Simpsons. Otherwise, it’s channel surfing for hours. Maybe I gotta go back to Ritalin, or kick up the Concerta. It’s pretty sad when you realize that you don’t even have the attention span for television. I can’t even remember the last time I sat down and read a book. My life sucks.
I know what the OP means. I’m a liberal Democrat and yet I tune into the Fox News Channel’s morning blabfest “Fox & Friends” just to watch lovely Lauren Green read the news headlines. Yes, I am pathetic.
I mean, Buffy, come on!
I mean, I watch/watched five of those shows, and I have great taste so… 
What do you watch, reality TV? CNN? Cop shows?