This thread is, by a wide margin, the most amusing thing related to Big Bang Theory I have ever encountered.
Someone on Fark described TBBT as being made by people who think it's geeky to know what a thumb drive is. From what I've seen of it, that about sums it up.
I think it's fine, if a bit samey - I understand neither the tremendous ratings nor the massive internet hatedom.
I hate that it gets massive ratings while much better sitcoms either struggle to stay on the air (Community, Parks and Rec.) or get largely ignored by the viewing public (Archer, Louie). The fact that it gets the highest 18-35 ratings of any CBS show (except maybe HIMYM, I dunno) just makes it worse.
I hate that people watching other, highly mediocre shows could deprive me of the programs that I enjoy, yes. If every channel existed in its own little bubble, I guess it'd be totally fine.
Well, of course Archer and Louie are going to be ignored, they're on FX, which is usually in the dregs of the upper numbers on cable packages. And NBC shot itself in the foot with the Jay Leno Show and can't recover because the general public is sick of their crap, so I'm amazed they've hung onto Community as long as they have.
See, I'm always on the look out for shows to watch. AV Club got me watching Louie and I watched the first season of Archer on Netflix. I sort of understand the less tech-savvy generations not catching on, though there have been entertainment publications/reviews (hell, AV Club started as an insert in the Onion) and programs for a very long time. 18-35-year-olds especially should know better. Hmph.
I kind of doubt it has anything to do with Jay Leno. I think one major reason Community and Parks & Rec don't do better is because their primary demographic is underrepresented in the Nielsen ratings. A lot of people watch these shows online. TBBT has arguably broader appeal, probably precisely because it isn't as smart as those other shows (ironically).
See, that's the weird part - you'd think it had nothing to do with Jay Leno, but the ratings have never recovered from that period where his show was in prime time. If it's not the cause it's one hell of a correlation. That said, there's definitely some validity to the Hulu issue. I'd imagine piracy comes into play as well.
Yep. I think that's a big part of it. I watch them both On Demand and on Hulu, since I've been working Thursday nights. Nielsen ratings need to come into the 21st century.
NBC's ratings were already circling the drain, which is what helped prompt the Jay Leno thing in the first place. It may have accelerated the decline, but it certainly wasn't the primary cause. And no, I don't really know what the primary cause(s) is. EDIT: The main reason Nielsen hasn't "evolved" is that it's to give advertisers the demographic makeup of viewers. They don't care as much about online and On Demand and DVR because, on the whole, people see fewer ads or none at all.
Yeah, it's problematic for those of us who relate ratings to quality, but that's not really their purpose. Nielsen isn't necessarily doing anything wrong, this is just the way the industry works--for now. I suspect they'll continue to figure out ways to allow advertisers to better capitalize off of alternative viewing methods until traditional Nielsen ratings become less important. For now, it sucks for us.
I don't usually enjoy sitcoms (therefore, I don't really watch them). However, for some reason, I've hung on to TBBT. It sometimes feels like repetitive drivel, but it's very enjoyable repetitive drivel to me. I've fallen off watching it several times, but I keep coming back to it.
