October 13, 2011
-
Past TV Shows That Gave Me Unrealistic Expectations
I’ve been a big fan of television for as long as I could remember. For 30-60 minutes at a time, you get to experience a whole other world that you generally don’t see in your regular life. Those brief escapes from reality were, and still are, a great incentive to keep me watching.
Even though I knew that television shows were created for my entertainment and that not everything I saw was real, there were times when I had a hard time distinguishing which TV facts were rooted in truths and which were spiced up. It didn’t help that I was still a confused, middle school kid when I had these ideas of how the world should be. Some of my biggest gaffes came from shows such as…
#3. Popeye the Sailor Man
Why does the spinach look like drugs? Wait a minute…On the Show: Whenever it look like Popeye is in trouble, he just pops a can of spinach down his throat and TADA! He’s kicking ass!
My Expectation: Spinach will give me MOAR POWER!The Reality: While healthy, it didn’t quite give me the boost I was looking for when I challenged my neighbor, who was at least a foot taller and 2 times my weight, to a wrestling match. Ouch.
#2. Dawson’s Creek
The bed: where all the cool kids areOn the Show: When Joey visits Dawson, she doesn’t ring the doorbell and walk through the front door. Nope, she just climbs right through his window. Dawson does not get phased by this, so it is assumed that this is normal behavior.
My Expectation: My pretty neighborhood friend will also start climbing through my window at night to hang out!The Reality: Apparently girls, like the one that lived across the street from me, will be turned off if asked to climb up my ladderless house to lay in bed with me at night. Whodathunk?
#1. The Fresh Prince of Bel Air (Or Basically Any Show with a Father Figure)
On the Show: Whenever the son is sad about something, the father character (or in Will’s case, the uncle) would sit down with him and give some words of wisdom and/or comfort. It’s not unusual for them to hug it out at the end.
My Expectation: Dad will comfort me (with great empathy) whenever I am feeling down!The Reality: My dad, being the typical Asian dad, never did anything close to what I saw of fathers on TV. I think I started harboring resentment towards him in my youth, wondering why he didn’t love me. It was only later on that I realized he does cares for me, but he shows it in indirect ways. Nonetheless, I made it a point that I will behave more like the typical TV dad than the typical Asian dad in the future towards my children. I want my kids to never doubt that they can count on me to be there for them in their times of need.
So now that I mentioned some of my past naive beliefs, I’m curious about some of yours. What was the silliest expectation you had thanks to something you saw on a TV show?
Comments (111)
Bugs Bunny never steered me wrong.
something about Popeye. several years ago i was chronically deficient in iron. my doctor said he had know idea how i was still walking around much less going to work every day and that he was going to post my iron level on his wall as a record. he sent me to a specialist who put me on an iron supplement and gave me a list of iron rich foods to eat. i asked, what about spinach? she said the body doesn’t absorb iron from spinach well. i said, so Popeye? she shook her head no.
This was cute.
Hmmm let’s see. Let me think…
I can’t think of one for myself right now but I remember when we had German exchange students in the 90′s, they were so into Texas shows like Dallas that many of the guys were wearing super tight jeans, cowboy boots and hats in Germany. it was quite a sight.
That I could afford a nice apartment in NYC. lol
hey arnold! did it for me. The kids on the show were 9 and were riding the subways by themselves, had jobs, roamed the city freely, and I was upset that I couldn’t do that.
I’ve… never seen these shows xD lol
any show in which the underdog came out on top.
Full House. Whenever one of the kids got upset about something they would storm up to their room, crying, and after a moment one of the parental figures would sigh and say “I’ll go talk to him/her,” and then they’d have a heart to heart (like Will and Uncle Phil). Trust me, I many times stormed up to my room, upset and crying, whether because of a fight at school or because of something I didn’t get, and I don’t remember my parents ever coming up and having a heart to heart with me. Mostly I was ignored until I calmed down, which made me angrier. Led to a lot of building resentment.
That wasn’t the only sitcom to feature such a convention (it’s pretty damn popular to this day, sadly) but I remember Full House doing this the most.
Ummm I need time to think about this one…
Knight Rider: That my car would talk to me.
I never understood Married with Children. Now, as an adult, in a similar “shitty” situation, I find humor and end up rolling on the flooring, cramping from laughing so much / relating to his ass. He’s my hero. ”Let’s rock!”
