Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

secretmadscientist t1_iyd1239 wrote

Noticed this the other night. TV always had a few popular shows about working class folks - now we have shows like Succession, White Lotus, House of Dragon, etc, all focusing on elite people and their lives. Where have the Al Bundy's, The Cheers, Malcolm in the Middle and Everyone Hates Chris gone?

358

Bayonethics t1_iyd8ven wrote

One that's really good is Derry Girls. All the main characters are straight up Northern Irish working class (except for one, who's English working class)

195

OhioStateGuy t1_iydgkl2 wrote

My wife got me to watch derry girls with her and it is so good. Sister Michael cracks me up every time she’s on screen.

50

armchairmegalomaniac t1_iye5x4z wrote

You're not alone, Martin Scorsese just told an interviewer that he watches Derry Girls and loves Sister Michael.

24

Bayonethics t1_iydleg7 wrote

Sister George Michael is great, though my personal favorite is Colm

23

chrissesky13 t1_iydq5vl wrote

I love all of the characters but the adults are so well written!! I cried through the last episodes of the final season.

I love Erin's parents, Michelle's mom and love love love Colm. We quote him the most in passing at home. "So I says to myself, says I," Sister Michael is also an absolute treasure.

14

MulciberTenebras t1_iyd5c10 wrote

This started in the early 70s. They called it the "rural purge".

Shows with rural/country settings (or even had a tree on set, as actor Pat Buttram described it) were all immediately cancelled and replaced with city-focused sitcoms/dramas.

The Andy Griffith Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, Green Acres, Lassie, Petticoat Junction, Hogan's Heroes, The Virginian, The High Chaparral, Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C, Ed Sullivan, My Three Sons, Mayberry RFD, Jackie Gleason, Red Skelton, Hee Haw... most were still hit shows, but they all got cancelled so as to eliminate the older demographic and skew more towards the lucrative younger audiences.

91

Venture_compound t1_iyd7lpp wrote

One man is responsible for this and he's a complete tyrant at the BBC. Mews Frumpty. Thank God he was fired in the early 2000s for abuse of power.

43

SmoreOfBabylon t1_iye8a19 wrote

The post-rural purge shift to shows with urban settings wasn't mutually exclusive with blue collar shows, though. Sitcoms like All In the Family, Sanford & Son, MASH, Laverne & Shirley, Welcome Back Kotter, Good Times, and Taxi were all blue collar shows that launched and flourished in the '70s, for example. In fact, sitcoms in general started to get edgier and more topical during that decade - All in the Family was fairly controversial in its time, especially to viewers who had become accustomed to the relatively tame and saccharine family comedies of the '50s and '60s.

31

[deleted] t1_iydsw4y wrote

And nowadays, there’s nothing the new young generation loves more than the allure of millionaire grandeur.

20

Dantheking94 t1_iyegtly wrote

I was an 11 year old kid that literally loved LOVED Green Acres. Used to have me laughing until tears came out of my eyes.

6

Goat_Wizard_Doom_666 t1_iyd6mu8 wrote

They're still there:
Kevin can Fu*ck Himself

The Bear

Shameless

Superstore

Kim's Convenience

and um..... hmm... there have to be more, I swear...

57

DMPunk t1_iydbnpf wrote

Shameless, Superstore, and Kim's Convenience are all over

54

Goat_Wizard_Doom_666 t1_iydo85h wrote

What's your point? They still exist in the same way that 'Malcom in the Middle' and 'Cheers' exist and they are about the working class struggle. They are/were popular in the same way OP is lamenting that does not exist anymore.

−25

Jimmni t1_iye4y5u wrote

His point was there aren’t the same kind of shows on air now. Of course they still exist. Nobody went and scrubbed them from existence.

I don’t know if he’s right, but you entirely misunderstood his point.

20

BobTheGC t1_iydktsk wrote

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Not the most earnest story of class struggle but one nonetheless.

43

ThatJoeyFella t1_iyeoewy wrote

Ever since the recession hit, waves of new people are suddenly broke. These people have no idea how to live without money. They're what's called "new poor". We're "old poor".

26

Alive_Ice7937 t1_iyeqi35 wrote

"This pool is the bootstraps that's going to lift us up into the middle class!"

8

50StatePiss t1_iydfmfl wrote

The Simpsons, Family Guy, Bob's Burgers, American Dad, South Park, Big Mouth

11

wballard8 t1_iydsiap wrote

Interesting that they’re all cartoons, but I can’t draw a greater conclusion or theory about that

5

Riderz__of_Brohan t1_iydvfcv wrote

The conclusion is that the Simpsons was so successful and influential it spawned an entire genre

15

Riderz__of_Brohan t1_iydvd32 wrote

Ended many years ago but King of Queens fits this prototype too if we’re talking about shows past the 80s and 90s

8

JC-Ice t1_iyecwxp wrote

Abbott Elementary.

All the Law & Order and Chicago, and 911 shows.

6

secretmadscientist t1_iyd6y4a wrote

How is Kevin Can F*ck Himself?

3

Riderz__of_Brohan t1_iydv366 wrote

It feels like it’s 15 years too late, the trope of “schlubby husband hot wife” doesn’t really exist in sitcoms anymore

5

monchota t1_iydduf4 wrote

They are all unrelatable to most people or comedy that is just about dumb people.

1

Aberdolf-Linkler t1_iydddol wrote

Would Shameless really count as working class drama, I thought the focus was more that they were poor/low income. Maybe splitting hairs.

