# Why No Westerns? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 31, 2015, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799 "2015-12-31T04:42:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799/61 "2016-01-08T19:47:43Z")
By definition the antagonist in an action story has to be exaggerated. Criminal isn’t enough. He/she is evil, cruel, vicious and without conscience. The protagonist is honorable, virtuous, and just. That’s the most fundamental structure of drama. The conflict between these two contrasting characters creates conflict and the drama. Political Correctness has robbed story writers of many great villain stereotypes. Now they have to create evil aliens to placate everybody. We’ll lose the Bond villains pretty soon. They are simply misunderstood victims of society. Unloved by their mothers and should be pitied. Shame on James Bond for attacking these poor misguided men. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799/62 "2016-01-08T21:24:52Z")
I think a consequence of the political discomfort we have with the traditional Western these days is that the Western genre has ironically become mostly too high-brow for television. There’s really only two ways to “safely” do a western these days: either an “anti-Western” specifically designed to deconstruct the colonialist myth, or else something along the lines of _Unforgiven_ which is so oozing and dripping with symbolism and more philosophical meaning that despite the setting it’s clearly not “about” the American West. And of course plenty of works combine the two. What this means is that some of the absolute best Western films have been made over the last couple decades, but the modern genre really doesn’t lend itself to the sort of mainstream television that Westerns dominated during the 50’s and 60’s. I’m kind of surprised though that given the current so-called Renaissance in high-brow TV series we haven’t seen anyone else really try to follow in the footsteps of the masterpiece that was _Deadwood_. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799/63 "2016-01-08T22:00:55Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > I heard a story on Marketplace about Disney’s Frontierland attractions being replaced by Star Wars-themed rides. : No,\* no\* Disney ride is being replaced- unless you count the all you can eat restaurant and the kinda-sorta petting zoo. "To make room, Disney is clearing out most of its Wild West themed attractions at Disneyland. " is totally false. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Frontierland Shootin’ Exposition,Mark Twain Riverboat\*,Pirate’s Lair on Tom Sawyer Island\* & Sailing Ship Columbia\*, all continue- to say nothing of the Railroad and the Golden Horseshoe. - will be closed for a short time during construction. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799/64 "2016-01-08T22:06:21Z")
> [@up\_the\_junction](#): > > And thus a national mythology was created, a genocide unquestioned, sterilized and looped back as a triumph of American destiny and achievement. Since if there was a “Genocide” it occurred due to early Spanish Conquistadors and Explorers bring diseases to the natives, the Western has nothing to do with Genocide. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799/65 "2016-01-08T22:59:44Z")
The Apache were such a friendly, child like people. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2016, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799/66 "2016-01-09T00:52:45Z")
1950s television also had a lot of drama anthology shows: Playhouse 90, Studio One, Four Star Theater, etc You don’t much see those anymore either. > **[Anthology series | American drama](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthology_series#American_drama)** > > 1.The 20th Century Fox Hour (1955–57) | > 2.ABC Movie of the Week (1969–75) | > 3.ABC Stage 67 (1966–67) | > 4.Academy Theatre (1949) | > 5.Actors Studio (1948–50) | > 6.Alcoa-Goodyear Theatre (1957–58) | > 7.The Alcoa Hour (1955–57) | > 8.Alcoa Premiere (1961–63) | > 9.American Crime (2015–17) | > 10.American Crime Story (2016–present) | > 11.American Horror Story (2011–present) | > 12.American Film Theatre (1973–75) | > 13.American Playhouse (1981–94) | > 14.The American Playwrights Theater: The One Acts (1... ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2016, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799/67 "2016-01-09T01:42:01Z")
> [@Jim\_s\_Son](#): > > 1950s television also had a lot of drama anthology shows: Playhouse 90, Studio One, Four Star Theater, etc You don’t much see those anymore either. > [Anthology series - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthology_series#American_drama) Anthologies are hot right now, although usually in the crime or horror genres, not drama. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-westerns/741799.md?page=3)