My sister and I use to stay up until the last show of poppeye.
and I thought if I got the ingredients for power puff girls I can make them too. i never did try, though. I mean, what the heck is “everything nice”?
Full House. I thought people from San Francisco would be nice, but then I met Sonlay and realized that it’s not true.
Clearly, the neighbor just ate more spinach than you.
Saved by the Bell – taught me that if I form my hands into a “T” and call “Time out” I can freeze time and alter the situation that would result in the best outcome for me.
Boy Meets World – the girl you loved as a little kid would be the love of your life. Liked a girl for 9 years…nothing….overlooked the fact that they have to like you back. D’oh! XO
i enjoyed those 3 shows, though the first one more than the later two. growing up in an asian family, i too was without the typical ‘fatherly advice and comfort’. my dad had to work hard to provide for his family and had to go out of town for business trips quite often, thus home was almost always women-run empire, with 2 grandmas, 4 aunts, mum and 2 sisters. i also did not grow up with ‘hugs’, like the ones you see in american families on tv. nobody in my family hugs anyone, at least not to my recollection. not sure if that is typical in a chinese family or just mine alone. american tv can be unrealistic sometimes.
@TheTheologiansCafe - 2 thumbs up on Knight Rider show
My dad loves me too even if he doesn’t show it like the way it’s done on television!
As for a misunderstanding, when I was younger, there was an episode of the Simpson’s where store-bought ice was shown to actually come from glaciers. People used iced picks to take pieces of ice and then packaged them. I believed this was how packaged ice was made for the longest time until I finally thought about it. Haha, silly younger Dan…
Oh btw, your comment about Popeye‘s spinach–I never realized the drug message before lol.
Haha, Idk about Uncle Phil being comforting with great empathy… I’d say more like tough love? He reminds me of my dad, except Uncle Phil was more tolerant. O.o
I always wanted friends like those on That 70′s Show. I always wanted a group friends that would stick close no matter what. I also wanted a random basement that was at our disposal. Haha.
Yeah, every Asian parents never show their feelings, unless you’re failing then they’ll be right next to you with a broom in tow! LOL
Obviously, when the girl gets the guy and they lived happily ever after. I think this is in every show…
Sabrina the Teenage Witch, seriously I always thought I’d have powers by the time I was 16. Even after I realized this would never happen, a little part of me thought what if?
I’ve never had this happen honestly.
Some shows and films gave me unrealistic expectations of men.
back then it was pepper ann. i thought all 8th graders were chill and good looking and wear cool shade. majority were nerds with braces and scrawny.
i really liked popeye in elementary school :]
Interesting. I never watched Dawson’s Creek, but I must have missed the point that this was not supposed to be real life. I spent too much time climbing in windows. There was a lot of window entering on Saved By The Bell as well.
Power Rangers and thought I could fight off bad guys (doesn’t have to be from the other world) like them. But I was just a little chubby kid who wouldn’t even move fast. =P
similar to you and popeye, when i watched TMNT, i thought pizza was the best looking thing ever! and that the cheese would fly around like liquid putty when i pulled off a slice of it! the first time i had pizza was in my school lunch. turns out pizza is just bread with hard, milk curds and slices of ground up pig organs. and yeah, people without loving parents will always love guys like uncle phil and aunt vilma.
Gilligan’s Island… I naively believed a group of real life castaways wouldn’t have drowned Gilligan after about the 20th (or less) time he foiled the escape. I mean c’mon, in real life he would have been the first to be eaten.
Instant asian.
The sheng gong wu.
Japanese animation hentai porn, you love your momma more.
Meh I would expect my life to be like a TV show. It’s scripted. Your life is not. That’s the difference.
The epic disappointment when I realized I couldn’t transform into a hot, lightning-wielding super-heroine, no matter how many times I threw my hand up into the air and yelled “Jupiter Power”.
….That was the most crushing blow of my life.
@TheSutraDude - How’s your iron levels now?
@YouToMe - Were you a fan of that look? =)
@AmeliaHart - Haha, Friends?
@lovejennyy - Oh yeah! I forgot about that show.
@Cestovatelka - SO YOUNG!! Not ever Fresh Prince?! Go watch it on reruns!
@iones_island - Hey that still happens…although, not at the regularity that happens on show
@leaflesstree - I almost mentioned Full House too for that. I’m pretty sure I did the same as you and just waited for my parents to come in. That never happened.
@suefa_lee - Come up with something yet?
