Spoilers Supergirl - Season 1

[JD]

If they wanted TBBT's audience to watch Supergirl wouldn't it make more sense to show it during TBBT's regular time slot? If they're already TBBT fans, chances are they've already seen those episodes, and if they aren't watch Supergirl then they probably watch a different show when Supergirl is on, and will just watch that like they usually do, rather than episodes of TBBT. If they do watch the TBBT then chances are they either didn't see those episode when they aired and are just watching them to see them, or they have nothing else to watch then and probably would have already been watching Supergirl if they were interested in it.

 

[SAndrews10]

It's TBBT's old timeslot, Monday's at 8pm. The timeslot lay people still associate with the series (the timeslot the TBBT producers want back) so they make a big enough stink their reruns go there. Plus it was up against the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP game. Plus I guess there's some issue with TBS and the reruns they run and not showing a competing rerun in the Thursday night timeslot, hence showing them on Monday's.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

It's TBBT's old timeslot, Monday's at 8pm. The timeslot lay people still associate with the series

Exactly. Supergirl currently occupies the slot, but TBBT still "owns" it in a sense, as it can retun there whenever CBS needs it to.

 

[JD]

It's TBBT's old timeslot, Monday's at 8pm. The timeslot lay people still associate with the series (the timeslot the TBBT producers want back) so they make a big enough stink their reruns go there. Plus it was up against the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP game. Plus I guess there's some issue with TBS and the reruns they run and not showing a competing rerun in the Thursday night timeslot, hence showing them on Monday's.

I completely forgot that was TBBT's old time slot, that does make a bit more sense then.

 

[Morpheus 02]

23 episodes in 52 weeks. They have to be spaced out. And networks like to concentrate episodes in sweeps months (e.g. November, February, and May) and have finales around June, so that means there tend to be several gaps in between. This has been pretty routine network scheduling practice for the past couple of decades.

Yeah, but spaced out as in trimesters, not spaced out as a stereotypical blonde in randomly selecting weeks between no-show/repeat and new show.
I remember several of us in college going to the dorm after Saturday dinner to watch TNG... don't recall the problem of random new show then repeat. (Certainly was NOT replaced by another show for a week or two)

Honestly, I think these weird breaks really hurt the show because they kill the momentum and interest that epic episodes are able to build up. Which is one reason why the netflix model is so appealing because viewers can watch the episodes back to back. If you have a show that catches people's attention then they are able to keep watching it rather than having to wait for the next episode where their interest might die down. That is how I became a fan of the flash. I watched the pilot on netflix. And the pilot was interesting enough that I wanted to watch the next episode which raised my interest further that I wanted to watch the next episode, and the next and the next. I ended up binge watching all of season 1 in a just a couple days. It was an absolute thrill. My experience with season 2 has been quite different. I watch an episode, my interest is peaked but then it dies down because the next episode is a week or sometimes 2 or 3 weeks away.

I agree about it hurting the show. Consistency is what keeps an audience, especially a show with ocntinuing story line, and not having repeats during the "break".

Back when the Star Trek sequels were on in the '80s and '90s, it was standard to have one big break in the winter and then a few intermittent smaller breaks in the spring. For instance, just to pick one season out of my old lists, TNG season 7 ran for 11 straight weeks from September to early December, then took 5 weeks off, then had 2 new episodes, then one week off, then 5 weeks on, then 2 weeks off, then 2 weeks on, then 3 weeks off, then 5 weeks on to finish the season. That was pretty routine for TV in general in the '90s, although I suppose it's become less common in today's more serialized era.




Reruns are also available via On Demand cable and at CBS's website. There are so many ways to rewatch an episode that there isn't as much need for on-air reruns anymore.

I don't recall that scattered new episode/repeat pattern.. maybe because it was Trek, so most episodes had nothing to do with each other (with the occasional 2 parter), and watching old episodes were harder to get to (no easy On Demand option; VCR's required some work, and no one else using the tape), so watching repeats may have been fine. But it felt like they were solid blocks of new shows.

 

[JD]

I do agree the randomness can be annoying. I think it might make things a bit better if they had a specific system that they followed, like 3-5 new episodes and then a repeat.

 

[Sto-Vo-Kory]

CBS aired a pair of Big Bang Theory episodes last night because BBT reruns frequently do better in the ratings than first-run Supergirl episodes.

For example, last night's BBT reruns got 6.7 and 7.1 in total viewers, with a 1.4 and 1.6 in the demo.

Compare that to Supergirl's last five original airings:

Total viewers / demo rating
7.2 / 1.5
6.6 / 1.4
6.5 / 1.3
6.0 / 1.3
7.1 / 1.7

Also, Supergirl's ratings tend not to improve that much even when Live+3 or Live+7 numbers are factored in. They will sometimes tick up 30 percent (but usually less), whereas a show like Agents of SHIELD will often make gains of up to 80 percent.

