Yet, some TV tropes can disappear or nearly disappear, and new ones can emerge with the changing times.

Technological changes are often to blame for changes in the TV trope landscape.

Entire Shows Can Become Obsolete Due to Technological Advancements

Growing up in the 1980s, I developed an affinity for watching reruns on Nick at Nite, a programming block devoted to older television programs.

After Nickelodeon launched Nick at Nite, an entire generation of us grew up loving shows with first runs that ended well before we were born.

Related: The Best Shows for Kids That Had No Disney or Nickelodeon Ties

Among those programs were series like Gilligan's Island and Lassie, the former about getting stranded on an island and the latter about the daily adventures of a boy and his dog.

Given current technology, many such shows would be pretty different programs if they were produced today.

In some instances, it might even be impossible to duplicate them realistically.

For example, technically, people can still get on a boat, get stranded on an island, and be impossible to locate, as occurred on Gilligan's Island.

It's possible. However, it's not nearly as likely because technologies like cellular phones and tracking devices exist to prevent such things today.

As for Lassie, it's difficult to know where to begin talking about the outdated tropes used on that show.

Almost daily, Lassie had to run through seemingly half a county to find help for someone in some predicament.

That wouldn't happen today because cellular phones are so standard that most people can call for help alone.

Another problem creators of such a show would have today is that characters with outdoor skills are few and far between.

Not only is getting lost or stuck more difficult due to technology, but just getting outside is less common.

Related: 13 Classic Shows to Watch if You Love Elsbeth & Where to Find Them

Children today are likelier to hang out inside in this age of computers, tablets, and video game systems.

Today's societal norms make it far less likely that Timmy Martin (Jon Provost) and Lassie would tromp through the woods, stumble on abandoned mines, and so on daily.

Technology Has Nearly Eliminated Multiple Telephone-Related TV Tropes

Cellular phones have also killed some tropes regarding telephone eavesdropping and privacy.

Years ago, as in real life, homes depicted on TV often featured single phones in central locations like kitchens or living rooms so everyone present could hear at least one side of each conversation.

Classic television shows often used the trope of eavesdropping on phone calls to create romantic and other conflicts.

Of course, some homes had extensions, which made it easy for parents, siblings, or others to eavesdrop and overhear information they had no business hearing.

Other information was also easier to convey on TV through overhead phone conversations back in the day, such as characters receiving news about medical conditions or family emergencies.

Landline phone use by TV characters with crushes and others also created other communication issues.

Before answering machines were standard, people often missed essential calls, a plot point that has been a standard in TV shows for years.

Once answering machines did come on the scene, TV tropes adjusted for them, often including plot devices where machines didn't record correctly or the wrong person got to a machine and heard a message before the intended recipient.

Related: TV Shows Should Make Stars, Not Depend On Them

Cellular phone usage has eliminated most of those issues.

Today, we are all so attached to our phones that we often never even let calls go to voicemail, and if they do, we get the messages quickly. The same is true of most modern TV characters.

Technology is Rapidly Eliminating Payphone Tropes

Those of us who are old enough to remember a world before cell phones also remember a world peppered with payphones.

According to the FCC, the United States had approximately two million payphones in 1999, but in 2023, the numbers indicated only about 100,000 left.

The reduction in payphones in real life has also reduced their depictions on TV because most characters use cellular phones.

The days of characters being cornered in creepy phone booths making urgent middle-of-the-night calls like they are in a true crime documentary are nearly gone.

Depending on the setting, it's also not as easy to have a character realistically make an anonymous call from a payphone to deliver critical information as it once was.

Then there's the Superman problem to consider.

The Man of Steel was known for years for changing outfits in phone booths.

Related: Superman (Formerly Superman Legacy):
Everything We Know So Far About the Upcoming Man of Steel Flick

Granted, he didn't always do so consistently, but many people think of payphones the second they hear anyone mention Superman because the image is cemented in our brains.

As phone booths have become less common, writers of various Superman movies and shows have had to give Superman more creative costume change methods.

In recent years, many Superman shows have used quick cuts, off-screen changes, or CGI methods instead of phone booth sequences.

The Impact of Technology on Crime Show TV Tropes

Another primary TV genre with tropes eliminated or heavily impacted by technological advancements is the crime show.

Crime shows like Miami Vice (1984-1989) often used currently outdated technologies like pagers to allow characters to communicate with each other.

Digging through the records was also a much more common trope years ago.

Today, our favorite TV police officers wouldn't be caught dead using tropes like sending faxes, searching through files manually, or typing up reports on typewriters.

It's all about the latest and greatest in state-of-the-art technology.

