[...] course, earlier I touched on the dangers that television programs face in the relevance of the soon to be antiquated Nielsen [...]

Sorry but when Cable was introduced they sold us on No Commercials. Well that changed didn’t it.
I enjoy watching pretty much all my favs when they come out on dvd.
They start putting commericals inbetween the breaks on dvd’s and their going to start a war…

;o)

The very science of television money-making means that shows aimed at an easily manipulated audience will always win out over those that appeal to the more discerning viewer. It’s simple logic, when you think about it… since, without advertising that works, there simply is no free television.

Ads are useless time filling fodder that gets in the way of the show and they never persuade me, EVER.

The scary part though, is that they do work or they wouldn’t exist!! dAh!!!

I participated in one of the Australian ratings systems about 7 years ago. 300 households was the sample size, and they actually told me my demographic, single males, was woefully under-represented.

That said, a lot of people I know like American Idol and shows like Law & Order, even the sci fi fans, so it doesn’t surprise me they are high in the ratings.

And now days people dont let themselfs become slaves of the timeslots anymore- you don’t have to make sure you are at your home 8 every saturday for the whole year just to watch Lost(or whatever) -people use tivo , dvd recorders and downloads- not to talk of buying the whole season on dvd.

Could they make tv series just for dvd sale? to risky? why not sign up people on line- would you like more star trek enterpise? sign on – when soandso many million people sign on we start bringing you the Bakula!

-If we fan boys and sci-fi fans are so many and willing to pay for good sci-fi could we not make this happen?

On THAT we agree, lol.

Vic

Previously posted: “And I don’t buy any excuse that comes from Journeyman, I’m sorry but the fans of that show have no legitimate argument in crying foul about the treatment of that show. That show was given the best treatment NBC it could give. I mean come on, it was given the post-Heroes timeslot which was one of top rated show on NBC at that time, it was also given a decent amount of time to find an audience and allowed to air all its episodes. I personally did not like the show and the critics were at best lukewarm about it. I feel that scifi fans are like Star Trek fans, they accept and enjoy crap just because they are glad that scifi and it is being made”
Sorry man, I absolutely disagree with you on this. The post-Heroes timeslot was not ideal for this show as the two appealed to two totally different audiences! Whereas Heroes is an over-the-top, humans with super-powers show, Journeyman is a family drama with hints of sci-fi; the sci-fi, however, is not the main focus of the show. There was also lackluster promotion for this show on NBC’s part…

Still… as much as it frustrates me to see ‘dumb humour’ films like those from the Scary Movie team do well… it’s a bit rich to suggest the audience is “wrong” for liking this stuff or that their taste is lacking. There is no “right” or “wrong” when it comes to entertainment – just differences of opinion.

As an awesome lecturer once taught me: never underestimate the lowest common denominator.

Yes, and those same random families are responsible for keeping crap on the air like “Survivor” and “Big Brother” year after year, as I mentioned above. Look at many of the lowbrow sitcoms that flourish, heck, don’t many people here consider most of what’s on TV (with the exception of what’s been noted in this thread) to be utter garbage?

That’s what our “random” Neilson families help keep on the air.

The average person has lousy taste and will accept almost anything when it comes to film and TV, so I think a big part of the problem is that those who actually recognize quality are in the minority. Slice that down further by including only those in that group that enjoy sci-fi and then yeah, I can see how the numbers won’t support a series.

Think I’m being a jerk? Many of the replies I receive when I give a lousy movie or TV show the review it deserves rake me over the coals.

Need more evidence?

I’m telling you, we’re headed for the world shown in Mike Judge’s film “Idiocracy.”

Fortunately those are the exception rather than the rule here at Screen Rant.

Vic

It does often seem to be the case that support for sci-fi TV comes from people who’d accept almost anything. But, if that’s the case, it’s highly unlikely those same people would have the insight to see the forest for the trees.

It’s human nature to think of ourselves as more worthy and important than we may actually be.

And I don’t buy any excuse that comes from Journeyman, I’m sorry but the fans of that show have no legitimate argument in crying foul about the treatment of that show. That show was given the best treatment NBC it could give. I mean come on, it was given the post-Heroes timeslot which was one of top rated show on NBC at that time, it was also given a decent amount of time to find an audience and allowed to air all its episodes. I personally did not like the show and the critics were at best lukewarm about it. I feel that scifi fans are like Star Trek fans, they accept and enjoy crap just because they are glad that scifi and it is being made

Like I said before the problem is not the networks but the shows themselves. Yes sometimes the networks do screw up the shows (like the Jericho example you mentioned, a show which started with strong ratings but then lost the momentum after a ridiculously long hiatus) but more often then not it is the shows themselves that are to blame. A lot of these shows are given ample opportunity: NBC gave Journeyman the post-Heroes timeslot and ABC gave Invasion the post-Lost timeslot which are the best timeslots any scifi show could ever hope for, but still those shows failed, that does not signify lack of support from the network but the lack of appeal of the shows themselves. I thought Bionic Woman was absolutely atrocious and even though I really wanted to like Terminator but gave up on it after the 4th episode; the story is just so bland I mean, there is no sense of mystery, there is no sense of intrigue and due to budget constraints the action is very mediocre. Honestly the only scifi shows that I really give a damn about are LOST and Heroes. Even bad episodes of Lost and Heroes are better then anything on tv. I mean the worst episode of Lost (”Jack’s tattoo’s episode) is miles better then the best episode of Bionic Woman. JJ Abrams is developing a new show for next season which looks like it could be the next big Sci fi hit

Advertisers want viewers that can be swayed by a 30-second emotional appeal. Most Sci Fi fans are too “logical”.

I’m 28, by the way, and well aware that downloading came long after sci-fi TV started getting the shaft.

My point was that sci-fi fans in general are more into buying and keeping, hence why department stores were always chock-full of ‘Star Trek’ videos, while TV would barely touch the shows. Besides, I interpreted the article more as a current issue, given how much more sci-fi/genre TV is being produced.

I mean, isn’t it blatantly obvious why sci-fi got the shaft prior to this decade? The cost alone would be through the roof and not worth the investment if advertising dollars can go toward medical dramas.

As for ‘reality’ TV – I’ve got to admit, I love some of it. ‘Survivor’ and ‘Amazing Race’ are brilliant game shows, ‘Big Brother’ (here in Australia) is a fun social experiment (or was before it replaced interesting individuals with dopey twenty-something bimbos and surfer dudes) and shows like ‘Idol’ can be a bit of a laugh for anyone keeping their finger on the pulse of pop culture. The word ‘reality’ is taken way too literally, I think, since many of the shows are just a more textured, modern take on outdated game shows, lifestyle programs and things like ‘American Bandstand’. But – yes – it’s become silly and 95% of the crap needs to go.

Terminator sarah chronicles is doing awesome business and gets a lot of viewers.

On top of that this show delivers more in terms of action and thrills than all other sci-fi programs combined.