WHILE I HESITATE TO ADMIT that I’m aware of anything as sappy as The Hallmark Movie Channel, I feel that I must share with you, my gentle readers, how they have betrayed my forgiving nature.
This is a straightforward story in which I was willing to overlook their sentimental twaddle basic programming because every afternoon they were showing The Good Wife, an award-winning TV show that I’ve always wanted to see.
In fact, I had even begun to arrange my day in such a way as to make certain that I caught at least one episode of The Good Wife, a modern-day TV show that features a strong female lead in difficult situations that she handles without Prince Charming rescuing her.
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Above is the Hallmark Movie Channel schedule for The Good Wife in which we see that the Hallmark Movie Channel just stopped showing The Good Wife. * bippity boppity boo* It’s gone. Wave bye-bye.
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FURTHER, I’LL EVEN ADMIT THAT last Friday afternoon when I viewed what has now become my last episode of The Good Wife, a well-paced finely nuanced TV show, I was so thrilled by the cliff hanger plot line that I spent moments of my weekend looking forward to seeing the next episode on Monday afternoon.
But it was not to be. No, when I sat down on Monday afternoon to watch The Good Wife, a smart TV show filled with legal issues and moral quandaries, it was not there. Instead, The Hallmark Movie Channel was airing… [ready for this?]… Diagnosis Murder, an old-time TV show, starring Dick Van Dyke, that I vaguely remember as something my mother used to watch way back when.
I’m hurt by this betrayal; I won’t lie. But mostly it confirms my suspicions that cable TV’s death is closer than we think it is. Thanks to The Hallmark Movie Channel I’ve now learned for certain that web-based programming, like Netflix or Hulu, is the way to watch TV shows when your life is busy– and you can’t dork around with cable channels.
THE SPECTACLED BEAN 
A few years back I had some health issues that sidelined me for 6 weeks. That’s 6 weeks of daytime TV and/or book reading. I found a renewed interest in old episodes of the Golden Girls (on Hallmark) because most daytime TV is crap. I was into my 4th week or so and bam! they were gone. It was the beginning of November and they started marathon Christmas movies. I mean how much of that can you watch without barfing. I ended my recovery earlier because I just couldn’t stand it anymore.
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kate, so this is how Hallmark does programming, huh? Get you interested, then switch to something less desirable. Your story makes me smile because you have them to thank for your speedy recovery. Still, it is, shall we say, annoying.
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You’re right. There is only so much time you can sit on your rear and watch stupid TV. It’s funny because I didn’t want to watch anything for a long time afterward.
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Well, I can understand that. I rarely watch daytime TV, but I was willing to make an exception for something intelligent. Now I have my days back to do with whatever I want. So maybe this is a good thing for me: less sitting, more doing.
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I am just amazed that cable isn’t selling us programming online. Eventually, they will have to change their business model or go the way of the other dinosaurs. But still, they resist and do stupid things like delay programming (or don’t show at all) unless you have their cable package.
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Zazzy, you make a good point. It is probably only a matter of time before they jump into online programming and make watching TV even more difficult to do than it is now.
Who knows when any show is on or where it is, let alone how to get the cable company’s remote control to turn on our TV. Most days I’d rather sit quietly by myself than hassle around with all of Time Warner’s ridiculousness.
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I’m with you, Ally. I don’t watch TV during the day either. There are too many other things to do. I don’t feel like I’m missing anything. I like listening to Pandora or nothing at all. I do watch night time TV, but read magazines during the commercials:)
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Beth, what this little experience taught me was to watch TV on my own schedule, not the cable company’s schedule. And at night, most of the time, if I/we watch any TV, it’s on Netflix, so really I was quite silly to even try to work with The Hallmark Movie Channel to begin with. Yep, that’s what I learned.
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I agree–I bought a couple of seasons of Downton abbey on DVD, so I could watch it whenever I wanted. I don’t trust my schedule or the TV programming.
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Margaret, I tried to play nice with The Hallmark Movie Channel, but have learned my lesson. If they can’t be consistent, then I won’t be bothered. Kind of makes me sad, though. I felt so old school watching TV at a set time each day. Very retro.
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First of all…I love The Good Wife…it is a smart show with great characters, but I am almost ashamed to admit that sometimes The Hallmark Channel is sometimes exactly what I need…straightforward story, predictable turns in the plot and everything works out in the end. Sometimes the idea that things can be wrapped in a neat package, is comforting. During the holidays I become a bit of a Hallmark addict. Ahhh…well, I agree that Netflix is the watch to watch all your series of choice and maybe some ways to discover new as well.
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smashintwo, I enjoy The Good Wife for the reasons you mentioned. I’ll find it on Netflix and be happy. The Hallmark Movie Channel and The Hallmark Channel are new to me. We only upgraded to this level of cable a few months ago because we wanted the internet connection, but got all sorts of diverse channels in the process. I’ll have to be more open-minded about viewing these new channels. Obviously they have good programing when they manage to keep it on the air.
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how annoying! I remember something similar happening on Lifetime when I was on maternity leave when G was born. I got into Grey’s Anatomy again and one day the whole line up changed! Some warning would have been nice! I (sadly) didn’t know what to do with myself!
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Emma, I’m finding out that this sort of bait & switch programming goes on all the time. I rarely watch daytime TV so I didn’t know about this– and you’re right about no warning! At least in my case I can go do something else, but on maternity leave at home I can understand how bored you must have been.
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Sometimes I wish we had TV service so I could watch sappy stuff from the Hallmark channel. The Good Wife sounds fascinating.
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Kathy, this upgraded cable is a mixed blessing. I like the availability of more news stations, but the other programming is inconsistent… as I just found out. As for The Good Wife, I recommend it: smart characters, interesting story lines & wonderful house porn. What more could you want in a TV show?
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Ally, I’m a huge fan of Netflix. I like watching when I have time. It feels ridiculous to try to schedule my evening around a show. Though the only downside is that Netflix is usually a season behind my fav shows. 😦
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Kourtney, I’m going to follow your lead. I tried to go old school and watch the show when it was scheduled, but I ended up– shall we say?— distraught! I’m going to be my own scheduler now and watch shows on Netflix and Hulu whenever I want to. Lesson learned.
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I understand your frustration, Ally Bean. It’s more than frustrating when you get hooked on a show and then it’s gone. Other than “Project Runway,” I’ve given up on TV. NetFlix is a great option to catch a show when you want … that’s how I spent part of last summer – watching the first season of “Doctor Who.”
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Judy, I watch so little TV that when I do get hooked it’s a big deal for me. Now that I’ve learned my lesson I’m all about Netflix & Hulu.
Also, I love Dr. Who. If if weren’t for Netflix, I’d never see all of the episodes. Glad to meet another Whovian.
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