I give up.

Today’s subtraction project prompt deals with your TV viewing habits which got me thinking about mine. Two things in the last year or so have had drastic impacts on my TV watching.

Turning Off The Cable

We disconnected our cable TV and turned in our DVRs several months ago. And in the big picture? This has not fazed me as much as I thought it would. I still have the same amount of problems finding something to watch when I’m in the mood to vegetate, which is: NOT OFTEN. There is still plenty of stuff to watch between Hulu and Netflix and Amazon Prime. And it’s still rare that I’m in the mood to veg, and I can’t find anything to veg out on. The thing is that now, when it happens? I don’t curse the 100 bucks or so I’m paying for cable and DVRs every month.

Now, the one real negative factor is that I’ve had to either A) Give up on watching some shows or B) Pay for them. So far, most of the shows we’ve given up on just fine. I’ve subtracted (see what I did there) almost all of my CBS shows because they’re not easily available on Hulu. Now, I can watch (most of them?) online, but the only one I’ve bothered to do that with is Good Wife (AND SO GLAD I DID – OMG). NCIS, NCIS LA, HIMYM – I just left those in the wayside this summer and haven’t really cared either way.

The shows I watch on cable channels are another story – I miss Warehouse 13 and Being Human and Lost Girl and Psych. However, I’ve not been spoiled on any of those shows so! I can always watch them on DVD when the seasons come out or on Amazon Prime when they’re released there. Either way – I’m not watching them now – but it’s not stressing me out as much as I thought it would.

There are a FEW shows we can’t watch now that we ARE paying for – usually on Amazon Prime – the next day one at a time. Donnie does that with Walking Dead and I think another show. He also watches some stuff on HBO with his brother. I never got into the Paid Channel type shows so missing those isn’t a huge deal. We were paying for Doctor Who the next day through Amazon Prime and I’m hoping we can do that with Orphan Black when it starts back tonight. We BETTER be able to because I’ll pitch a fit about missing that show.

But – overall? No issues that are making us regret the decision whatsoever. It’s saving us about $100 a month with all of the extras we were using. And while we thought about just getting smaller cable packages, in reality? The things we loved about having cable? Were the things that made it pricey, so the minimal packages weren’t worth it.

Valuing The Investment Of Time…but Not Too Much

I guess some people were irritated with the HIMYM series finale. But, what I took away from all of that commentary was something I believe Linda Holmes from NPR referenced. She basically called it something like “The Lost Effect” – the tendency for people to stick with a program they aren’t really enjoying JUST for the endgame payoff. JUST so they can be part of the culture of that show when it finally has the HOPEFULLY brilliant ending everyone wants.

But – like Lost and dozens of shows before it – the endings tend to fizzle flat and you find yourself saying, “Why did I keep watching that show?”

I’ve given up on a bunch of shows for that reason. My love for Scandal has dropped as the rest of the world’s seemed to have picked up. While I’m really curious how this world proceeds, I’m not enjoying the individual episodes enough to invest my time in it. I don’t like what they’ve done with some of my favorite characters, I’m having trouble with the whole “suspension of disbelief” thing, and they’ve killed off some people I liked. So? IT HAS BEEN SUBTRACTED. Officially, now. It was unofficially before, but I’m removing it from my “favorites” list on HULU now so it won’t even show up for me.

Other shows I’ve kinda stopped watching and will be officially giving up on them now? Parenthood and Vampire Diaries. That’s hard for me because I’ve really loved both of those shows, but I feel like I’m doing the whole Lost Effect thing…I’m sticking with them because I feel like I need to see it through to the end. But I’m no longer enjoying the individual episodes. Haven’t actually watched either of them all season, but they keep showing up in my Favorites. So today? THEY’RE OFFICIALLY OUT OF HERE.

Still A TV Junkie

Overall, I’m still a TV Junkie. I just like having it on in the background while I work. I still love a lot of TV. I’m totally pumped about Orphan Black and I’ve gone back to watching Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. because everyone said it was getting good. (THEY WERE RIGHT!) I still love Arrow and I’m looking forward to next season’s Flash. I still adore my sitcoms: Parks & Recreation and Modern Family and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. And I’m still sticking with my two crime dramas: Castle and Bones, mainly because they don’t take themselves too seriously. I also love watching Jimmy Fallon now that he has The Tonight Show. So, yeah…still PLENTY of TV watching going on here, but I’m not going to waste the time with the shows that don’t bring me joy, JUST BECAUSE I feel like I should stick with them until the end. Nope. Did that with LOST long after I stopped enjoying it, I won’t make THAT mistake again!

Have you given up anything?