I tried to watch it. I really did.
I tried to like them. I really did.
But I just can't. I really can't.
I tried to watch the comedy "Schitt's Creek" on Netflix. It's nominated for an Emmy as Best Comedy, Catherine O'Hara is nominated for Lead Actress in a Comedy and Eugene Levy for Lead Actor in a Comedy. It's got to be pretty good, right?
Yeah, not so right.
OK, some of the writing and situations it creates can be funny at times, but the show has one overarching problem for me: The characters are annoying and obnoxious. Really annoying and obnoxious. To the point that I can't watch the show.
O'Hara definitely deserves an Emmy nomination because her performance as the mother hits such an amazing level of self-absorption and lack of self-awareness. She's so good, I had to start leaving the room when she was on-screen. I can't stand her.
The other characters have their own levels of annoyance, including the clueless daughter, played by Annie Murphy.
It could be that it's just me, because the show is heading into its fifth season. Someone must like it.
Other actors and the characters they play have their own levels of self-absorption and annoyance factor. I can't watch anything with Adam Sandler, for instance.
I have never been able to watch any of the "Real Housewives" or "The Bachelor" or any of the other "relationship reality" shows. Why would anyone want to hang out with these people, even if it's only for an hour? Little pieces of your soul are chipped away each time you do.
Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat is another that makes me cringe. Anyone who takes advantage of another person without their consent irritates me. Making fun of someone who has no idea what's going on holds no humor. And don't try to pass it off as: "Oh, the actor/actress is making fun of themselves, not other people."
I understand that tastes are varied, and my likes are not someone else's, a fact that my wife points out when I watch strange stuff like "Preacher" and "Dark."
For instance, I loved "Northern Exposure" years ago, but other friends couldn't stand it. To me, the characters were weird, but not self-absorbed except, of course, for the main one, Joel Fleischman, played by Rob Morrow. But eventually he comes around.
That's what friends tell me about "Schitt's Creek," that its characters will grow on you.
Sounds too much like a fungus.
Shawn RyanContact Shawn Ryan at mshawnryan@gmail.com.