−4

Remote-Ad-2686 t1_iyd3btx wrote

Welcome back Kotter , Archie Bunker, Good Times , Alice!!!!

22

[deleted] t1_iydmqen wrote

[deleted]

−5

Remote-Ad-2686 t1_iydvmkp wrote

At the end of the day , it’s about money and trends. They are just following the money. In today’s culture, working class is not what most want. They want that Kardashian lifestyle. No one wants to hear about the struggles of a bricklayer or the rise of a cement finisher. IMO

5

elinordash t1_iyekk32 wrote

It clearly isn't just about money and trends. You can't watch films or TV shows that don't exist. Oscarssowhite was only six years ago and there have been successful diverse films made because of that Twitter campaign. I think the audience is open to more economically diverse stories, but they aren't the ones executives chose to produce.

1

Ikea_desklamp t1_iyd7apr wrote

People would rather fantasize about being rich and famous.

14

FakkoPrime t1_iyd92k3 wrote

Most of the shows involving “elite” people are primarily focused on their dysfunction (ie. In-fighting, addictions, moral failings, etc).

Like much of reality tv it’s about schadenfreude not envy.

52

trevaughntaiga t1_iydmii5 wrote

Most shows involving people are primarily focused on their dysfunction. Conflict is the basis of the Western narrative tradition. Al Bundy, Doug Hefferman and Walter White aren't great people.

The difference is the elites have money so existential threats come from things like cheating (loss of a partner), plagiarism (loss of career) etc. A widow killed her husband and gain full control over his assets rather than having to sell weed because he died of an heart attack.

21

FakkoPrime t1_iydnf25 wrote

Yes, people love drama and comedy and both of those are largely borne on the back of struggle.

Those same threats you cite for elites is the same for working class and middle class.

−2

shampoobottle111 t1_iydy8to wrote

Yeah except the working class wife whose husband died can’t just fall back on her wealth.

2

FakkoPrime t1_iye85j7 wrote

True, but economics usually isn’t the core of the struggle for even working class shows.

It’s more prevalent in some (eg. Roseanne, Frayed), but it’s more dissatisfaction with their job, their personal relationships and their accomplishments.

Breaking Bad starts off as a financial stop gap which leads into an exposé into the underlying resentment Walter White felt at failed relationships and lack of recognition. It was about respect not the money. That’s the same for The Crown or Succession or House of the Dragon.

3

Riderz__of_Brohan t1_iydvo2u wrote

Most of the shows about rich people are just repurposed palace intrigue which has been a staple of entertainment for centuries

14

nylockian t1_iyd7poz wrote

They used to do that when most shows were blue collar also.

1

the_buckman_bandit t1_iydiles wrote

Succession and White Lotus do not glorify the wealthy, quite the opposite

Andor is popular and is about a regular guy taking on the Empire

8

Toggiz t1_iyf4xrf wrote

Abbot Elementary, Severance, half of Andor, The Patient, Atlanta, Blockbuster, It’s Always Sunny? Definitely the minority of shows but not none.

7

kimbosdurag t1_iydwil7 wrote

There are corny family sitcoms on networks like abc and cbs I'm sure. They just aren't things that appeal to the kinds of people who talk about tv shows online. The only sitcom I can think of that is on a network that people seem to respect online is Abbott elementary, but there are lots of others out there they just don't get talked about because they are cliche corny sitcoms.

6

farmerarmor t1_iydu0hk wrote

Don’t forget Yellowstone. Everybody cheering for the billionaire rancher that owns 15% of Montana. Which is ridiculous. Because most small farmers absolutely hate big farmers.

4

skccsk t1_iydmek5 wrote

You named a bunch of premium cable/streaming shows in the first group, then exclusively broadcast shows in the second group.

Try checking the broadcast listings.

3

raversgonewild t1_iydjvxo wrote

Andor

1

sixo8zex t1_iyf6p0r wrote

You might as well throw the expanse in there too. But they are sci-fi… not tv shows about the modern working class.

2

druu222 t1_iyf9naq wrote

Over Thanksgiving, I saw the classic turkey drop scene from WKRP in Cincinnati... not New York City, not Los Angeles. Are there any sitcom out there now that take place outside of NY-LA?

1

PJTikoko t1_iyeadiv wrote

I think it’s because their where so many shows like that in the past it sort of got to played out.

It’ll comeback around after those shows get played out.

0

monchota t1_iyddpoz wrote

Only the elites are making media and they are reall disconnected.

−2

Fluid-Arm9366 t1_iydiyiw wrote

> House of the Dragon, Succession, White Lotus

vs

> Everbody Hates Chris, Married With Children, Cheers

I love how even you subconsciously acknowledge how shit the "blue collar" tv shows were that you can't even remember their correct names and called one of them Al Bundy's.

Jesus I will never understand this identity politics bullshit. House of the Dragon is a drama and far superior to Everybody Hates Chris, they should not be in the same conversation.

If all the blue collar shows have are dopey feel good comedies from the 80s and 90s then of course it's a good thing they are gone.

−15

secretmadscientist t1_iydjv9q wrote

You're a nit-picky cunt, aren't ya?

10

Fluid-Arm9366 t1_iydlcqt wrote

Imagine thinking that knowing the name of the show you are bemoaning is no longer around is nitpicking.

Maybe your ilk should do a modicum of research before bleating on about this show or that.

−8