It's a new TV season, but who has time to watch?

Everybody who has had enough of politics, the government shutdown, bad news and all that goes along with it, raise your hand. Wow, looks like an IRS audit with that many hands in the air.

Obviously you’re tired of hearing about that, so I won’t talk about it because I’m tired of it, too.

I’m beginning to think I’m pop culturally deprived. Aside from that mentioned above, the biggest thing it seems people have been talking about this week was the “Breaking Bad” TV series finale. I missed it because of the “Breaking Amish” finale. Kim likes that series, and I have to admit, I got pulled into it, too.

Actually, I missed the entire series of “Breaking Bad.” Just like I missed the entire series of “Dexter,” another must-see series I didn’t see that’s had its finalé. I don’t see a lot of must-see shows these days. To be honest, there are lots of TV shows that look interesting, but I just don’t get the chance to see them like I used to do.

About the only must-see TV I’ve caught lately has been “Duck Dynasty.” Got to have that weekly helping of the Robertsons. Now, I do try to catch the occasionally interesting-looking show, although it’s gotten a bit harder to keep up with the ones that are more continuing story arcs than series, with one-shot episodes you can drop in on any time.

I think a lot of folks still do it, but do you remember when there were shows the family watched together, and you almost could set your watch —or at least your calendar —by it? If it was Saturday, it was “Gunsmoke.” Sunday meant “Bonanza.” You didn’t dare miss Marshal Dillon or the Cartwrights. But, if you did, there always was next Saturday or Sunday, and you weren’t lost because it was a new story, unless the networks had a special two-part episode.

These days there still are must-see shows folks have to watch, often because if you miss an episode, you may have no idea of what’s going on with the characters. From the occasional bit I’ve seen of some of these different shows, they seem pretty good and have a lot of potential. But, with my weird schedule, it can be difficult keeping track of them.

Sure, I can record them on the DVR, but you should see the backlog on our DVR, which means carving out time to try and watch them. It probably would take a week to catch up doing little else but watching recorded TV shows.

And as for the family sitting down to watch, many of these shows aren’t always family-oriented. “Breaking Bad” was about a science teacher with cancer who starts making meth and gets involved in the drug business, and he was the good guy. “Dexter” was about a serial killer who worked for a crime lab, but who specialized in killing other serial killers, so he was sort of a good guy, in a roundabout way. (Both of these intrigued me, by the way.) Not exactly programming for little Susie and tiny Tommy, even if the anti-heroes do ultimately have to atone for what they’ve done.

The new fall TV season has begun, and there are a couple of shows I want to check out. (I’ve got episodes recorded on our overcrowded DVR.) But, have you noticed how similar so many of the shows are, although that’s nothing new. Years ago, Western series were all over TV. Then, there were cop/detective shows on every channel you turned to —all three of them. Next came lawyers, then doctors. Don’t forget the prime-time soap operas and how every network had at least three or four. Sitcoms always have been a staple, but for a while it seemed as if the TV shows were one big joke. And no matter what folks might say, almost every sitcom follows the template of “I Love Lucy,” from storylines to formulaic characters.

Now, the supernatural and paranormal are the big thing. Vampires and witches are the hottest subjects, with an occasional werewolf tossed into the mix. However, for the most part, they’re soap operas with fangs and hexes, not that there’s anything wrong with that. A couple of them intrigue me. (I have watched “Supernatural,” which has been more epic saga than soap).

Even with the mixed grab bag that is TV these days, you have to admit there’s plenty out there to get our minds off the suffocating reality we have to deal with every day. Even the most die-hard political junkie has to have a break from politics sometimes or they’ll flip out. Well, there are a few I’ve encountered for whom it’s too late.

Maybe one of these days I’ll get around to seeing these shows I’ve recorded; hopefully before I have to erase them to make room for other shows I may not get a chance to watch. If you think there’s a show I absolutely need to watch, let me know ... so I can record it.

(And you’ll notice, I haven’t mentioned that stuff at the top again, so you’ve got to feel a little better.)