TV shows that became unbearably preachy.

[woo me with science]

Just saw a later episode of The Cosby Show.

Sheesh.

[woo me with science]

1. It is also a running joke around here that

dialogue from "Seventh Heaven" is like something out of a bad 70's therapy textbook.


"I really appreciate your talking honestly with me here, because it makes me realize that I have invalidated your feelings in the past. I want you to be open with me, and I realize that in order to do that, I need to be open to your needs and provide you with a safe communication zone when we are discussing something important to you. So, Ruthie, I hope you can forgive me, and as your big sister we will go together to the zoo now."

[Richardo]

2. M*A*S*H and Designing Women

I liked the ensemble of actors, and Dixie Carter was great as the lead character, but the writers just had to give her a sledgehammer rant for the last 3 minutes of the show every single week. That got pretty tiresome.

And Alan Alda preachified MASH to unbearable limits.

[Recovered Repug]

4. When Radar left and Klinger became the company clerk,

the show became unwatchable.

[deutsey]

17. As much as I love MASH from '73 through '79 or so

Those final few years were awful in so many ways.

[mitchum]

24. MASH was the first one to come to mind; Alda was a sanctimonious 3rd rate Groucho Marx

[applegrove]

38. I loved Dixie Carter's (rip) rants. But you are right it did begin to go downhill

near the end.

[SoxFan]

3. The West Wing

Now, we all loved President Bartlett, but imagine being a Republican and sitting through some of those soliloquies!

[Mojambo]

10. Yup. Very preachy show. n/t

[Bucky]

5. The last couple of seasons of PTL Club have been like that. Jesus, Pat, give it a rest!

[RagAss]

22. LOL !!!

[rurallib]

6. vaguely recall Roseanne becoming totally unbearable.

Can't remember why. I think preachy was part of it.

[muffin1]

8. It became unbearable for me

after the Connors won the lottery.

[NoGOPZone]

7. King of the Hill nt

[begin_within]

9. Kathryn Kuhlman

[Mojambo]

11. Well, it didn't really become preachy cause it was already that way, but Joan of Arcadia

One of my favorite Family Guy jokes, when a breaking news story interrupts the family watching Joan of Arcadia.

"We interrupt this broadcast to bring you a breaking news story."

"We apologize to Joan of Arcadia's sanctimonious, fear-based, and probably overweight viewers."

[Gidney N Cloyd]

12. "Family Ties." A lot of the later episodes were like Afterschool Specials.

The dad character got goofier so there'd be some insured comedy relief.

[fishwax]

21. yeah, definitely

[foxfeet]

13. "Touched by an Angel."

Unbearably preachy from start to finish. Likewise "Little House on the Prairie," aside from the episode when Laura pushed Nellie Oleson down the hill in a wheelchair.

[Texasgal]

39. I was just going to say that

AGREED!!!

[jxnmsdemguy65]

14. These shows often culminated in a Moment of Shit TM....

an actual term used in Hollywood to describe the 'moral lesson' that was the object of the show.

[unpossibles]

15. the 700 Club? Fox News?

oh wait.

The Simpsons has been guilty of this, and of losing their funny sometimes because of it. Same with South Park in their own way.

[dawg]

16. Different Strokes, South Park, All in the Family, Alice ....

I figure my choices are just about guaranteed to piss people off, but I can't help it.

South Park is one of my favorites, and it's the only one I'm not judging from distant memories. Most of the time it's great, but sometimes they really get on their high horse with their libertarian ideals.

All those other shows I haven't watched since I was a kid, and still considered myself a conservative like the rest of my family at the time. All in the Family was a great show, but Archie was too much of a buffoon and the "lessons" were sometimes a little too preachy for me. Different Strokes was a cool concept, but I think they tried to make too much out of it. As for Alice, her character just seemed to annoy me for some reason. I don't know why.

Anyway, flame me for South Park if you want, but leave me alone for the other ones. I might not feel that way about them if I watched them fresh today.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

18. South Park, Family Guy

Everything has become Matt and Trey's own little Randian spin on everything. South Park was good the first two seasons or so when it was just dumb fun, but now it's not worth the bother.

