So. There you are standing around the store reading the back of the box wondering if it will live up to memories; or if you've never seen it but love the genre or time period.... so you plunge...

Loved; Alias Smith and Jones, Planet of the Apes (TV series), The White Shadow, The Big Valley, Hazel

Disliked; Land of the Lost and The Wild Wild West

I tend to let a few pile up at the store and then Netflix Season One Disc One which has saved me in the "dislike" category MANY times, however sometimes you just get an urge and make a dumb purchase out of impulse....:crazy:

This looks like an interesting topic. I'll Bite.

On The shows I took a chance on and loved here goes

Profit, American Gothic, Wacky Races, How I met Your Mother, My Name is Earl, Batman (90s cartoon), Gargoyles, Superman (90s cartoon), G.I. Joe, Adventures of Pete & Pete

and I don't like to say dislike because I didn't hate them I just wasn't feeling it. Those are

Boomtown, Twin Peaks (in it's defense the pilot episode isn't included), Dallas, Veronica Mars, Strangers With Candy, Garbage Pail Kids

*EDIT* Sorry i'm stupid, I didn't realize you meant bought at the store, I must have just read it really fast. All the shows I talked about I rented. But the ones I enjoyed I usually ended up buying down the line. I have never bought a show I haven't seen (except Profit but I researched it and knew what I was getting into and I wasn't dissapointed) I love renting tv shows I have seen so much great stuff that I was curious about but would never buy. I especially love renting shows that came out before season 2 or 3 started like My Name Is Earl, How I Met Your Mother, Boston Legal and Medium.

I TOOK A CHANCE ON CHARMED, I SAW AN EPISODE ON TV AND BEING A BEWITCHED FAN W/MAGIC IN ALL. I TOOK A CHANCE AND BOUGHT ALL 7 SEASONS AND LOVE IT. THE BEST CHANCE I'VE EVER MADE.

This is why for some shows I'll try to catch the reruns again (or for the first time) if I can before I buy a show on DVD. I won't be happy with myself if I wind up spending money for a show that I either thought I liked or thought I would like, and then wind up disliking it.

I TOOK A CHANCE ON CHARMED, I SAW AN EPISODE ON TV AND BEING A BEWITCHED FAN W/MAGIC IN ALL. I TOOK A CHANCE AND BOUGHT ALL 7 SEASONS AND LOVE IT. THE BEST CHANCE I'VE EVER MADE.

GULP. All seven seasons!! Wow, talk about your gamblers!! In light of this I remembered one of my biggest gambles; DVD Planet had "Enterprise" all 4 seasons bundled together in a giftbox and clearanced for $250. I had seen the show a few times and while I thought it was about a 3 out of 5, I just couldn't resist knowing each season is 100 dollars + (and still is). Thankfully after getting fully into it it is rapidly becoming a fave of mine and I ZERO regrets.

This is why for some shows I'll try to catch the reruns again (or for the first time) if I can before I buy a show on DVD. I won't be happy with myself if I wind up spending money for a show that I either thought I liked or thought I would like, and then wind up disliking it.

Meh. there is always eBay. When I buy a new set and dislike it (like WWWest), if you sell within a week of it being new you pretty much get your money back less a few bucks like a rental. It's just a hassle so I try not to do it too often.

Shows I Like -

"Curb Your Enthusiasm" - I don't have HBO and at the time, I wasn't really a fan of "Seinfeld" (this show is about Larry David, the co-creator of Seinfeld, playing himself). I remember Barwars saying the show was funny, and I was at Target, feeling like a good blind buy. So I bought it, watched it and LOVED IT! It's now in my top ten favorite sitcoms.

"Monk" - I liked Tony Shalhoub from "Wings" but never watched Monk on USA. I was at the store, and the first season had been out for a while, when I decided to give the show a chance. It's now one of my favorites.

"F Troop" - Sort of. I had seen the show before when it was on Nick at Nite, but I never watched a full episode. Then I bought the DVD and now I love the show. I'm glad the second (and final) season is coming out.

"Planet of the Apes" - I like the show better than the movies. The trio of Virdon, Burke and Galen (the ape) was fun to watch, they had a great chemistry together and the show should have lasted longer.

Shows I Dislike -

"Sledgehammer" - I bought it at the store, without knowing anything about the show. But it looked like it could be good. I did, indeed buy the second (and final) season just to have the whole show, but at the end of the day, I just wasn't into the show and have since given them away.

"1st & Ten" - I bought the COMPLETE SERIES, without ever seeing an episode. When I started watching it, I came to the conclusion that the show sucked. I just don't like it. But I guess that's understandable since I hate sports.