@TheTheologiansCafe - Actually, I think cars do talk to you now.
@BenelliMan - I used to watch that show at night. Perhaps I was too young, but I just didn’t get it either.
Hahaha no.
I was old enough for it… I just lived under a rock til about 2003 or so. lol
okay i have to ask, dawson’s creek,
are you a joey/dawson person or a joey/pacey person?
@f5ye_angel5 - That is a bit vague. They did that on purpose so noone else could make those girls, clearly
@fLiPgUy31O - …you’re right. Frickin’ Sonlay.
@coolmonkey - hadn’t thought of that
@Cucumber_Melonhead - I liked the same girl throughout elementary school. Nothing really panned out, although she was my date to 8th grade formal
@rudyhou - did anyone ever say “I love you”?
@DrAgoNTorrent_265 - Holy crap, I remember that from the Simpsons too! I think I believed that for a while as well!
@oOo_itsJuJu - I think having a close circle of friends isn’t too far out of the imagination =)
@Ladiiee - You got the broom? I got the fly swatter. You wouldn’t think that hurts, but it stings like hell X_X
@Baseballchik138 - I think I occasionally try to think something into fruition as if my mind has that power. I’m still waiting for it to happen!
@Hinase - You were a lot more grounded in reality than me then.
I always wanna be Hagemaru.
@icesoul_09 - Only some?
@dreamsversion - Popeye was my show! I don’t think I’ve seen Pepper Ann before though
@leahKtutu - Oh yeah, forgot that happened on Save By The Bell too. No wonder I thought entering windows were suppose to be normal. My window had that screen, so I wondered how come the shows never had them.
@kyalzinlay - I wanted to be a Power Ranger when I grew up. True story.
Ninja Turtles made me think I could skateboard. Needless to say I am way too black and/or Puerto Rican for that.
i had the same expectations with the first one you mentioned, but the most silliest would have to be Jack and the Beanstalk. i believed the golden-painted beans i received in first grade would blossom into well.. a great big giant beanstalk that i’d be able to climb.
@RestlessButterfly - Bald?!
@prettykay04 - Team Jawson all the way!
@Cestovatelka - Well, you can now catch up. Go go go!
@nooitzben - True. It’s just nice to imagine at times
@nimbusthedragon - Why oh why am I not surprised you would say that?
@TiredSoVeryTired - haha, I suppose you’re right.
@figachewy - Ever played TMNT games? I thought pizza were healthy in some way since they give players more health bars
When I watched TV as a kid, all the shows were still made in California and I thought it would be so cool to live there so I could see the stars. Now that I’m older and realize that the traffic, pollution, and crowding are problems, I wouldn’t want to live there. Besides, TV shows are made in Canada now!
@vanedave - How about inline skating? haha
@Beb3Lika - How disappointed were you when that didn’t happen?
@whyzat - You’re right, I used to think that CA was always sunny and filled with celebs wherever you went. CA is still nice, but definitely not quite what I originally imagined.
Not for me either. I am really good at eating pizza though.
@Roadlesstaken - i was sad for a couple days, and thought maybe i planted it wrong or something.. then i tried again. but it grew me green beans, and i contemplated getting a shrinking ray.
Wait there’s a differance between TV and reality!!!!!
I’m sure there are lots of nasty surprises i have in store but so far i’ve not had my TV dream shattered lol
when i do i’ll PM you
@Roadlesstaken - Ahahaha so it wasn’t just me!!!
It’s tough having the typical asian dad. My boyfriend had it and he’s not very kind to his dad as a result. He never felt the love in any sense (also because his dad had a gambling problem and they got very poor very quickly) and doesn’t trust or much like his dad. Which is sad.
@Roadlesstaken - they are fine since then. it was shortly after 9/11 that i began feeling so weak that if a sidewalk had the slightest upward gradation i got out of breath. several times over a period of months i’d stop dead in my tracks as a sharp pain struck my chest. i’d stand still on the NY sidewalk for a moment saying to myself, “not here” before continuing on. i thought this all had something to do with being at ground zero on 9/11. i finally went to my former wife’s doctor at her insistence. it was pretty funny. the very first thing he said when i walked into his examination room was, “you look like shit.” he literally said that before i sat down. then he asked me to explain why i was there. he took blood and told me he would have the results back in two days but the next morning he called me at work before 9 AM and told me to get to Cornell Medical Center immediately and that a doctor there was already expecting me. that was the Popeye doctor. she was a lot of fun. we hit it off right away.
thanks for the add! some of your posts are thought provoking. i’ve been following for awhile :]
CSI Miami
In the Show: Horatio takes off sunglasses whenever he says a witty pun about the episode’s case.
