Sci-Fi Channel did WHAT??? by PhyreLight

GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

Sci-Fi Channel did WHAT???

POSTED BY: PHYRELIGHT
UPDATED: Saturday, December 29, 2007 21:34
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VIEWED: 24459
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Monday, December 17, 2007 12:19 PM

Hi All, long time listener, first time caller...

Isn't NBC-Universal the parent company of both Sci-Fi and USA? Seems kind of odd they'd bid against each other for material they already owned.

Very much looking forward to the new comics though - and I picked up a few extra copies of the BDCE at the discount price. There are some birthdays coming up.

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Monday, December 17, 2007 12:43 PM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

Quote:
Originally posted by Muggi:
For those that watched what they left on...

There was a voiceover included at the beginning of "Bushwacked" that I have never heard before..I learned about the show from the DVD set, never saw it on live tv.

Were those included in the original broadcast? Interesting they didn't make the DVDs..

They were included in the original broadcasts, and there were a couple of variations depending on the episode. Book narrated some of them, and there were a couple of slightly differently-worded ones by Mal.

I at least assumed they were not on the DVDs because they weren't Joss' idea, but rather the network's thinking people wouldn't understand what was going on without a bit of exposition. Sort of like how Ridley Scott eliminated Harrison Ford's narration from the Director's Cut of Blade Runner back in the 90s.

wo men ren ran zai fei xing.

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Monday, December 17, 2007 12:45 PM

RALLEM

I used to collect comic books a long time ago, and I did buy the Firefly comic book, but honestly it left me cold. I simply could not feel attached to the story.

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Monday, December 17, 2007 12:47 PM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

Quote:
Originally posted by DblD:
Hi All, long time listener, first time caller...

Isn't NBC-Universal the parent company of both Sci-Fi and USA? Seems kind of odd they'd bid against each other for material they already owned.

They are both part of the large NBC/Universal family, but I am sure they have different programmers making decisions about content. Perhaps USA appreciates the BDS more than Sci-Fi does, and wants to give the repeats a more permanent home.

wo men ren ran zai fei xing.

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Monday, December 17, 2007 8:02 PM

TERRI

After they cancelled MST3K, and the remastered re-release of Boa Vs. Python 2: HyperBoa, I realized that any respect that I had for Scifi was gone. I'm not surprised at this new move.

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Tuesday, December 18, 2007 1:38 AM

RALLEM

I so far sent two emails to the sponsors of last week's Sci-Fi Marathon of Firefly and received responses from both. With Kay Jewelers I received the proper cookie cutter reply thanking me for my interest in the company or something like that, but then shortly later I received a directed email explaining how Kay Jewelers advertises through several mediums and how they were sorry for any mix ups. With Subaru I received the cookie cutter response to my email and nothing more so far, but for these letters to have any real significance others will need to send letters too. Please write the sponsors of last week's Sci-Fi Marathon.

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Tuesday, December 18, 2007 3:25 AM

MUGGI

Quote:
Originally posted by Terri:
After they cancelled MST3K, and the remastered re-release of Boa Vs. Python 2: HyperBoa, I realized that any respect that I had for Scifi was gone. I'm not surprised at this new move.

Speaking of MST3K..just in case people haven't seen:

http://cinematictitanic.com/wpmu/

Joel, Frank, Trace, and a couple others of the old crew will be back razzing movies soon. First episode comes out really soon..I forget when exactly.

They're doing much more recent movies as well, like Eragon. Should be great!

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Tuesday, December 18, 2007 8:20 AM

MUGGI

Quote:
Originally posted by Anonymous1:
Quote:
Originally posted by whozit:
Universal has gotten all the money they can from us, the movie, the colletors edition DVD, I think they're about done with us.

Naah, Universal not done with us yet. Back in 2005 or 2006, USA cable channel bought the rights to show Serenity. Another NBC/Universal network. Then in 2007, USA fought and outbid Sci-Fi channel for the rights to air Firefly. So I'm thinking 2008 Firefly and Serenity on USA cable channel.

Also still lots of new Official Serenity Merchandise still coming out.

Hey do you have a link or source for this? I brought it up over at the OB and no one seems to know about it..I figured it was just something that was general knowledge, that I had not heard about...

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Tuesday, December 18, 2007 7:44 PM

ANONYMOUS1

Quote:
Originally posted by Muggi:
Hey do you have a link or source for this? I brought it up over at the OB and no one seems to know about it..I figured it was just something that was general knowledge, that I had not heard about...

I've looked in my files. I've searched the internet. Something I read/saw made me think USA had fought and outbid the Sci-Fi channel to show Firefly. I can't find a reference at all. Can't find a thread titled like that.

Now I wonder if I read something about USA outbidding Sci-Fi earlier this year and whoever was writing about the fact that USA purchased the rights to Serenity back in 2005 and since it was in 2007 maybe I assumed it was Firefly. Because I never heard anything about Sci Fi bidding to show Serenity in 2005. Or maybe I heard it in an online video interview and the person said Firefly but was really talking about Serenity.

Sorry. I was really looking forward to watching Firefly on USA and then seeing Serenity.

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Wednesday, December 19, 2007 8:55 AM

PACHELBEL

Quote:
Originally posted by ecgordon:
Quote:
Originally posted by Muggi:
For those that watched what they left on...