Liked:

Dallas
Sledge Hammer
Starsky and Hutch
Fawlty Towers
Good Times
Mork and Mindy
The Jeffersons
Buffalo Bill
Police Squad (I actually didn't like this show when I first watched the dvd but I gave it another chance and I ended up liking it. I guess it's one of those shows that gets better everytime you watch it)


Disliked:

Black Adder
Kate and Allie

Skywalker.... great quote there!! I do LOVE A.P.K., but I have to admit Micheal Gross/Steven Keaton is sorely underrated.

Great to see two votes for Planet of The Apes the tv series. I am a HUGE fan of that show and it was my very first tv dvd box set (I got the UK release early on).

On a personal note I only took a chance on The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Mysteries and boy did I love it! Another great slice of late 70s life. I think they've abandoned releasing the following seasons which is a great shame!

http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/MMPH/262768~The-Hardy-Boys-Nancy-Drew-Mysteries-Posters.jpg

Liked:
Married...With Children
Cybill

On a personal note I only took a chance on The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Mysteries and boy did I love it!

ya know, I actually kicked that one around.... still unsure.

Skywalker.... great quote there!! I do LOVE A.P.K., but I have to admit Micheal Gross/Steven Keaton is sorely underrated.

Thanks. I agree, he was very underrated. Alex was my favorite character on the show but Steven was definitely my 2nd favorite.

On a personal note I only took a chance on The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Mysteries and boy did I love it!

ya know, I actually kicked that one around.... still unsure.

Great stories, lovely locations... local neighbourhood, Hawaii, Chinatown etc
I even have a scenic screencap from one of the episodes as my desktop background... had it for almost 2 years now! There's only 12 or 13 episodes too, so it's not that intense.

Now offense here but your "Gimme a Break" pic (if that's what show it is) makes me waver on your reccommendation. True we all have our little quirks but I really hated that show:((

Ha ha! It's actually Punky Brewster but yeah point taken! :lol:

Shows I blind-bought and liked:

M*A*S*H:
I'd seen a few episodes as a kid, but I didn't like the show, probably because it was too "grown-up" for me at the time. I didn't even realize it was about doctors; I just thought it was a sitcom about the Army. After viewing Robert Altman's MASH for the first time in 2003, and loving it, I decided I'd give the just-released-on-DVD TV adaptation a try.

Not only did I wind up adoring the show; it became one of my all-time favorites. While I still like the movie, my love for the series trumps it in spades.

The Shield:
I hadn't seen one episode of this show, ever. But I'd heard good things. When the series was first released on DVD almost a year after it debuted, I decided to check it out. I was hooked after watching the first episode, and became a die-hard fan.

The Sopranos:
While I'd had HBO, I just couldn't be arsed to check this show out for some reason. Thanks to a very large tax return, I decided, on a whim, to buy the very expensive first season set. It took me about eight months to get around to watching it. When I finally did, I was hooked.

Smallville:
Superman Returns was a heavily-hyped movie last summer, to be sure. I was very excited for the revival of the franchise, so much so that I watched the documentary Look, Up In The Sky: The Amazing Story Of Superman on A&E. The film chronicled the various comic, film and television incarnations of Superman. When they showed clips from a few episodes of Smallville, I was thorougly impressed. To make a long story short, I now have the first five seasons of Smallville in my collection.

Agreed MASH is one of the best shows of all time. No question. Shows like the Shield could interest me but I never know where to start. IMO newer cop/CSI shows seem to blend into one "entity of genericness".

I bought the "Moonlighting" S1-S2 DVD set just a little while back, tried it, and it is actually pretty good-- so good that I'm almost finished with the second season.

Shows like the Shield could interest me but I never know where to start. IMO newer cop/CSI shows seem to blend into one "entity of genericness".

Trust me: there's nothing generic about The Shield. :)

Yes Charmed (all Seasons) Was A Big Gamble. One That I Do Not Regret.
And Also Before I Buy. Not Only Do I Watch A Couple Of Episode On Tv.
I Also Go Online And Check Out The Release Dates. If The Studios Are Releasing Back To Back Season Sets On That Show. The Show Must Be Popular And Also A Very Good Show. Not To Mention Selling Very Well.

Here's Charmed Back To Back Release Date

Release Dates Below

Season 1 Feb '05
Season 2 Sep '05
Season 3 Nov '05
Season 4 Feb '06
Season 5 Jun '06
Season 6 Oct '06
Season 7 Feb '07

Month's Apart Below
Time Frame


Season 1 To 2 (7 Months Apart)
Season 2 To 3 (2 Months Apart)
Season 3 To 4 (3 Months Apart)
Season 4 To 5 (4 Months Apart)
Season 5 To 6 (4 Months Apart)
Season 6 To 7 (4 Months Apart)


And The Final Season 8 Should Be Out Sometime In April Or May
That's Not A Bad Release Date For All Seasons. There's Just A
2,3 Or 4 Month Release Apart Between Each Season Set. Except The Frist Season Which Is 7 Month's But That's Expected. The Studio's Alway's Have To Test The Water On The First Season To See How Well It Sells Before They Release The Second. Unlike The Other Sets That Has To Wait 6 Months To A Year For A Second Or Third Season Release. Are There Anymore Back To Back Releases Out There.

