Fri 3/20: Five New Hours of Sci-Fi!

[Mr Light]

Does anyone know why this odd confluence is happening? The past month Friday nights have been super charged with science-fiction in a time when there's hardly any on the market. On Cartoon Network you got Batman and Clone Wars. On FOX you got Terminator and Dollhouse. On Sci-Fi you got the final batch of Galactica. Whew!

Well this Friday is the ultimate night:
8pm: New Terminator (part 2 of 2)
830pm: New Batman Brave & Bold (last one for awhile I think)
9pm: New Star Wars Clone Wars Season Finale
9pm: New Dollhouse (apparently the episode that actually begins the storyline)
9pm: The Two Hour Battlestar Galactica Series Finale!!!

Why is it that the finale of BSG and CW are playing against each other, also playing against the "story begins" episode of Dollhouse? Is this a coincidence? Are they intentionally scheduled against each other to erode their competitor's ratings?

It's so weird... all these shows in one sitting. What other sci-fi shows are even on nowadays? Lost and Heroes?

 

[OmahaStar]

About Batman - Are you sure about that? I'm almost positive I read they had bumped up the airing of the next half-season and were going to start airing new episodes right away.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Why is it that the finale of BSG and CW are playing against each other, also playing against the "story begins" episode of Dollhouse? Is this a coincidence? Are they intentionally scheduled against each other to erode their competitor's ratings?

"Primetime" broadcasting in America runs from 8:00 PM to 11:00 PM.

That's three hours.

If you have five hours of any kind of programming some of it is going to run against the rest of it. The math's not flexible.

We're not in a sweeps period, so the networks and weblets and cable outlets are not likely to be doing much especially aggressive strategizing about their schedules this week.

 

[Mr Light]

Yes, but why is all the sci-fi on this one night? Why are all the season finales on this one night in the middle of March?

 

[OmahaStar]

Yes, but why is all the sci-fi on this one night? Why are all the season finales on this one night in the middle of March?

Probably so they don't have to go head to head against the "big guys" on the networks.

 

[Mr Light]

Instead they're going head to head with each other, competing for the exact same audience of only 5 million or so fans? At least if they run against a traditional show it's counter programming. Something tells me we're going to see a big dip on the Dollhouse ratings.

 

[cb31]

Who cares why...bring on the scifi!

But seriously, if Friday is supposed to be such a show killer, you wouldn't think there would be so much good stuff on that night.

 

[Mr Light]

Programmers seem to figure that sci-fi fans have no friends or social life, and thus the Friday night death slot is the only good place to put sci-fi, since all the cool people are out on hot dates and we're all home in our parents' basements Farscape... BSG.. Stargate... Firefly... X-Files...

 

[cylkoth]

We're not in a sweeps period, so the networks and weblets and cable outlets are not likely to be doing much especially aggressive strategizing about their schedules this week.

Actually we are...Feb sweeps was pushed back to March to avoid any possible ratings fallout from the Feb 17 digital switchover (which ironically got pushed back to June). The nets were concerned over possibly losing viewership as an estimated 8-10 million households weren't prepared for the end of analog.

As for the confluence of genre programming this Friday, that's not really the first time this has happened. We've had Sci Fi's 2-3 hr line-up for years running opposite network genre shows before, like X-Files, Millennium, The Visitor, Moonlight, ENT, Ghost Whisperer, etc.

 

[EnsignRicky]

I did take note that in the space of about three hours I was treated to fresh Terminators, Battledroids and Cylons. That right there is the very definition of what you call the sci-fi hat trick.

 

[ATimson]

Why is it that the finale of BSG and CW are playing against each other, also playing against the "story begins" episode of Dollhouse? Is this a coincidence?

CW is probably a coincidence, seeing as how its season started back before Dollhouse's date was announced. And I believe that Dollhouse's date was announced before we learned that (albeit not terribly unsurprisingly to anybody who's watched the show) that the BSG finale would be two hours.

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

About Batman - Are you sure about that? I'm almost positive I read they had bumped up the airing of the next half-season and were going to start airing new episodes right away.

From what I've read, it's airing this Friday and then goes on a relatively short hiatus and returns with new episodes in May.

 

[Dream]

All those shows are scared of going up against American Idol that's why.

 

[Roland19]

Friday (the 20th) is all about Battlestar Galactica for me. I'll record Terminator and Dollhouse upstairs!

I'm going to be watching BSG from 6 till 10! First, the Last special for BSG is on, then Part 1 of the finale, and then the EPIC two-hour finale! Its going to be GREAT!

I'm going to miss BSG on Fridays. *sigh*

Wish Dr. Who was coming back soon. Friday is just not going to seem the same without something on Syfy (ugh. hate the new name).

DF2506