The suspect sketch is another TV trope commonly used on crime shows like Law & Order: SVU.

We often saw victims sit in rooms with sketch artists while the artists drew faces on sketchpads.

The trope is still alive and well on modern crime shows, but the methods are often different now.

Related: 23 Dreamiest Male Detectives

Most TV forensic artists have traded in their sketchpads and easels for computer software on popular shows.

The software is exciting but makes the process so quick that modern shows must fill time with other plot points.

It also tends to minimize the use of emotional connectivity between victims and sketch artists as plot points.

The Takeover of Computerized TV Tropes

Hacking is a prime example of a computerized TV trope that didn't exist years ago and is portrayed on TV in multiple ways.

Sometimes, inaccessible data or secure areas require hackers to infiltrate, either for nefarious reasons or to stop criminals already trying to hack systems.

Then there's hacking done purely to distract by setting off alarms, sprinkler systems, or other systems to draw attention away from a character or situation.

An excellent early example was on MacGyver Season 1 Episode 18: Ugly Duckling (1986), when young prodigy Kate Laffery (Darcy Marta) hacked Defense Department systems to cause equipment to go haywire in the building while she escaped custody.

A more modern example of the hacking trope is the frequent hacking done by and to police or government agencies, such as on NCIS (2003-Present).

Computers are also responsible for many other modern tropes besides generating images of crime suspects and being used for hacking.

A major one that pops up frequently is the introduction of a computer virus, with entire episodes usually devoted to stopping the virus before it compromises computer systems.

Since the 1990s, the computer virus trope has been gaining popularity.

Related: 13 Child Stars of the '90s

It has often been utilized on science fiction shows like Eureka (2006-2012) and crime procedurals like CSI: Cyber (2015-2016).

The good guys beat the bad guys trope often used in Westerns and other classic shows is alive and well within the computer virus trope of today because the good guys always tend to stop the virus in the nick of time.

Modern Cellphone Calling and Texting Tropes Are Also Everywhere

Another family of modern tropes created by today's technology is the family of cellphone calling and texting tropes.

These days, we almost all send text messages daily.

Doing so can cause many unexpected and sometimes unwelcome issues, both in reality and on TV shows.

An often-used trope relating to that is the drunk message, such as when Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) left a drunk answering machine message professing her love to Ross (David Schwimmer) on Friends.

The modern twist is that thanks to technology, people can now not just leave phone messages while drunk but also send emails, text messages, or social media messages in seconds.

Shows and films often use text messaging or just plain calling to add tension between characters.

For instance, one character may get upset if another doesn't answer a text or call immediately because, in this era of instant communication, most people always keep their phones on them.

Texting or calling the wrong person can also help build up drama or, depending on the series, get a comedic laugh.

Related: 17 Great Dramas That Focus on Family First

The most iconic instance of this in recent TV history was probably during Succession Season 3 Episode 8: Chiantshire when Roman (Kieran Culkin) accidentally sent an infamous image of his lower regions to his father, Roy (Brian Cox).

The HBO series Succession often made viewers cringe, and that moment was one of the most cringe-worthy.

Those and many other technological advancements have changed the TV landscape forever.

However, those of us who are into nostalgia can still enjoy classic shows to get our old technology fixes.

Certain recent and current shows, such as The Goldbergs, also highlight our old technological ways.

Which do you prefer, old technology on TV for nostalgia or the latest and most significant technological advancements?

Comment below and tell us all about it.

The post How Technology Changed TV Tropes Forever appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Some of the shows that have been canceled stick with us. Their loss causes us pain. We miss them. We hope for reunion movies and to find other people who might share our feelings.

The most recent case in point: Witches of East End, whose axing after two seasons had the Internet buzzing and complaining last week.

Below, we've assembled a list of programs that can still bring a tear to the eye at the thought we'll never see the characters we fell in love with and the stories they shared ever again.

22 Cancellations That Cut Deep

Open List

Whether it was one season and done or 72 years long, when a series disappears, it takes characters who have come to life with it and it proves one sad fact about television:

There aren't always Happy Endings.

We've shown you ours, now you show us yours! Hit the comments with some of canceled series that left you scarred, bitter and maybe a touch weepy.

The post 18 Canceled TV Shows We Can’t Forget: BRING THEM BACK!!!!!!!! appeared first on TV Fanatic.

I was so glad to see that so many people made an appearance, starting with the lovely (and grown up) Jordan Hinson as Zoe Carter, continuing with Matt Frewer and his continual pursuit of the animal variety as the “Biological Containment Specialist” Taggert, and ending with the surprise return of James Callis as Dr. Grant, or rather Trent Rockwell.

