What is a season on tv these days? It used to be 26 weeks, with a holiday break and a summer of reruns. Then they went to "summer replacement" shows. Then one of the new networks -- Fox or UPN or WB -- invented first run summer series with, I think, one of the teen soaps.
Since then the definition of a season has become looser to the point that it is no longer a definition.
I blame reality TV. Cable channels have flooded the market with what I call snippet shows. Operation Repo, Deputy Butterbean, Bad Girls Club. They are about something and have engaging characters (sometimes) but there are no storylines and no plots or plot development. The producers film and snip together a whole bunch of bits of this and pieces of that to fit the tome format, then release all the edited material to whatever network is airing them.
The network then begins their hype. "New Season" "Season Premiere" "New (title)"
They will show two or three or four episodes at a time, and so three months of programming may be used up within four weeks.
Then the new season is all of a month old before it is over and back to reruns.
That's a month, not a season.
Sadly, the over-the-airwaves networks have picked up on this trend. We are currently getting a half and half mixture of old and new shows on our regular series. The networks don't seem to have recovered from the holiday break this year. I never know (until I read the Guide) whether the show I am following will be new programming, or something old and tired that has probably been on twice since Christmas.
Not an impressive build-up to season finale/cliffhangers.
Now, I don't mind that they do this. It's their programming, and their business which they can run however they want. That is their business.
But they shouldn't advertise the "all new season" as starting, show two new programs and three weeks of reruns, then two new and three old again. Even three new and one old doesn't merit being touted as an "all new season" because, you see. it isn't ALL new.
I'll just watch the shows on cable, where I already know they are ALL reruns, and no one is lying about seasons.
Since then the definition of a season has become looser to the point that it is no longer a definition.
I blame reality TV. Cable channels have flooded the market with what I call snippet shows. Operation Repo, Deputy Butterbean, Bad Girls Club. They are about something and have engaging characters (sometimes) but there are no storylines and no plots or plot development. The producers film and snip together a whole bunch of bits of this and pieces of that to fit the tome format, then release all the edited material to whatever network is airing them.
The network then begins their hype. "New Season" "Season Premiere" "New (title)"
They will show two or three or four episodes at a time, and so three months of programming may be used up within four weeks.
Then the new season is all of a month old before it is over and back to reruns.
That's a month, not a season.
Sadly, the over-the-airwaves networks have picked up on this trend. We are currently getting a half and half mixture of old and new shows on our regular series. The networks don't seem to have recovered from the holiday break this year. I never know (until I read the Guide) whether the show I am following will be new programming, or something old and tired that has probably been on twice since Christmas.
Not an impressive build-up to season finale/cliffhangers.
Now, I don't mind that they do this. It's their programming, and their business which they can run however they want. That is their business.
But they shouldn't advertise the "all new season" as starting, show two new programs and three weeks of reruns, then two new and three old again. Even three new and one old doesn't merit being touted as an "all new season" because, you see. it isn't ALL new.
I'll just watch the shows on cable, where I already know they are ALL reruns, and no one is lying about seasons.
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