Going by this, CBS can safely assume that the audience for Supergirl either watches an episode same-day-as-aired or not at all. This viewing trend would also probably include rerun airings of Supergirl as well.

 

[The Old Mixer]

Speak for yourself.

I said "most" and "probably", that would naturally not be assumed to include you.

I've never watched TBBT, and I'm aware of a number of SF/comics fans who consider its geek stereotypes antediluvian and insulting.

There are plenty in these parts who do, and you'd normally be the first to point out that niche geek audiences wouldn't account for a majority of general TV viewership...even for a struggling show like Supergirl.

And putting BBT's reruns in SG's slot isn't liable to change the minds of people who are already anti-BBT...they'd more likely change the channel in contempt.

And if it's such a big show, doesn't that answer your question about why they'd show its reruns instead of SG's? That's not a sign that SG is failing, just a sign that TBBT is big.

Because, this:

CBS aired a pair of Big Bang Theory episodes last night because BBT reruns frequently do better in the ratings than first-run Supergirl episodes.

For example, last night's BBT reruns got 6.7 and 7.1 in total viewers, with a 1.4 and 1.6 in the demo.

Compare that to Supergirl's last five original airings:

Total viewers / demo rating
7.2 / 1.5
6.6 / 1.4
6.5 / 1.3
6.0 / 1.3
7.1 / 1.7

I think it is clear the success of TBBT--with its "geek'/comic book culture one of its hallmarks--is the reason CBS continues to use it as a replacement for Supergirl--they are trying to get TBBT's audience interested in the other series which occupies that time slot--one that should naturally appeal to those who watch TBBT.

But, this:

If they wanted TBBT's audience to watch Supergirl wouldn't it make more sense to show it during TBBT's regular time slot?

Or to pair up SG with BBT (original episodes or reruns) on either night. The most sensible TV programming way to get BBT geeks interested in SG is to put SG on right after BBT.

It's a strange universe where people rationalize that not showing Supergirl is some sort of tactic to increase Supergirl's viewership.

 

[Christopher]

Yeah, but spaced out as in trimesters, not spaced out as a stereotypical blonde in randomly selecting weeks between no-show/repeat and new show.

It's not random. As discussed above, it's partly driven by production delays as well as the need to concentrate new episodes around sweeps periods.

I remember several of us in college going to the dorm after Saturday dinner to watch TNG... don't recall the problem of random new show then repeat.

Memory is unreliable. Documentation is less so. I kept a weekly episode log of TNG, DS9, and VGR for 14 years, and what I described before was from checking that log, not from relying the vagaries of memory. You can easily check for yourself by consulting a TNG episode list like this one.

(Certainly was NOT replaced by another show for a week or two)

Of course not. That was never a typical practice in US broadcasting, except for one-shot specials. And of course TNG was syndicated. Any programming in its time slot was provided by Paramount as part of the syndication package. So there couldn't have been any other show just dropped in.

Going by this, CBS can safely assume that the audience for Supergirl either watches an episode same-day-as-aired or not at all. This viewing trend would also probably include rerun airings of Supergirl as well.

I rewatch every episode via On Demand cable, partly because I like the show so much that I want to see them again, and partly to do my bit to contribute to delayed viewing figures.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Or to pair up SG with BBT (original episodes or reruns) on either night. The most sensible TV programming way to get BBT geeks interested in SG is to put SG on right after BBT.

Having Melissa Benoist guest star on BBT could be interesting. Have Raj hit on her or something and blow it and then she later shows up in costume at the comic shop for an appearance and everyone realizes that wasn't just some hot babe it's CBS's Supergirl(!).

 

[Sto-Vo-Kory]

I rewatch every episode via On Demand cable, partly because I like the show so much that I want to see them again, and partly to do my bit to contribute to delayed viewing figures.

Watching a show On Demand is a great way to give support to a series that you enjoy. I double-watched (once live and once On Demand) each episode of the latest X-Files season for the same reasons you described, Christopher.

On Demand viewership is much more valuable to a network than delayed watching through a DVR; since the fast forward function is often disabled in On Demand programs, the audience is "forced" to see the commercials. Advertisers prefer this to the skipping over or speeding through commercial breaks like most DVR users are known to do.

Though it doesn't affect the demo rating, every On Demand viewer helps bolster the total viewers rating and gives the show that much better a chance of being successful (and renewed ).

 

[tomalak301]

Having Melissa Benoist guest star on BBT could be interesting. Have Raj hit on her or something and blow it and then she later shows up in costume at the comic shop for an appearance and everyone realizes that wasn't just some hot babe it's CBS's Supergirl(!).

I would watch Big Bang if Benoist had a guest appearance.

 

[Grendelsbayne]

I actually don't mind the shorter seasons for the more heavily serialized show. By showing less episodes they don't have to stretch the story out, and can focus on really moving things forward significantly with each episode.