While it was bittersweet that Dr. Grant purchased the town, allowing Eureka to continue in our hearts (if not on TV), the tears came as Jack fell through the worm hole and experienced the flashback. So many memories are attached to those flashbacks for me, too. From Nathan Stark’s sacrifice to the alternate timeline where Allison was pregnant we got to see a brief recap of the amazing life of Jack Carter.

Holly and Zoe summed it up best with:

Holly: Oh! Oh! I remember now! You guys are smart, but the Sheriff is the strong force, he holds it all together.
Zoe: He always does. | permalink

In honor of Jack’s trip down memory lane (or through a memory wormhole), here are three of my favorite episodes prior to the finale. Please share your own in the comments below. 

The Pilot: Watching Jack get use to the town as we got our introduction to the town we would spend the next 6 years with was a lot of fun. I might also have a soft spot for it given they used the ending of it as part of the finale where Zoe and Jack see themselves. 

I Do Over: The sacrifice of Nathan Stark to save everyone at the beginning of season three was met with a lot of questions of where things might go given that Nathan had been a strong counter point to Jack. For me it was an emotionally powerful episode as we watch Nathan fade into history.

Up In The Air: In counter point to I Do Over, I consider this episode one of the best comedic episodes based completely on Colin Ferguson’s pratfall ability. I would put Jack Carter in this episode up against Dick Van Dyke or John Ritter in their top roles. I might get the chance given that Colin Ferguson’s is currently filming a sitcom pilot. 

In conclusion, I’m relieved that everyone got their storybook ending. Jack and Allison pregnant, Holly and Doug together, Jo and Zane together and Henry with Grace leading GD. Summers will not be the same without Jack, Allison and the rest of Eureka. I wish everyone from the cast and crew the best of luck and thank you for sharing your amazing creation with us for the last six years. 

Finally, I would like to say a very special thank you to my wife Leah for her help with the Eureka quotes this week. She is my Allison and I couldn’t do this without her.

The post Eureka Series Finale Review: A Bittersweet Goodbye appeared first on TV Fanatic.

The post Eureka Season 5 Episode 13 Recap: Just Another Day appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Because, seriously, this week’s Eureka episode had all the things you would look for in a suspenseful body snatching story. A few examples:

People Not Themselves: The first thing you always get is people who are acting strange and folks around them can’t figure out why. This usually builds until the fake person finally tips his/her hand to a sole remaining individual.

Of course, this being Eureka, that was promptly met with SARAH turning the tables on him and zapping him senseless. On the flip side, for Kavan Smith this meant he again got to play an evil version of Andy, which he does nearly to well. 

Seeing Double: In any really good body swapping or body snatching flick it is practically a law that at some point someone has to come face to face with themselves. In our case it was Parrish and Zane walking in on Evil Parrish in the lab. 

Was anyone actually surprised when Zane shot the Parrish that said “I trust you Zane?” I saw it coming. Of course the Evil Parrish turning to gel and splattering all over real Parrish was a bit of a shock. Well done, Mr. Wheaton, well done.

Distracted By A Child Copy: While not a staple with many horror movies, it seems like all the body snatching stories I have seen in recent years includes a scene where someone is sidelined by an evil-child-copy. 

The basic idea had merit with Jenna being used against Allison. And the setting was spot on, down to the flickering and buzzing lights. The problem I had with it? The Clones were using real world DNA which means Jenna isn’t a pre-teen, she is still a toddler…. yet her bioprinted copy was the same age and looked like the version from the Matrix. 

Infiltrating The Hive: Probably my favorite part of any good body snatching suspense film is the part where the hero (or heroes) decide they want to try and pass as evil clones to get inside and destroy the nest, hive, colony, etc. from the inside. 

Sure enough, Fargo and Alison attempted to do that very thing. I have to give props to Douglas Fargo rockin’ the glasses with an infra-red mode. When I start wearing glasses I’m so going to have to find that. That didn’t save him from being found, but it was pretty damn cool.

This is where we deviate from horror movie formula a bit, as most of them don’t have the heroes actually win. But, in the town of Eureka, we expect a better (yet comical) outcome. Thankfully, we were not disappointed as Alison was able to set off the Z-bomb and knock all the clones out while Jack kicked his own ass. (Or did he get his ass kicked by himself since he was losing?) 

After all the dust settled, it was really nice to see that Holly survived, even if she doesn’t remember any of her time in Eureka. As a confessed fan of Felicia Day’s Holly, I’m still rooting for a happy ending. I do wonder, how do you break it to her that she is a copy of herself because she died? Awkward much?

Overall, it was an excellent and being the next to last episode I savored every moment. It also had a ton of memorable lines that you can find in our Eureka quotes section.