Ditto with Family Guy; even though Seth McFarland seems to be a strong liberal, the show itself has made some of its messages rather heavy handed as of late.

[rcrush]

34. I agree with you on Family Guy

Somewhat on South Park. I think its a running joke on South Park that all their shows have a "special message" on them. But I can see how they can start to get irritating. But I think they are funny!


But Family Guy Geesh! Sure the shows have a strong liberal message but Seth MacFarlane beats you over the head with it and its not really funny anymore.

[conscious evolution]

19. virtually every saturday morning

cartoon show in the late sixties/early seventies.
Someone,somewhere decided that cartoons needed a 'moral' to the story.:puke:
That crap ruined Fat Albert.

[1gobluedem]

20. Growing Pains

As soon as Kirk Cameron found Jesus.

[BurtWorm]

23. Davy and Goliath

Started out so cutting edge!

[mitchum]

25. "Why don't you pray about it, Davy?"

and a little dog shall lead them

[Dappleganger]

26. Spongebob...

Grandma Squarepants really gets on my nerves!

[jmowreader]

27. I'm sure this answer will get me added to a few Ignore lists...

but Ellen, after she came out on the air, became completely unbearable in its preachiness. It went from a comedy show (although it never was all that funny imo) to a half-hour block of instruction in Advanced Lesbian Acceptance. Okay, Ellen, you're a lesbian, we know you're a lesbian, those of us who still watch your show are okay with you being a lesbian, now how about putting a couple of jokes in your show?

[nickinSTL]

30. huh. I didn't see a lot of episodes

and I don't remember them that well, but my memory is very different.

I found her show completely uninteresting until she came out - it seemed to have no point and nothing funny. Once she came out, it's like the show developed a reason to exist. :shrug:

[Initech]

28. Home Improvement!!!

I stopped watching after they had a preachy anti-marijuana episode. :puke:

[abq e streeter]

29. Cubs baseball; "do not bet on this team, do not bet on this team ever..." Ok I get it.

[Schema Thing]

31. Dexter

[Blue-Jay]

32. Any show that ever advertised "a very special episode of..."

[Initech]

41. 7th Heaven completely abused the "very special episode" moniker.

[WildEyedLiberal]

33. On the flip side, Star Trek: TNG started out unbearably preachy, but got much better

But those first couple of seasons were overwhelmingly sanctimonious. "Look, here's another episode about how morally superior the 24th century Federation is to pretty much every other alien society and/or any other epoch in human history!" Gah. It eventually became an excellent show, but those first couple of seasons are painful.

[WinterParkDonkey]

35. I loved JAG....

until the last season or two.

[pokerfan]

42. It always seemed to me

that for some reason TNG modeled itself after The Motion Picture rather than Wrath of Khan which was odd because it premiered on the heels of the successes of ST:II thtough IV after TMP damn near killed the franchise. TNG didn't really hit its stride until season 3.

[MiddleFingerMom]

36. Agree totally about M.A.S.H...

.
...and I LOVE Mitchum's comment about Alan Alda in the post
above: "Alda was a sanctimonious 3rd rate Groucho Marx."
.
Perfect.
.
It disappointed me that Alda and/or the producers/directors
chose to portray Hawkeye not as a pacifist, but ultimately
as a coward again and again and again.
.
Couldn't watch it after a while.
.
Did tune in for that "FINAL show".
.
His character was SO disappointing that it did not really disappoint.
.

.

[triguy46]

37. Designing Women. I tended to agree with them, but wasn't as much fun as the earlier years.

[leeroysphitz]

40. Star Trek Voyager...

"Captain Janeway, we have found a quick, easy, guaranteed way to get back to Earth!"

"Nope sorry it might sort of compromise some minor nitpicky ethical concern. We'll just have to take the long way."

Fuck, that bullshit got old quick.

[yankeepants]

43. Highway to Heaven

My mother used to live for it.