Cherry-picking: reasons? (1 Viewer)

[bmasters9]

For those of us who have cherry-picked on releases of certain shows on first-time seeing (I myself have done it as well), what was your main motivation to cherry-pick? Was it:

a. You don't like the subject matter/plot of a certain upcoming episode in the order (whether the next one or one a time off in the run), and you want to get it behind you as soon as possible;

or

b. You do like the subject matter/plot of a certain upcoming episode in the order, and you want to get to that specific one ASAP and enjoy the festivities (how it unfolds)?

(There can of course be other considerations here, and I myself have done it for both of the reasons I stated to begin with.)

 

[jcroy]

You're going to have to define "cherry picked" more precisely. Do you have a precise definition?

Otherwise everybody will have their own definition for "cherry picking".

 

[bmasters9]

You're going to have to define "cherry picked" more precisely. Do you have a precise definition?

Otherwise everybody will have their own definition for "cherry picking".

Watching episodes out of order; does that help?

 

[jcroy]

In terms of watching episodes out of order, I've found that it doesn't matter as much for "episodic" type shows. If an episode seems kinda boring, I'll just fast forward to the next one.

 

[bmasters9]

In terms of watching episodes out of order, I've found that it doesn't matter as much for "episodic" type shows. If an episode seems kinda boring, I'll just fast forward to the next one.

Good point! Don't know why it is, but you made a very good point.

 

[jcroy]

Though for a highly serialized show, it is much more of an all-or-nothing thing for me.

In practice I've found that if an episode is too boring, I'll just skip to the next episode. If the next episode is also too boring, I'll frequently just drop the show entirely.

 

[jcroy]

The ultimate "cherry picking" case for me, turned out to be Babylon 5.

Seasons 2 to 4 were highly serialized and excellent, while seasons 1 and 5 were somewhat less seralized and more meandering/rudderless.

On my marthon rewatches of B5, I actually skipped over season 1 entirely. I started with the "In The Beginning" movie, and went straight to season 2. (I usually didn't watch season 5 in such marthons).

 

[BobO'Link]

I rarely cherry pick episodes. I prefer to watch in order and not skip around. There are very few episodes of shows I like that I just don't care for ("Empath" in ST:TOS is one) and often skip but not always. The few times I cherry pick are when one of the grandkids wants to see a particular show so I usually just pull out a disc and pick an episode unless they have a specific one in mind.

There are *series* I don't particularly like where I've cherry picked a season or two. Usually to have the series represented in my collection (examples: All in the Family and Laverne & Shirley) and on occasion to get a specific episode of a series I don't particularly like but want the episode due to a particular guest star (The Love Boat S1V2 on that one to get the episode with Barbara Rhoades).

 

[The Obsolete Man]

The ultimate "cherry picking" case for me, turned out to be Babylon 5.

Seasons 2 to 4 were highly serialized and excellent, while seasons 1 and 5 were somewhat less seralized and more meandering/rudderless.

On my marthon rewatches of B5, I actually skipped over season 1 entirely. I started with the "In The Beginning" movie, and went straight to season 2. (I usually didn't watch season 5 in such marthons).

I very rarely skip stuff, but when rewatching the modern Doctor Who recently, I made it unbroken to S5E4 before I couldn't take The Amy Pond Show era any longer, so I cherry picked a few more episodes out of S5, two episodes from S6, and one episode of S7a before jumping back in with season 7b and Clara The Impossible Girl.

Hardly felt like I missed anything, since the highly serialized season (6) was the one I skipped almost entirely.

 

[jcroy]

Another weird case is the Babylon 5 spinoff Crusade.

There were various viewing orders, none of which were satisfactory.

https://greysector.wordpress.com/2016/03/18/crusade-the-continuity-order-watch-through/

 

[Jeff Flugel]

I "cherry pick" all the time. I almost never watch episodes in order when I'm watching a classic TV show, unless it's serialized (as in the case of some '70s short-run British TV serials, or a Doctor Who serial which tells one story across 4 to 6 episodes, etc.) I will usually try to start with the pilot or beginning episode for any series that is a first-time watch for me, but then will hop around as my mood or whim takes me. If a plot of a later episode seems particularly interesting, or if there is a guest star (or stars) that I like appearing in the episode, I'll watch it. A case in point, from a while back: when members Flashgear (Randall) and John Hopper both posted about the two-part The Wild Wild West episode, "The Night of the Winged Terror," it spurred me on to check out that two-parter from the fourth season...even though, when I had last watched a TWWW episode, it was from way back in season one.

This method works for me, as I try to vary the shows I'm watching to better "air out" my collection, and also to keep things interesting. I know this runs counter to a lot of forum members (like Howie) who prefer to go in order...but for me, if the show is episodic, as most were back then, why not skip around? I suppose it may make more of a difference with classic sitcoms, as they tended to change their format or rejigger many aspects of plot or character to fine tune themselves throughout the first or second seasons.

