15 Of The Best TV Shows To Hate Watch

Hate-watching is a pretty new term and it's been making the rounds in the entertainment world for the past few years. It seems like it first became popular along with the first season of the short-lived musical series Smash. That was when we realized that we could have a ton of fun watching a show that was, to be totally honest, often very bad. Sorry not sorry. You may not think that you hate-watch anything and you may not even deliberately do it. You might see it seems kind of mean and harsh. But the truth is that sometimes, you find yourself shrugging at your television screen, wondering how you got yourself into this situation. If you've ever wondered why you're still watching a show that is way past its prime or if you ever want to yell at your screen because the characters are being so ridiculous, then you're definitely a hate-watcher. You might as well embrace it and learn to love it.

Here are the 15 best TV shows to hate-watch.

15 'LOST'

You loved the mysterious and sometimes supernatural show Lost… but come on. You hate-watched the heck out of this show. You couldn't believe how many loose ends there were that never got tied up (like the polar bear… ) and how many questions you had that never, ever got answered. By the time the series finale aired, you were in full hate watching territory even if you never realized it. You couldn't believe how many episodes you watched while thinking that what was going on in terms of characters and setting and plotlines were kind of ridiculous. You loved this show so much that you wanted so much more from it. You wanted an ending that actually made sense. You wanted to have all the answers to your many questions. And you definitely know that a lot of other fans think the exact same way. This is a great show to hate-watch if you want to re-watch it because you can remind yourself of how frustrated you used to get the first time around.

14 'Pretty Little Liars'

Sorry not sorry. You adore this show… but you have to admit that you hate-watch it more often than you might want to. This has the same issue as Lost. You can't believe how many questions you always have and you and other fans always are left feeling like you wanted so much more than you were given. Sure, Ali came back and you were supposedly told where she was and what happened to her… but come on. you don't feel satisfied. Not at all. You want so much more and you hate that you were never given more answers. You think that's what you deserve as a loyal and loving fan. That's what makes you a hate-watcher. If you ever feel annoyed or frustrated with a show and yet you keep watching… and watching… and watching, then you're hate watching whether you realize it or not. People ask why you don't just give up and you say it's because watching it is too much fun.

13 'Smash'

Oh man. Smash. This was the show that really made the whole hate watching thing, well, a thing. You loved making fun of it because you wanted it to be so much better than it was. You were really rooting for this show. You love Debra Messing and you love the songs. Well, some of them. You can't love all the songs because some of them went on forever… and ever… and ever. You didn't love the whole Marilyn Monroe musical and you really wanted more romance and more intrigue and, well, more. Sure, things got a bit better in the second season because you really loved the music, but by then it was too late. The show couldn't be saved. You were a hate-watcher and there was nothing that anyone could do to change that. Let's have a moment of silence for the show that made watching something kind of bad so much fun.

12 'Dawson's Creek'

Chances are, you pretty much grew up with this show. You adored it. Your friends adored it. You wanted Joey and Dawson to be together and live happily ever after. Or you wanted Joey and Pacey to be together and live happily ever after. There's no right or wrong couple to root for here (okay, there is, but let's move on). But this is still a great show to hate watch because of all those crying Dawson Leery memes out there. Seriously, check them out if you haven't already (but you've probably seen them since they're really popular). When you re-watch this as a much older and wiser person, you can't believe how cheesy the dialogue is. It's funnier than it's supposed to be sometimes, and you say that with love. It's just really fun to watch these episodes now that so much time has passed because there are so many aspects of this show, from the dialogue to the hair and makeup to the whole look and feel of the series, that are pretty dated at this point.

11 'Gossip Girl'

Sure, you love this show. But sometimes, you don't. You kind of hate it, even. It's hard to admit since it's so trendy and so popular and all your friends absolutely love it. The problem is that so much of what happens on this dramatic series is so totally unrealistic. Sure, these kids have really wealthy families (make that really, really wealthy) and sure, they probably do have access to all those fancy clothes and restaurants and whatever else. But come on, they couldn't take it down a notch? It's hard to watch show after show about teenagers who are acting like they are already adults. It's become almost impossible to find a show that doesn't do this. You want to watch teens who act like teens. Plus, sometimes the plotlines were so totally ridiculous, you had to laugh. And you definitely did. It's not that you're against juicy storylines. You think there's a time and a place for them. Your issue is that sometimes, what happened was just too ridiculous for words, and it made it hard to take the characters as seriously as you wanted to.

10 'The O.C.'

This show was basically your entire high school experience… and even at that young age, you still hate watched it. You didn't even know that you were doing it at the time but hey, now you know. You learn something new every day, right? You couldn't help but get super frustrated by the plotlines and character motivations. Sure, you loved Seth and Ryan and even Summer (at least in the later seasons when she actually became a legitimate human being). You also loved Sandy Cohen (and his eyebrows). But Marissa really got under your skin. She was so impossible. Whether she was playing with Ryan's heart or being emotionally manipulative to gain sympathy from the entire world, she was a really annoying character. You never really knew if you should feel sorry for her or not so eventually, you realized that you didn't need to put that much effort into it. The show changed a lot and the fourth season was basically a totally different thing, so you couldn't help but hate watch it.

9 'How I Met Your Mother'

You might have loved this show for several seasons… but as soon as the series finale made it onto the air, you hated it so much and you were so angry about how it ended that anytime you started re-watching it, you were hate watching. You couldn't help it. You were just so frustrated. You couldn't believe that you had spent so much time watching and laughing and debating who the mom was. But it's also possible that your hate watching started from the beginning and has absolutely nothing to do with the mother and what happened to her. Some people just can't deal with this show and they don't like the type of humor. They don't like the characters and they don't think that anything is funny. It's true that the characters do get on your last nerve after a while and they never seem to really learn anything or change. While you don't need that kind of cheesiness from your sitcoms, you do want to care about the characters, and with this show, you didn't always.

