G4/TechTV....don't like the "new" direction. (1 Viewer)

[Kevin M]

I'll keep it short, with them canceling Call For Help and the distaste I have in G4's original and new programing ideas (You cancel a fairly popular show (CFH) but you keep Robot Wars.....yeah..) I don't like what I see in this new channel's future.

Opinions? Or not, I just wanted to put it out there.

 

[Rob Speicher]

Robot Wars is such a bad idea, although to be fair I have yet to see them air it - maybe they just wanted the option? Same goes for Thunderbirds and Body Hits, and all their other British imports.

I'm annoyed by every single G4 host, without exception. They're all awful. The only good shows from G4 are those without hosts. Icons is almost always interesting, although it could stand to be longer, and Players has had some funny bits with Dane Cook at E3 and Tenacious D.

 

[Kevin M]

Agreed, not only do I find all of G4's hosts to be annoying and generally smarmy but none of G4's original shows are even interesting to me compared to even the worst of Tech-TV's original line up.

 

[NickSo]

Yeah, the G4 part of G4TechTV sucks :frowning:

 

[CaptDS9E]

not to mention a ton of cable channels no longer carry the new channel, as not many carried G4 to start with

capt

 

[Francois Caron]

Robot Wars was good when it was being broadcasted once a week on the Canadian cable channel Space. But then TechTV started broadcasting it every single day and pretty much ruined it. Throw in "theme" battles left and right and the thing eventually became a hopeless mess.

As for the new G4TechTV format, I hate it! The only gaming show I ever watched was X-Play, and I only watched it on occasion. What I see now in G4's gaming shows is something similar to a bunch of losers locked in a room arguing about the most insignificant details on the latest games. We're talking "Gaming Geeks On Parade" here.

The show I really loved to watch was The Screen Savers. This was a show where the hosts, the guests and even the audience were all well versed in modern technology, yet you were still learning something new every day. Unfortunately, TechTV's treatment of Leo Laporte was so disgraceful that it actually pushed me away from the show, never knowing if any of the regular staff members would still be around the following week. I don't like revolving door policies.

I also don't like the idea of TechTV moving to L.A., away from the technological hub known as San Francisco and Silicone Valley. This is more ego politics than practical business sense.

G4TechTV is part of the "News" theme on my ExpressVu satellite subscription. Once the US elections are over at the end of the year, I'm switching over to a more useful theme. There won't be anything worth watching after that.

 

[Jim Dalton]

I've cancelled my newsletter subscription for the channel. The first taste of what was to come took place when Leo left (or was forced out of) The Screen Savers. It seems the channel wants to appeal to the 13-25 crowd. Too bad.

 

[Chris]

What's terrible is that Robot Wars survives while a better show (BattleBots, which started airing in the US first) gets hacked.. largely because CC destroyed it's final season by focusing on Carmen Electra and all the crap that meant nothing.

 

[Kevin M]

Actually I think Robot Wars was first, BattleBots was taken from the original UK concept....I think.

 

[Kristian]

Actually, from what I've read, Leo left TSS on his own to focus on Call For Help. But then a week or two later, he was forced out of Call for Help. Then he was brought back again a few weeks later, only to have CFH cancelled after the new merger. A really disgusting way to treat someone who has dedicated so much of his time to helping people.

 

[Kevin M]

I have to say that I was really pissed off by the fact that they canceled Call For Help because in conjunction with Screen Savers it taught me more than most tech shows ever have.

 

[StephenL]

They also destroyed the TechTV website so it's impossible to find any of those great reference articles. Some of the Screen Savers staff have put articles on their own websites.

 

[Jason Walstrom]

Talk about annoying, has anyone checked out that stupid show called G4tv.com it has 3 hosts that sit and blab and talk over each other. Two of the hosts are hot chick Gamer Grrls that are so vapid and annoying it makes me want to punch someone. Especially that chick that calls herself THUG. Gimme a break. They seriously need to have a casting call and get rid of alot of these morons.

 

[MikeFR]

I agree it sucks. TechTv was one of the few digital channels on my local digital cable that I was interested in. Now that Ive seen G4TechTV, Im really glad I didnt get digital cable.

 

[CurtM]

A message to Comcast:

I am not and will never be a customer of yours.

That felt good.

I'm am so pissed about what they have done with TTV. I hear Patrick won't be staying with Screen Savers. Leo will start up Call for Help at TechTV Canada. Check out leoville.com

Curt

 

[Paul_Stachniak]

G4 reallyed f'd up a good station. I don't know what that TECH part of G4 is anymore (with the exception of ScreenSavers) because it seems like G4 all over again.

And congrats to Canada for doing something right.

 

[Sean Moon]

G4 is a great network in theory only. The hosts on everything on there are just terrifyingly bad, especially that one girl on the G4 news who, cant remember who. Her style of talking, like she is all serious, but sucks, is just annoying as hell. The problem with G4 is that all the shows always try to be hip and cool with their editing and hosts and generally just suck. There was this one show that was quite good I caught, where they had a roundtable with editors from websites talking about E3 predictions. That was actually really neat to see.

I think that if they make a dedicated videogames channel though, or keep lots of the programming, they need an actually serious show with good hosts and writing, kinda like a tv version of NextGen magazine. A show aimed at adults about all gaming in general, not a show aimed at teens and younger trying to be hip and cool.

 

[Jed M]

G4TV sucks. I finally removed my final Tech TV show off Tivo yesterday. That is one channel I doubt I will be visiting anytime soon. What was once one of the most informative and intelligent channels is now a piss poor imitation of MTV, right down to its horribly unoriginal name.

 

[Kevin M]

..however since they fired all of TechTV's staff and 100 of the existing jobs were posted for those willing to relocate to LA, I can't imagine he or most people at TechTV are very happy with this "New Direction".

They will either fail or they will draw in the young crowd they seek and the channel will completely turn into gaming pablum.

 

[Todd Terwilliger]

I didn't realize there was so much hatred for G4. I've enjoyed the channel but more as secondary distraction (while playing XBox, etc.) than as a main attraction.

I do think that TechTV had more polish and I'm surprised that the G4 aspect seems to be the more dominant aspect of the channel focus.