 

[bmasters9]

I did it with that 6th and final go on Have Gun, Will Travel (1962-63) from CBS' all-in-one-- I had heard that the 6th and final go was the lowest rated out of the run of that 1957-63 CBS Western, so I figured that if I got that one behind me, I would be better able to enjoy the remainder of the run. Granted, Have Gun was a 30-minute Western, but that 6th and final go had quite a few episodes I didn't care for, in among plenty I did like.

 

[BobO'Link]

I "cherry pick" all the time. I almost never watch episodes in order when I'm watching a classic TV show, unless it's serialized (as in the case of some '70s short-run British TV serials, or a Doctor Who serial which tells one story across 4 to 6 episodes, etc.) I will usually try to start with the pilot or beginning episode for any series that is a first-time watch for me, but then will hop around as my mood or whim takes me. If a plot of a later episode seems particularly interesting, or if there is a guest star (or stars) that I like appearing in the episode, I'll watch it. A case in point, from a while back: when members Flashgear (Randall) and John Hopper both posted about the two-part The Wild Wild West episode, "The Night of the Winged Terror," it spurred me on to check out that two-parter from the fourth season...even though, when I had last watched a TWWW episode, it was from way back in season one.

This method works for me, as I try to vary the shows I'm watching to better "air out" my collection, and also to keep things interesting. I know this runs counter to a lot of forum members (like Howie) who prefer to go in order...but for me, if the show is episodic, as most were back then, why not skip around? I suppose it may make more of a difference with classic sitcoms, as they tended to change their format or rejigger many aspects of plot or character to fine tune themselves throughout the first or second seasons.

In spite of my general preference to watch "all the way through and in order" I didn't start that way. Originally I'd intended to keep 3 or 4 half hour *and* hour length programs in "rotation" watching a few episodes a night from different shows. Mandatory/forced company logos, piracy warnings, time wasting animated menus, and other slow downs getting to a "random" episode pretty much changed my viewing habits to "Put in a disc and watch it all before changing." Many discs support "resume" but it seems just as many don't with the "don't" ones being those in the "worst time wasting junk before selecting an episode" category. Even then you have to be sure to actually start another episode before ejecting the disc. I still, occasionally, watch a random episode of a show on a whim - usually because of the "What did you watch in Classic TV" thread but sometimes just because I get a hankering to see a particular episode of a favorite (usually Star Trek or Time Tunnel for those). Even when I *do* "cherry pick" an episode I more often than not watch more episodes from that disc before ejecting it.

 

[Neil Brock]

I have hundreds of thousands of shows in my collection. When it comes to many shows, unless they are shows I really love, I will just pick out episodes with guest stars that I like to watch. Because, honestly, on many of these shows, if you've seen one Barnaby Jones, you've seen them all.

 

[JohnRice]

I usually watch a show in order. If it's a show I've watched an absurd number of times, I suppose there might be individual episodes I skip for one reason or another.

Something I do occasionally is with serialized shows where each season has a distinct theme or subject (Dexter for instance) I sometimes watch a single season I'm interested in seeing again. I've watched the Trinity Killer season (which ever one that is) all by itself.

 

[Mr. Handley]

No such thing as cherry picking in my world! I watch strictly in order, by season. I'm even doing the Dark Shadows "50 years ago" daily viewings, which has really been fun!

 

[bmasters9]

No such thing as cherry picking in my world! I watch strictly in order, by season. I'm even doing the Dark Shadows "50 years ago" daily viewings, which has really been fun!

I take it that, since you go in order, subject matter is even less of a consideration.

 

[Mr. Handley]

I take it that, since you go in order, subject matter is even less of a consideration.

There are no considerations for anything. All shows, in order. I'm even that way on my shorts and cartoon sets. I'm currently going thru all the Three Stooges shorts, in chronological order, for at least a 3rd or 4th time.

 

[bmasters9]

There are no considerations for anything. All shows, in order. I'm even that way on my shorts and cartoon sets. I'm currently going thru all the Three Stooges shorts, in chronological order, for at least a 3rd or 4th time.

That really sets it out!

 

[GMBurns]

Generally I am pretty anal about watching the series I have in broadcast order, and usually don't skip anything. Every once in a while I get 10-15 minutes into something and think, "Nah, this isn't worth my time".

But there is one show I deliberately cherry-pick: Quincy M.E. I love Jack Klugman in the role. At it's best it is a compelling mystery, and I very much enjoy Klugman's interactions with his regular co-stars. But the show also regularly has episodes where Quincy goes on a crusade about some medical/legal issue and the murder mystery element of the show goes way into the background. Whenever I'm in the mood for Quincy I look at the episode descriptions and if I can determine the next one I haven't viewed is one of those episodes where Quince is gonna get all lathered up, I just choose the next episode in line.

Jack Klugman is great in the role, very passionate and intense, and he is always fun to watch. But I watch shows from my dvd collection to unwind after a long day at work and just don't want to watch things that remind too much of real life.