Expectation: Everyone will say “YEAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!
Reality: “Why are you wearing sunglasses at night, dude?”
@vanedave - That skill will never go out of style
@Beb3Lika - were you disappointed when you found out shrinking rays don’t exist (yet..)?
@BFB1131 - You will, my friend (dun dun dun)
@haloed - that is really sad. Did he get more love from his mom at least?
@dreamsversion - Really? How long?
@stupid_systemus - I actually remember a few times where that has happened, but then again it was done with everyone in on the joke.
@Roadlesstaken - yes. His mom is white and well, she was very much like my mother. Very nurturing, loving, she raised amazing boys.
@Roadlesstaken - ‘love’? not to my recollection. the word ‘love’ was only associated with something between 2 people, which leads to a wedding and then babies.
@Roadlesstaken - since 2007 off and on? who keeps track of such thing
it’s kinda hard to not get absorbed, you know, seeing your posts recommended on xanga homepage all the time!
@Roadlesstaken - Haha, I suppose in my world it is. And the basement????
Dude, I always thought I could come back in some transforming Robotech mecha, and kick the crap out of all the classmates who gave me a bad time. Either that, or my heroine Ms. Pac Man would come alive, and eat all those lousy classmates as dots…
Buffy the Vampire Slayer taught me that where there is happiness, there are also blood-sucking soul destroyers lurking to eliminate any chance at a normal life you’ll ever have.
And it’s been pretty true thus far.
I honestly believed I was some type of vampire-related critter for so long. *sigh* It’s funny how innocence makes you think you’re a death machine.
@Roadlesstaken - ….. ! really? I always was the Pacey/Joey <3
@dreamsversion - Ahhh, gotcha. Well, I’m happy to discover another reader. I sometimes wonder who’s out there reading that I’m not aware of.
@oOo_itsJuJu - That doesn’t seem too out of the question either, but I think you could do better than the basement haha
@rpghero27 - I’m going to guess you didn’t have enjoyable school years?
@tarotbutterfly - Haha, I guess you’re right!
@Roadlesstaken - yup, you’ve grown quite familiar and i, quite fond. i always like to be internet private, but lately i think it’s okay to come out of that. :]
lol you are like an acquaintance stranger, like how i know your preference for sundresses, or a bad boba date, and all these lil traveling adventures have looked so exciting!
@dreamsversion - Wow, you definitely read my stuff! I hope to see you around more often then, now that you’re not as internet private. Very cool.
Well, I certainly agree with you about the Asian dad thing. My dad doesn’t exactly convey care and love in the right way either, but somehow I know that he does care for me.
@laytexduckie - Are you planning to have a different parenting style than him in the future?
I thought real cars and trucks were actually Transformers. O.o
Then I saw the movies, and now i’m convinced.
@Roadlesstaken - Slightly different. His parenting style, which I understood completely, is frowned upon today. He was into discipline a lot, but only to keep me and my brother in line if we did something bad. I might not go as far as to physically discipline, though.
haha i love dawson’s creek.. joey was the best character imo.. she has a great personality.. i think above all the other ones.. i also, like the 90s especially when it came to nickloden
@InStealthMode - Well duh, of course our cars are alive. How do you think it moves us around?!
@laytexduckie - Yeah, it’s really how they were raised too so I can understand it now. As a kid though…
@discover_hienie - I still remember the very first episode of Dawson’s Creek when Joey started talking about boobs. That won me over for the rest of the seasons haha
Fresh Prince also made me believe I could dance. Apache! Jump on it! Or It’s not unusual.
Full house definitely gave me unrealistic expectations ofmhowmto deal with problems in high school.
Boy meets world got me thinking that not only is it ok to climb right on through someone’s window but that all relationships are like Cory and topanga.
Very hard to think of any TV shows or cartoons on top of my head. Maybe…those romantic movies on relationships I guess?
@Roadlesstaken - whoops I meant I wouldn’t expect my life to be like a tv show..typo there.
Futurama. I expected all robots to drink alcohol like Bender does, but when I gave alcohol to a robot vacuum cleaner all it did was create sparks and quit working.