Join me back here next week after San Diego Comic Con for the final review of the series, as we send our favorite small town out in style.

The post Eureka Review: I Am Jack’s Evil Twin appeared first on TV Fanatic.

The post Eureka Season 5 Episode 12 Recap: Double Take appeared first on TV Fanatic.

“Mirror, Mirror” was originally written to be the set-up and intro for the original finale of Eureka Season Five.

While the fates have been cruel and we won’t get another season of this great show, we can all be thankful that Jamie Paglia and his team were given an extra episode this season to wrap things up. Which means we have two more episodes to go!

I hope it also means we won’t be left wondering who’s home upstairs inside Holly head because it certainly isn’t the lovable geeky girl Fargo fell in love with. 

My guess is Senator Wyn. We know she got put into a Matrix world somewhere by Beverly Barlow; it stands to reason she might have piggy-backed into GD along with Holly when they downloaded her. Hell, maybe she was there the whole time, we have no idea where Beverly stashed her (or her body).

Has anyone kept count of how many times Andy has gone “evil” this season? Kavan Smith must have had a ball being able to play both a good version and repeated bad version of Andy. While Smith may technically be the second actor to play Andy, he has done an amazing job and I wouldn’t trade him in for anyone.

How awesome was Zane? He managed to keep Jo’s integrity in place and still offer her the help she needed, even if it wasn’t what she thought she wanted. I usually take that as a sign of a strong relationship, the ability to know what the other person needs even when they aren’t sure themselves. 

Sadly the same can’t be said for Henry and Grace. Poor Henry wants to take responsibility for an action he technically didn’t commit. I think Grace said it best with

You made me a better person. If you’re looking to take responsibility for something, take responsibility for that. | permalink

I agree. Henry should take responsibility for his actions, helping Grace become a better person. He shouldn’t try to assume those of his alter-ego from this timeline. It doesn’t serve anyone for him to go to jail.

Oh, wait, maybe we can send the bio-printed copy to jail. Or better yet, make a bio-print of Grace and let it go to jail. And, before you say it wouldn’t work, remember – this is Eureka!

The post Eureka Review: Dust in the Wind appeared first on TV Fanatic.

The post Eureka Season 5 Episode 11 Recap: Mirror, Mirror appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Unless you’re Jack. Then you take your new bride out to the woods to a cabin that might have been featured in a recent horror film and try to convince her she really wants to be there as the ceiling falls in and the shower covers her in mud. 

Don’t get me wrong, I think Jacks concept was very romantic – after all, he did bring wedding rings. I just don’t think he thought it all the way through. Jack could have prevented all of the issues they had with one of two different solutions: 

Rent a travel trailer or motor home: I’m sure Jack and Allison would have had no trouble working on the cabin if they had a comfortable, dry place to relax in at night that offered a few amenities like a shower and refrigeration.  

Have the basics working: If Jack really want them to sleep in the construction zone, he needed to make sure to have the basics finished before he brought his city girl out to the sticks! Again, dependable running water and refrigeration for food are a must! If he couldn’t have that much done then the option above still stands. 

That aside, it was really nice to see Jack give in and offer to call a travel agent and the Alison give in at the end and come back out to work on the cabin in “The Honeymooners.”

However, as Allison said, compared to others in town, they got off light. How crazy is it that Grace was working with Beverly Barlow at one point?!? Then to find out it was Henry that started it?! I nearly flipped! I really hope that given the age of the disk, Grace can convince Henry, Jo, and the others that she had turned over a new leaf a long time ago.

Then we have Holly in her new body! While not exactly the Andy style body I suggested in this Eureka review, I’m still going to say I called it as she is up and mobile again! Granted she went through a little cyborg PTSD with Jack and pulled his gun. But hey, who hasn’t gotten a little confused after being downloaded to a new body… right?

There was really only one thing about this episode that bugged me, that being the safe Jack found. First, why would Cobb put a safe under the floor with no way to get to it? Jack broke a floor board not a door in the floor. Second, shouldn’t that safe have been a helluva lot dirtier after five years under a cabin floor? And, lastly, who would have Andy drive out to cut open the safe and then not even take a flip through the folder’s contents?  

Apparently the lack of sleep, food and shower went to Jacks brain and killed his curiosity. 

That minor issue aside, I enjoyed the episode very much. I love seeing Fargo and Holly back together and I hope we get to end the season with them on a happy note. Be sure and stop by our Eureka quotes section and see which ones made the cut this week! 

The post Eureka Review: The House That Jack Built appeared first on TV Fanatic.

The post Eureka Season 5 Episode 10 Recap: The Honeymooners appeared first on TV Fanatic.