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Published on March 28, 2009 By Philocthetes In Off-Topic

I thought Colbert was jokingBut it appears that "SyFy" is indeed the future name of the ever-frustrating Sci Fi Channel. The funniest (scariest?) line in the TV Week article is a quote from the channel's president, Dave Howe: "We really do want to own the imagination space." Is it any wonder Dilbert is so successful? So many working CEOs really do say vacuous things like that in all seriousness.

I find this branding meltdown really odd timing what with the channel seeming to finally be finding its footing with original productions for, yes, the *science fiction* audience. BSG is the best thing since foodies reminded us that we should be slicing our own bread, Eureka's really clever, and the Stargate franchises are clearly good for a solid, loyal fanbase. But instead of honing their strengths, these idiots seem to want to take cancer as a business model and just grow until they die from their own poisons. If I weren't hoping to see shows like BSG and Eureka trumped, I'd swear the fools off right now.


Comments
on Mar 28, 2009

85% of new programming is for cable feeds.

100% of spectators pay_per_view for it all.

20 to 25% of Air-time is repetitive pubs.

40-50% of the remaining leisure is preciously protected by specialty channels as re-runs of classics.

5-10% of antenna/cable TeeVees are entirely Newscast or Politics.

DVDs screw up the entire dynamics above.

Abrams' Star Trek goes back in theaters in May with a vengeance.

That's all i know.

Let us witness the fight of true Sci-Fi beginnings & everlastings until one (or many!) is left standing in Space to dare stepping further out.

on Mar 29, 2009

DVD tech has definitely screwed up the plans of more than a few media execs, but that's supposed to be part of capitalism's wholesome creative destruction. This rampant rebranding is just Lies Gone Wild, and in the case of the SyFy buzz, makes me seriously worried that we're about to see a long stretch of Just Another BSG/SG/Eureka shows and not the Next Generation of SF shows.

on Mar 29, 2009

Innovation & progress would always be a key ingredient of successful attempts. But, as usual it's like mowing the lawn beginning with the roots.

If we postulate that SciFi is a result of masters such as Fritz Lang or even Ray Bradbury along side Isaac Asimov (see the pattern? Authors!) who is there to seed back the lawn, anew?

What happened is this;

- Corporate greed of industrial production (as in the Art form of Cinema) lost any respect for their source material -- a looooooong time ago * in a Galaxy close, close away.

- Writers have been enslaved by producers, directors & actors. Secondary or very last class in the food chain. All the way down into responsability for the creative original idea.

- Contracts are made up in a way that every last author LOSE their rights over the creative part *and* of the property itself. Believe me, i know from personal experience.

- Big film making companies (Fox, WB, Sony, Paramount, etc) own the entire jar and with their TeeVee networks partnership, distribute the lifespan of anything under a grasp tighter than the paperwork signed by literary agents on behalf of exploited poets of the typewriters.

- Investors suck up the remaining profits if any.

 

Sure there is the rare lucky ones (J.K Rowling & her Harry Potter series of novels comes to mind, all of as sudden)... but tell me, does Marvel Comics ring any bells to you also?

I sure wasn't born when these Super-Heroes sold by the millions off library shelves!

- Then came along the re-runs simply cuz they ran out of pen holding slaves that would scribble a few magic lines for .0000005% of the Artistic cuts.

Seen a movie generic lately?

DIRECTED by.

PRODUCED by.

WRITTEN by.

Insert your favorite multi-millionaires a pop ACTED by group here.

THEN, 120 minutes worth on average of READ the lines on that script and show us emotions while you're at it & perform for the next Oscar reward race.

FOLLOWED up after the End by about 5 minutes worth of casts & crews & ambiance songs paid for too, btw.

It is a collaborative medium (i know that much) and yet, only Shane Black got somehow rich selling (ah, giving it away) the scenario of Lethal Weapon, partly.