I bought the first season of Soap when it was released. It'd been almost ten years since I'd seen it, so it was almost a blind buy. I didn't like the show nearly as much as I did when I was a teenager, so I almost immediately sold it.

The Jeff Foxworthy Show. Season 1

I only remembered a tiny bit about this series, and when I bought the set, it was NOTHING like what I remembered. I thought I was crazy, until I saw re-runs, and found out that Season 2 was entirely different than season 1 since they switched networks. But I was satisfied with Season 1, and it still gets a lot of spins in my DVD player...

I took a chance on Saved By The Bell and I love it.

Having never seen The Doris Day Show, I took a chance on it and loved it. I had always enjoyed her in the movies and being a fan of classic tv (anything pre-1990) I bought it. I now have all four seasons and though the premise changed every year it is still a good show to me. So far my favorite season is Season 3 but I am not finished with Season 4 yet.

Took a chance on S1 of "Murphy Brown" thinking year one of the show would not be as obnoxiously political as it later became just by reputation. WRONG! I finally had enough after 12 episodes and hearing more unfunny political barbs slanted in one direction that I threw the set out and if it never gets another year out, good riddance.

Took a chance on X-Files when it was marked down. Bored to death so much I sold it off on e-bay.

OTOH, I have generally been impressed by the 50s-70s shows I only knew a little of beforehand and took a chance on ultimately as part of the broader pantheon of classic TV. Some shows I like more than others, but I still appreciate having them.

I tried the Doris Day show as a Netflixer... thank god, I hated it. More power to you though if you like it:)

I really Alias Series I just don't have a chance to watched all the episodes of Alias.

Alias is a MUST! I Netflixed that last year and it became my set of the year (yes, I have such things:).

Took a Chance and Loved:
-Felicity
-Party of 5
-Grey's (had never seen an episode, believe it or not...)

Took a Chance and Was "Ehhh":
-Once and Again. I'm still working on it though... maybe it will grow on me.

I Took A Chance On Charmed,

Now I'm Thinking Of Taking Another Chance On Quantum Leap All Seasons. Does Anyone Have This Complete Set. Is It Worth Taking A Chance On.

Shows like QR are tough because with basically only ONE main character an entire episode quality hinges on how good the guest stars/ the script is... it's a good show, my friend has it but I doubt I would buy it b/c it's hit and miss.

The Simpsons when I purchased Season Two.

Took a chance on moonlighting and Loved it.

I had never seen "Good Times" when I bought season 1 but I liked it.So I bought 2 and 3 then TVL picked it up and overplayed it so I began to dislike it.I have yet to buy seasons 4,5,and 6.

I bought the first seasons of both Buffy and Smallville without having seen an episode of either. Need I say that both are great series.

Took a chance on moonlighting and Loved it.

They currently have seasons one through four on sale at Sam's Club for $13.78 each. I've been considering season 3.

I took a chance on "Hardcastle and McCormick" by purchasing the U.S. release from Amazon for $34.15 (the DVD was made in Canada and only released there before being released here in the States last year). I just got it today, put it in the player, watched the "Rolling Thunder" pilot, and really enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to 21 other exciting episodes. I feel that it was money well spent.

They currently have seasons one through four on sale at Sam's Club for $13.78 each. I've been considering season 3.
I really loved season 1. Great special features and great episodes. I have all of the seasons I say sea 1&2 (both combined on dvd) is the best.

What's Happening was something I know nothing about when I picked up the first season and after I start liking it I had to buy the other seasons. I'm waiting for What's Happening Now on June 12th which I have seen episodes of...

I took a chance and bought Arrested Development and Smallville... they are now two of my favorite shows. :)

I liked:
Gave me a break
Amazing stories
Dinsouars
Rengade
The Greatest american hero
Kung fu

I didn't like:
Mister ed
mork and mindy

I took a chance on these:
Cheyenne
F-Troop
Sgt Preston of The Yukon
Thats My Mama

This is funny because I posted something related to this above- but I took a chance and purchased Moonlighting Season Three and it is painful to get through. I haven't been able to make it through a single epsiode without turning off the tv. I love the theme song, though...

Loved:

The Wire. Hands down. Best show on television. In a walkover.

Disliked:

Not so much disliked, but never really got into, but Sportsnight didn't make me laugh as much as I hoped/thought it would.