8 'The Big Bang Theory'

This is one of those funny situations because this show seems to be hated and loved. At the exact same time. So maybe you're one of the fans that never watches an episode and yet you still can relate to people who hate watch it. Sometimes the show is absolutely hilarious. You have to admit that. But other times, well, it's a bit grating. It kind of gets on your nerves. And you find it hard to relate to such super nerds, even thought that makes you feel kind of bad and guilty. You just feel like every episode is kind of like the other before it. Sure, you get that it's a sitcom and that the whole point of a sitcom is that the characters don't necessarily grow and change like characters on dramas. Every episode is supposed to be designed the same. The problem is that if you watch too many of these in a row, you feel like you have no idea what day it is because everything just blends into the next.

7 'The Bachelor'

Look, no one watches this show because they absolutely love it. Absolutely everyone hate watches it. There is no way around it. You can't take it seriously. You can't not laugh all the time (especially at things that are not supposed to be funny). You text your BFFs during each new episode and chat about how much you hate everything and everyone about it. You tweet your opinions and get involved in super deep conversations at the office the next morning. When your boyfriend asks why you are watching since you seem to hate it so much, you laugh in his face. He just does not get it and maybe he never will. Hating this show and the people on it? That is basically the entire point. That is the whole viewing experience. You are super thrilled that a new season is starting so you can start your hate watching once again.

6 'The Real Housewives'

Any season. Any city. You will take them all and love them… and hate them at the same time. The amount of pleasure that you get from watching this highly entertaining and sometimes ridiculously hilarious show is kind of crazy. You can't stop watching it and you can't stop hate watching it, either. But you don't feel like a bad person and you don't feel like this is the wrong approach. It definitely seems like this show is designed for hate watching. After all, the people on the show themselves talk to the camera about how awful they think everyone else is. They say mean things and they judge them. So if you watch and judge these women too along with the things that they say and the choices that they make and the experiences that they have, that's really not your fault. That's the whole point and that's how the show has been designed.

5 'Girls'

Sorry Lena. You love her and you are a fan of her book and Twitter feed and everything that she says and does. But you've tried to love this show. You really have. It's been a goal of yours. You're sorry to say that you don't adore this series. Your friends don't, either. The problem is that it's supposed to be about the millennial or twentysomething experience and you can honestly say that it's not. It has nothing to do with you, your life, your friends' lives and anything that you have experienced. You can't relate and that really upsets you. That also makes this show a prime candidate for hate watching. It's been a real disappointment to you since you really hoped that it would be everything that you wanted it to be and everything that was promised to you. Sigh. It's something that you have to live with.

4 'Scream Queens'

You loved season one of this show but chances are, you're not so thrilled with the (super short) second season. At least that's what a lot of fans and critics seem to be saying. You don't think it's scary enough and sometimes you wonder what's even going on. It's just not exciting enough or interesting enough most of the time and nothing really happens that is juicy or that makes you want to keep watching. Your problem is that this show is tons of fun to watch. It's colorful, it's funny, and it's fashionable. It's got a really cool look, feel, and tone. But it doesn't really have character development or storylines and that's something that really upsets you. So when you watch, you kind of end up hate watching and while that makes you feel kind of guilty because you used to be a fan, you can't help it. You really can't.

3 'Gilmore Girls'

Let's get one thing straight here. You don't hate watch Gilmore Girls. The thought gives you hives and totally freaks you out. Phew. Now that that's cleared us, let's discuss why this show is on this list. It's because you know at least one person who currently hate watches this show or has done so in the past. You can't mention this series to someone at a party or event without them saying that they've tried to love it, they really have, but they can't do it. They hate Lorelai (yes… it pains you to even think about this). They hate Rory (same). They even think that Lorelai and Rory are way too close (OMG THAT'S THE POINT OF THE SHOW). You hate getting into these discussions because you end up defending a show that you think is so good, it doesn't even need you to go to battle for it. But you love it so much you can't stop.

2 'Fuller House'

You might hate watch this Netflix revival. Or you might love it. But chances are, you've hate-watched at least one episode from the two seasons that have aired so far. It's hard not to. The truth is that even when you were an adorable 90s kid, you thought the show as pretty corny and cheesy. You didn't always love the heartwarming moments because you wanted to see laughs and jokes instead of hug-it-out scenes that you knew were coming from a mile away. Now that you're older, you can admit that sometimes, it's not the best idea to be super corny or cheesy. In fact, it's kind of annoying. There are some aspects of the revival that are kind of awkward, from stilted scenes that seem like they are trying way too hard to Kimmy Gibbler moments that are a bit too ridiculous. You also think that the use of the older characters isn't the best. Sigh.

1 'The Vampire Diaries'

You tried to love this show. Kind of like how people try to love Gilmore Girls (you can't even with this). But after the first season or two, things really took a turn for the worst and you had to start hate watching. It was like this just happened to you and you didn't even make a conscious decision. You couldn't help but wonder what was going on because it really seemed like the characters had totally changed and weren't even acting like themselves. You're never sure whose side you're supposed to be on. You don't even get the love triangle with Elena and the two brothers because you don't really know if you're rooting for her to be with either one. You can't understand any of the characters' motivations and it's hard to know what to expect from any episode or season. You're just not sure that you really get it. Plus there's the fact that Elena even left the show… when she was the main character. Yeah, there's that. So if you're still watching, then you're hate watching, and that's just the way that it's going to be.