@Keeko1 - I guesss that counts =)
@nooitzben - no problem, I kinda guessed that
@Rob_of_the_Sky - Where’s the Zoidberg profile pic? That would have been fitting for your comment
@bluepillorredpill - PERFECT profile pic haha. I can still do the Carlton nowadays
@x3littlewing - Wow, I’m starting to notice a lot more shows had people entering through the window as if that was the norm haha
@Roadlesstaken - True. Actually, when I moved to Cruces, people told me I’m always welcomed into their house at anytime I wanted to go. Kind of an open door policy. Back then, though, I wanted something like that.
@Roadlesstaken - I wonder if anybody out there actually tried and ended up with some alien life form like in Splice the movie. I can barely watch the trailers for that thing
hahah what i never seen that one.. boy you gotta show me that one
I know 1 is more serious than 2 and 3, but HAHA I can’t stop lol’ing at the mental images that you put in my head with 2 & 3. How did the wrestling match go (did you write a post about it)? Also, was the girl totally creeped out? Hm, I’ve seen that in cartoon shows– I thought it was OK for close friends to do that with each other, too!
They say we end up like the same-sex parental figure, regardless of how much we try. Psych major, you know this, right?
@discover_hienie - It’s the very first episode!
@christykim - I haven’t written about my neighborhood fights…yet haha. The girl wasn’t too creeped out since we knew each other, but she did give me a WTF look
@Roadlesstaken - nope, cuz i’ll be the first to invent one!
hahha okay thank u
ah, i’m your 100th eprop! nice.
transformers. I actually thought there was a planet cybertron. fuuuuuuuuuuuchhhh haha
@ThePrince - You get a prize! You must stay on Xanga until I leave =)
“It was only later on that I realized he does cares for me, but he shows it in indirect ways.”
True, w/ food especially! I can’t think of any silly expectations from a tv show.
hahah! I love this post of yours.
For me, it’s shows depicting loving siblings – a total lie in my case. My brother used to the nicest person to me…. until he puberty. 10 years later, he’s still an asshole. :[
@lenafaye - Ah yes, food = the Asian love item
@AlfieNgoSYOU - How are you to him?
FRIENDS….I love that show, but I just don’t know sometimes… and pretty much any show that portrays a ‘happily ever after’.
@HeartLUST - Friends sure made it seem like it was easy to afford a big apartment in NYC =/
@Roadlesstaken - I’m courteous to him. (wish I could say the same for him!) hah..
Where’s full house, family matters, growing pains, saved by the bell, etc? lol however Fresh Prince is good lol
@hollywoodfever91 - Aren’t you too young to know those shows??
The silliest? Probably when I was still naive enough to believe that what I saw on the news was actually a fair and complete representation of reality.
@christao408 - I think a lot of people get fooled by that still
Bewitched. Still trying to wiggle my nose!
@CareyGLY - Wiggle it harder! It works better that way.
@Roadlesstaken - they did have those episodes where Monica was struggling with finances and then with the rest where, Rachel couldn’t find a decent job up until bloomingdale’s…and Phoebe, grew up in the streets of NYC and Joey being a struggling ‘actor’. I think those were suppose to be that drop of reality, or what not. Other than that Ross was a Paleontologist and Chandler had a high paying job, so they could afford to live in NYC. There are other aspects of that show that I am iffy about. But yes, I agree…that show makes me want to move up there and live freely and independently.
the only reason why i started eating spinach was cause of popeye
@BI0chemical_EQUACI0N - Same same
Even though I went with my father to his gambling habitats I am glad I never became a gambler. It is the bane for Asians to get the gambling bug….
I liked this post better than the zombie post but maybe if I read the comments there I might get interested…nah more of Naruto on hulu is calling me (yess some people spend too much time on facebook games, I find naruto better…)
@PPhilip - I’ve heard good things about Naruto, but haven’t had a chance to sit down to watch it. Did you see the recent YouTube live action version of it? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAl2DWNukbs
@Roadlesstaken - Using real actors instead of a cartoon…I have others to see as well. So little time and so much to see. We have to distract ourselves to other things…good luck on your future and your missions.
what, no power rangers? real life lessons there yo!
@kaiori - I almost included Power Rangers actually!
I was duped by Popeye too, we all were canned spinach is slimy and nasty.
@seedsower - I actually like it now, but I wonder how much it was because Popeye made it look sooo good
I love frozen and fresh spinach, not canned yet, maybe I will give it another try.