What's your least favorite TV plot device?

TV can be really thrilling a lot of the time. But do you ever feel bothered by a cliché which keep popping up over and over again in shows you watch?

Personally, I can't STAND the amnesia plot twist. Of course, if it's one episode for a comedy it doesn't bother me, since it's only played for laughs. What I can't stand however is when a TV drama has someone getting amnesia and draws it out for as long as they possibly can before the audience goes nuts from boredom. The first season of 24 is amazing, but even that one really slowed down for a couple episodes once they decided to have Jack's wife get amnesia. And it added nothing! It was just filler!

And

So my advice to TV writers: unless the audience lose their memory as well, it's annoying to watch and should stop getting used as a form of "suspense".

I hear you about the amnesia angle. It's been overused for decades. One that really gets to me, and in fact made me stop watching a series lately is the "our hero or heroes have been switched with look-alikes or duplicates" twist. Of course it usually only happens it Sci-Fi or Horror shows but I've seen it in dramas also. It happened last season on Marvels Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and I just got fed up and quit despite liking the show. But I didn't love the show. Now I love The Walking Dead and I'm willing to put up with certain things on the show that aggravate other people, first because I love zombies and secondly, I love the cast. I'm willing to stick with it unless the zombies start flying or something like that. But don't do the old "look-alike" switcheroo on me or I might even abandon my favorite show.

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"Miss Jean Louise, Mr. Arthur Radley."

Amnesia and doubles are sure fire turnOffs

In a general way, I hate it when they change the essential personality of a main character- imho because the series is a few years along, and the writers are running out of things to say . In particular; giving a character a gambling addiction seems like a cheap go-to in a lot of series. In Taxi, sensible, responsible placid Alex was made a gambler. Blowhard but steady family man Archie Bunker came down with the same affliction. They did this on one of the Law and Orders as well, forgot her name tho.

Hire new writers . Or end the show. But spare us.