TheWrap has got a lot of problems with you people, and now you’re gonna hear about it.
In honor of Festivus — the fake Dec. 23 holiday that has crept from a “Seinfeld” episode into reality — TheWrap looked back at the year in entertainment and media for the traditional Airing of Grievances.
Per custom, Festivus revelers celebrate with an unadorned pole, engage in the aforementioned Airing of Grievances, followed by Festivus dinner and, finally, the Feats of Strength. For those celebrating at home, please remember that Festivus does not officially end until the head of the household has been pinned during the Feats of Strength. That’s important.
And now, TheWrap’s 2015 grievances.
Characters Dying, Then Un-Dying
Killing a beloved character amps up the stakes and dramatic tension on a TV show. But it also makes fans sad. What to do? If you’re the creative team behind “Game of Thrones,” “The Walking Dead” or “The Leftovers,” you just bring the character back to life. Fans definitely don’t feel jerked around by such moves at all.
Streaming Services Holding Viewership Data Hostage
We get it, Netflix and Amazon — ratings numbers aren’t germane to your business model. You’ve told us plenty of times. But if that’s true, you should stop bragging about how your shows are breaking viewership records. The proof is in the Festivus pudding.
Whitewashed Casting
Whitewashing characters in Hollywood productions is nothing new. But 2015 was particular terrible with Emma Stone portraying a half-Asian woman in “Aloha,” Mackenzie Davis cast as as an originally Korean character in “The Martian,” Rooney Mara playing Tiger Lily in “Pan,” and Alex Proyas apologizing for his mostly white “Gods of Egypt.”
‘Star Wars’ Spoilers
Look, not everyone has seen “The Force Awakens” yet. Sometimes you just don’t make it to the theater on opening weekend. That’s not a crime, it’s allowed. So to all the jerks out there posting spoilers on the Internet: Stop it.
ISIS Fear Mongering
Yes, we know ISIS is dangerous and killing any Westerner in its sight — but teasing segments by pushing fear is for shock jocks, not CNN anchors.
Teasers For Trailers
A trailer is meant to convince us to go see a movie, but that’s not enough these days. Sometimes, the release of a trailer is as big an event as the release of the movie itself — so the biggest trailers now need THEIR OWN trailers, most of which come in the form of 15-second snippets. We have to draw a line somewhere, people.
TV News’ Trump Fixation
TV news producers collectively quit researching what’s happening in the world, trading in news for a steady diet of Donald Trump. Segment after segment, rally after rally, even whole shows dedicated to analyzing the rise of the Donald. Please find a new shiny object for the New Year.
Networks Abandoning Live-Plus-Same Day Ratings
We all agree that live-plus-same-day TV ratings are nowhere near as important as they used to be. That’s obvious. But Fox’s recent deem them irrelevant and stop releasing them — following similar moves by cable networks such as FX and AMC — is a few steps too far in the opposite direction.
Midseason Finales
Just what TV needs: more stunts! When premieres, sweeps and season finales simply aren’t enough, enter midseason finales. The typical mere three weeks off the air doesn’t warrant a push including a “finale” coding. Keep your cliffhangers for May, guys. You’re not fooling anyone.
Late-Night Reindeer Games
Come on, America — we deserve better from our late-night talk shows. Who cares if some starlet can play flip-cup, or which sitcom actor can pretend-sing funniest? Stop it, or the ghost of Johnny Carson will haunt you all.
Presidential Debates As Sporting Events
CNN’s commercials for the last GOP debate looked more like the network was promoting a boxing match than a Republican debate. We know that networks hosting the debates are only interested in ratings, but can’t they at least try to make us think they actually care about informing the general public before the next election?
Walled-Garden Centent Devices
Streaming devices that don’t let you watch content you’ve paid for elsewhere — seriously, Apple TV, I can’t watch Amazon Prime? And Amazon Fire TV, would it kill you to make is easy to watch my iTunes downloads?
The Muppets Are Not Real
The Muppets are pretend characters created by a real man named Jim Henson. So why do so many pretend that Kermit, Miss Piggy and their ilk are people? Things got especially absurd when — ahead of the new “Muppets” show on ABC — journalists shamefully treated Kermit and Piggy’s break-up storyline stunt like real news.