What would it take for you to stop watching current episodes?

[CensoredAlso]

Really? Now that I find bizarre. Why have people suddenly started caring NOW?

Frankly I'm skeptical that that's even happened. I think the show has convinced itself that that's what its audience wants.

 

[Sesame Skates]

I NEVER watch current episodes. That would be an hour I'd never get back!

 

[Drtooth]

The best stuff is usually posted on the internet anyway. All I need to see are the opening street stories, since everything's basically reused footage anyway.

 

[Dominicboo1]

I don't think anyone has a problem if they showed old segments in new episodes. Somehow I feel SW keeps painting itself into corners they desperately want to get out of. It's the problem of classic skits not fitting into the show, not by design, but by their time constraints. I keep forgetting to get exact timings of each episode... but a street story that's about 15 minutes long, an 8 minute Abby, a 4-5 minute Ernie and Bert/Super Grover segment, a 15 minute Elmo segment... 43 minutes out of 50 something minutes right there...NOT counting Murray tune ins. Let's say that's another 5 minutes combined... there's barely any room for anything else.

I actually don't mind the lack of old material in new shows BECAUSE they managed to make them available on Youtube and their own site. If they were hidden in a vault away for ever, and severely penalized anyone who has an unauthorized YT upload, then and only then would I be angry at them. SW does realize it has an older, nostalgic fan base... that's something to be thankful for. Scary thing is, Barney's retro now and we're seeing adult T-Shirts with his ugly purple mug on them. I wish I never saw that. That was creepy. And it was in Spencer's next to the aisle with the... oh Never mind. if you been to Spencer's you know what I'm talking about. What was I getting at again?

Ah yes... SW realizes it has a nostalgic fan base that wants to see all the old stuff they can't fit into the show anymore. And I'm certain a lot of the ones who are parents expose their kids to the older stuff anyway. As for the show itself, the writers are trying their darnedest to make everything work. Abby, while plagued with reruns, is sharply written and more enjoyable than it needs to be... Super Grover 2.) is impossible for me to not laugh at. We got very stinging parodies of stuff like Glee and the Spider-Man musical this year. There's plenty of adult appeal still there. The problem is the balance is quite often out of whack, and I still think EW is sinking the show's potential.

I loved Spidermonster! Grover =Gold.

 

[Drtooth]

Spider-Monster proves the writers want to do great, sharp, biting things, but they have too much of a leash on them due to curriculum and show structure. You can't blame the writers, actually...

 

[DePingPong]

This thread is dead by now but I stopped watching when Abby came along. To do this day I don't like her. I don't like the format the show has. AFFS is annoying in my opinion and the show is too focused on celebs nowadays. There are episodes that I see occasionally that I think are great though. I'm rather upset that I missed Elmo the Grouch from the other day, though.

 

[Drtooth]

Technically, it should be my age. But, you know... Muppet fan and all.

Like I said before, what it comes down to is the overuse of reused footage for me. I'll give new episodes a look when they're first on, but I find myself flipping through the channels during overly-reused segments. If it's timed just right, I can watch a TUFF Puppy part episode during the Abby's school bit. I mean, seriously... end that bit already. We haven't seen a new segment in years.

I relent the show isn't meant for me unless I have a child, and there's certain things we'll never get back because... well, the show's been on almost half a century (!). It can't be exactly the same as it was back in the late 70's to late 80's period where the show was perfected. Not any more than Family Guy could stay the quirky, pop culture parody past it's revival, where it degenerated into envelope pushing for envelope pushing's sake (and that envelope's like been solidly on the floor for the past several seasons... it doesn't even shock anymore). Not anymore than SNL would still have Jane Curtain and Dan Akroyd in the cast (though... blah blah blah Mike O'Brien's films suck). 45 years is a LONG time for a show to run. And frankly, depending on whatever age you are, your tastes probably evolved with the show's aging as well. That's why 5 year olds can appreciate something that's newish to them and everything seems to have been done when you're several times that.

When it breaks down, you're either stuck with something that's still around and gradually changed (but at one point you notice) or something that ended at its prime and gets revived that's either different in a way you don't like or a retread that was done better. It's called getting old.