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TV Season Getting Shorter and Shorter

M

Mark Giardina

Has anyone else noticed that some TV series are airing fewer and fewer new episodes?
Two examples are:

New Amsterdam
Kyle XY

It seems that shows run six perhaps seven episodes then disappear for months only to reappear the follow year. And the network brass wonders why ratings are so low for some of these shows.

I understand that reality TV is cheaper to produce, thus the reason for the influx of these , in my opinion, worthless time-wasters. But it's a damn shame that for people like myself, who might enjoy a decent program to have to wait several months before the next season programs air is just an idiotic way to program a network.
 
Maybe it has something to do with the writer's strike that shut the industry down for several months?

- Trip
 
Certain shows do have shorter seasons like South Park, which in recent years has had around twelve episodes aired in two separate block runs. In the first few seasons, it was higher than that.

This past writer's strike has really screw up the normal airings of many shows which is why it feels like this season is so short.
 
I also thought that the Writers Strike might have contributed to the shorter than normal season, which I'm sure it did, but shorter TV seasons have been going on long before the writers walked the picket lines.
 
Mark_Giardina said:
Has anyone else noticed that some TV series are airing fewer and fewer new episodes?
Two examples are:

New Amsterdam
Kyle XY

It seems that shows run six perhaps seven episodes then disappear for months only to reappear the follow year. And the network brass wonders why ratings are so low for some of these shows.

I understand that reality TV is cheaper to produce, thus the reason for the influx of these , in my opinion, worthless time-wasters. But it's a damn shame that for people like myself, who might enjoy a decent program to have to wait several months before the next season programs air is just an idiotic way to program a network.
Click to expand...

Actually, this has been going on for ever almost. It's customary for networks to order a handful of shows (6 or 7) before committing an order for an entire season. If those show is a complete flop, then only a few shows were produced -- and not as much $$ wasted.

Some shows are intended as mid-season replacements, too. If the show does well, then it a full-season could be ordered or given a set time slot in the fall. It depends on several factors.
 
I think all the New Amsterdam episodes were shot before the writers strike, then held back for a midseason launch. Fox probably decided to wait until this Fall for additonal episodes, assuming the show is renewed.
 
Back in the 1950's and 1960's, the normal season ran from the first week in September until the last week of May. Things haven't been like that for a long time.
 
I believe a full length season would be twenty-six episodes or something to that tune, but I have heard union rules have at twenty-three(don't know if that's true or not, seeing how Melrose Place use to have 30+ episodes per season). Also I recall Friends in its earlier seasons had twenty-four shows, but then they wanted to make save money so they cut it down to twenty-two.
 
Soon there won't be a "season"
...something to do with current behaviour of advertisers vs. the way they once were.

Selling a new car isn't always as great in September and October today, as it once was back in the day. (to name one example.)

It looks like new shows in the future just might show up in the spring to have a spring/summer run instead...but I could be wrong.
 
I'm sure there are plenty of people on this board who remember when we had "seasons" for everything:

New cars hitting the showrooms, new Fall TV programs, kite flying, marbles games, all the various sports seasons. Life seemed much more organized then.

Ever wonder why, when people are describing old TV shows, they almost always remember what day of the week, and even what time, the shows were broadcast? Milton Berle was "Mr. Tuesday Night". Jack Benny's show was always Sundays. And so on......

It's no wonder today, with the lack of "seasons" for everything except sports and shows being switched (and episodes being skipped) that it is much more difficult for networks to generate interest and a following for new shows. And for the most part it is their own fault. Dummies!
 
Definately they are getting shorter. It's more profitable to shoot the show then run it into saturation, then run new episodes. Only sit-coms have really been successful in syndication, though a few other like "Perry Mason" have lived on in the hour format.

Now that sitcoms are pretty much dead in in the water this is leaving stations with litttle to rebroadcast on a local level and the reality shows don't really hold up as the whole point is you don't know the outcome. So why watch it on rerun.

Plus now you see how quickly they market the DVDs of shows, even sitcoms, which indicates to me they don't plan to syndicate them to local stations. So it would make sense to rerun them into the ground to get as much profit then go on to another type of reality show, or the same show with different people
 
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