You know, I watch a bunch of shows, and while 98% of them are satisfying (because I do some research), there are still just a few that fall through the cracks. It’s not necessarily that they are bad, but they just don’t hold my interest, which I’m sure is the case for many people. Maybe it’s because I have all this extra time not spent at the movie theater this year, but I’ve found a few shows that literally pained me to watch, so I just decided to…stop.
Sad to say they all belong to Amazon Prime, but I’ve got to report the facts! I’ve stopped mid-way through watching three original shows off this streaming platform. I was sad to do it! I didn’t want to! Although, I suppose I did, because that’s in fact what happened. What these three shows had in common were incredible casts, and I suppose that was main reason for me wanting to watch in the first place. The other two most important factors were the plot and critical success, which is why stopping these shows made me so sad and maybe even a little disappointed in myself.
First up, I watched one third of A Very English Scandal, which received (and won) a bunch of awards. At three episodes and leads like Ben Wishaw and Hugh Grant, I thought this was an easy no-brainer! And the story was equally as juicy. It follows Parliament member Jeremy Thorpe and his dealings with an ex-lover who he goes to great lengths to silence. Unfortunately, it took me three separate sittings to get through the first episode, at first due to time constraints, but then that was compounded by boredom. That’s the real reason here. Perhaps it would have gotten more exciting, but it just didn’t seem worth it.
A similar story goes for the six-part series, Good Omens. This stars David Tennant and Michael Sheen as Crowley and Aziraphale, respectively as they try and locate the anti-Christ on earth. I watched two of the six episodes, and while I found it funny and could relate to a lot of the biblical references, it just couldn’t quite hold my attention. Also, these episodes were rather long, and it was like watching full films. I don’t know, as a television show, I generally don’t like them to be quite so long.
Lastly, and most recently, I’ve been watching ZeroZeroZero, which is a twisting story focusing on the sale and distribution of drugs. When you tell me a show stars Andrea Riseborough and Dane DeHaan, I expect them to be in most of the shots. Not the case. They are part of one of THREE major plot lines, which aren’t nearly as interesting to me. They are all connected in a way: the Mexicans are the sellers, the Italians are the buyers, and the Americans are the brokers. It took me most of the first episode to realize this, mainly because they would get so far and then rewind back to another point of view. After finishing the sixth episode of eight, I think I am done. I know I’m so close, but this has taken me almost two full weeks to get through because I’m not looking forward to it.
That is the recurring theme with all of these shows. I’m just not enjoying the ride. It’s painful to get through, and the dread leading up to starting another episode is not relieved as well as it should be. I’m not saying these series are downright unwatchable, because there are good parts to them, but for me, the good doesn’t outweigh the bad, or the time spent. Plus, I’ve got an obscenely long list of shows (75 to be exact) that are on my watch-list, so why waste time on something I’m not enjoying when I could possibly be finding the next Hannibal (doubtful)?!