There was a voiceover included at the beginning of "Bushwacked" that I have never heard before..I learned about the show from the DVD set, never saw it on live tv.

Were those included in the original broadcast? Interesting they didn't make the DVDs..

They were included in the original broadcasts, and there were a couple of variations depending on the episode. Book narrated some of them, and there were a couple of slightly differently-worded ones by Mal.

I at least assumed they were not on the DVDs because they weren't Joss' idea, but rather the network's thinking people wouldn't understand what was going on without a bit of exposition. Sort of like how Ridley Scott eliminated Harrison Ford's narration from the Director's Cut of Blade Runner back in the 90s.

wo men ren ran zai fei xing.

I saw every episode when it aired, and I don't recall hearing any voice overs. Perhaps my memory is fading, or perhaps it was a choice of the local broadcaster to add them or leave them out?

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Thursday, December 20, 2007 12:07 PM

TR4P

Are there any of us hardcore supporters out there that don't already own the DVD's? What we need to do is bring new supporters into our fold. It is just the ability to showcase this series to new viewers that will allow us to do that, and provide further support to the continuance of the movie series.

Now the question is...is 8:00 or 11:00 a better time to do that. I usually know what I'm going to watch during prime time, so maybe this isn't such a bad timeslot. i discovered the BBC version of the Office once when I went for a glass of water at 4am and clicked on BBC America.

What I'm saying is (I guess), don't worry how much plays. Worry about what episodes are playing, and can we attract new viewers with these episodes.

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Thursday, December 20, 2007 12:46 PM

RALLEM

I was really hoping several people would make it their business to contact the sponsors of the latest Firefly marathon and voice their displeasure, but since it seems nobody really cares I stopped contacting the companies myself.

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Friday, December 21, 2007 7:15 AM

PHYRELIGHT

You lucky Brits!

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Friday, December 21, 2007 7:29 AM

ZZETTA13

I know it's been a week ago since si/fi pulled this stunt but guess I'm the only browncoat that may have gotten the gold at the end of the rainbow outta this. Went to work that Friday expecting to miss the entire marathon.Came home dead tired and went to bed at 7:30pm. Slept till 10pm,awoke and couldn't sleep anymore. Decided to watch some tv (to make me sleepy again) so turned on the tube. To my amazment Serenity-pilot eps was just starting. I was confused but delighted as hell. Watched the marathon as long as I could before falling asleep. Good ending to a hard day.

Z

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Monday, December 24, 2007 8:55 AM

GGOTCH

Wonder why they made such a move?

Interestingly, Billboard Magazine's "Year End" Charts issue lists the Firefly DVD, at position #12, on the top 2007 Television Series DVDs.

Pretty darn good for a DVD set, that has been out as long as it has!!

Perhaps Sci-Fi/Universal thought that so many folks had copies of the discs, no one was left to watch the network!

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Monday, December 24, 2007 9:02 AM

MUGGI

Heh, true but I really hope not..

If they actually THOUGHT that..well, they'd be idiots! And, they're not idiots..right?

There's just something DIFFERENT (at least to me) about watching a show on broadcast TV. I know even having seen every episode dozens of times, and being upset they cut the Marathon..I STILL turned on and watched. I wanted to see my BDH's on tv.

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Saturday, December 29, 2007 9:34 PM

EMMAZULE

Quote:
Originally posted by FollowMal:

I would agree with you Grotz if it were not for the lateness of the hour. Maybe on the west coast this will nab some newbies but here in the midwest it won't even register with tv watchers. More than the lack of 4 eps, this is what I'm "whining" about.

You know, maybe it's just me, but I've always felt the first four hours of Firefly - while certainly, hardly what I'd call unentertaining dreck or anything like that - are some of the weakest and the most flawed, between the rushedness of Train Job, the mild cheese of Bushwhacked and the deflated tension in the latter half of the original pilot (I wish they hadn't told us the BDMs knew they were going to be ambushed, the tension would have been so much higher for the meeting with Patience if they hadn't...), you can kind of tell that despite having great potential and being entertaining, the producers were still finding their sea legs then. Shindig and Our Mrs. Reynolds are where it starts to get really good anyway. I've actually come to think of it never understood why SO MANY Browncoats try to convert folks, but claim you "have" to watch the first few episodes, in order, to "really get" the series. Dude, show them Our Mrs. Reynolds, and they will be hooked. Show them the early episodes later! OMR is my top "conversion" material, personally. :P I remember The Train Job being the first episode I ever saw, and thinking it was "reasonably entertaining", but I didn't get hooked until OMR, after skipping all of Bushwhacked and the first parts of Shindig thanks to forgetting when it was on (this was when SciFi first aired it to promote Serenity). After OMR, I was outright OBSESSED. Although, I still have a soft spot for The Train Job because it introduced me to the series and it did, of course, introduce the inimitably evil Niska without whom we would not have had War Stories. ;)

You forget, too, that SciFi actually tends to cycle their own original series for extra airings starting at 11, precisely because they're trying to catch more than just the East Coast audience.

And also, you forget the late-night competition SciFi Channel gets from Adult Swim most nights. It's actually pretty fierce, believe it or not. And it's better than informercials, which is what SciFi apparently defaults to when it can't find something to fill the air space.

Think of it as a blessing, though - some of the strongest episodes will be exposed to casual viewers who may not have bothered to check it out before. :)

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