I've grown to actively dislike long seasons for heavily serialized shows. Especially ones that are still released traditionally on a network - it stretches everything out way too much, and you have to wait forever for the story to go anywhere. The only time I want to see a long season is on something like Castle or BBT, where the vast majority of episodes are reasonably self-contained and the writers aren't actively trying to end every single episode on a 'wtf just happened' note.

It's not random. As discussed above, it's partly driven by production delays as well as the need to concentrate new episodes around sweeps periods.

Memory is unreliable. Documentation is less so. I kept a weekly episode log of TNG, DS9, and VGR for 14 years, and what I described before was from checking that log, not from relying the vagaries of memory. You can easily check for yourself by consulting a TNG episode list like this one.

I suppose so. The thing that bothers me most about the breaks isn't that they happen so much as the way they're spaced. One week on and gone again just feels incredibly ridiculous, and I could absolutely swear that that sort of thing didn't used to be normal.

Maybe it's just that when it happened in the past, the show would be replaced by a rerun of the same show, so that it wouldn't feel so much like a break, or it would be replaced by some irritating sports event (usually baseball or Nascar) so that it felt like the show was 'forced' off instead of like they 'chose' to skip a week.

 

[Christopher]

I suppose so. The thing that bothers me most about the breaks isn't that they happen so much as the way they're spaced. One week on and gone again just feels incredibly ridiculous, and I could absolutely swear that that sort of thing didn't used to be normal.

That does seem atypical, yes. It suggests there may have been unplanned production delays. I'm sure I read something a while back saying that the Flash episode showing the other end of the Supergirl crossover would be airing this week, not two weeks from now.

 

[Dick Whitman]

The worst part is that when these breaks begin CBS has no previews for when new episodes will return. I don't watch every thing on tv. So maybe that is the norm on the major networks. But at least the CW will have a tease of when their DC shows will return, along with the air date. Even when its up to 3 weeks later. CBS presumes either that we are going to get the information elsewhere or watch the timeslot each week regardless of what is on.

 

[Christopher]

The worst part is that when these breaks begin CBS has no previews for when new episodes will return. I don't watch every thing on tv. So maybe that is the norm on the major networks. But at least the CW will have a tease of when their DC shows will return, along with the air date. Even when its up to 3 weeks later. CBS presumes either that we are going to get the information elsewhere or watch the timeslot each week regardless of what is on.

Or that we have DVRs that will automatically record the next new episode whenever it comes on.

Besides, what's so unusual about the idea of getting information elsewhere? There have always been TV listings -- before the Internet and cable schedule listings, there was TV Guide magazine, the daily TV listings in newspapers, and the weekly TV magazine inserts that came with the Sunday paper. It's always been easy to find out what's on TV before it actually airs.

 

[Dick Whitman]

I did not mean getting information elsewhere is unusual. My point is that you would think they would want to advertise their series in the most obvious place - during the series itself. These breaks can be very frustrating but I am very used to it myself. I am going to be 38 this summer. I have long history of viewing to be aware this is how tv works. But I am always seeing Facebook and Twitter comments from viewers who are shocked that breaks happen at all. I am assuming younger fans who are more used to binge viewing. The problem is that due to the current serialized storytelling model, they run the risk of losing the momentum they have built if they don't tease what is to come after the breaks.

 

[JD]

Does watching something on the network website count towards any of the rating? I know this doesn't apply to SG, but what about Hulu for the shows that are on there?

 

[Morpheus 02]

I did not mean getting information elsewhere is unusual. My point is that you would think they would want to advertise their series in the most obvious place - during the series itself. These breaks can be very frustrating but I am very used to it myself. I am going to be 38 this summer. I have long history of viewing to be aware this is how tv works. But I am always seeing Facebook and Twitter comments from viewers who are shocked that breaks happen at all. I am assuming younger fans who are more used to binge viewing. The problem is that due to the current serialized storytelling model, they run the risk of losing the momentum they have built if they don't tease what is to come after the breaks.

Binge watching...but also, do popular shows that have an arc skip around like that now days? The Walking Dead, for example, has continuous blocks with no repeats. Did Breaking Bad or Mad Men do that? Or Game of Thrones?

The example Christopher gave was 25 years ago... back when Blockbuster was just growing in popularity and AOL was just taking off.

 

[Christopher]

Binge watching...but also, do popular shows that have an arc skip around like that now days? The Walking Dead, for example, has continuous blocks with no repeats. Did Breaking Bad or Mad Men do that? Or Game of Thrones?

Those are all cable shows. They tend to have shorter seasons and have time to get the whole season in the bag and air it straight through. Network TV is still subject to some of the old pressures that result in longer, more scattered seasons, for all that they've tried to adjust to the more serialized age.