US: Air dates

Soldato
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What is it with America and their stupid air date formats? They'll have a week between each episode for 7-8 weeks then they'll start putting 2-3 week breaks between episodes seemingly randomly so you'll start having 1 week, then 3 then a couple of weeks of weekly episodes then a 2 week break and it annoys the hell out of me. Its why I usually prefer to find series that have finished or have a load of seasons already done. The regular week breaks tend to completely break the flow of the series for me, nevermind the 2-3 week breaks. Do UK series do this?

Oh, and don't get me started on 'mid season breaks' :mad:!
 

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Soldato
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They do breaks because especially at the beginning of the year series are ordered only few episodes at the time, so they have to stop for back orders. This is usually in early winter and around Xmas as they have to move schedule around holidays (thanksgiving etc), US sport events and their catchup/re-run schedules anyway. It's only frustrating for us, in Europe because we don't have full picture of their TV roster.

UK series do not do this because they only last between 4 and 7 episodes a year, if that. But if British series followed 23-24 episodes per season rules, I'm sure BBC wouldn't try to compete with something like Olympics or World Cup, which is how yanks treat their baseball and handegg, I mean - American Football.
 
Soldato
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They do breaks because especially at the beginning of the year series are ordered only few episodes at the time, so they have to stop for back orders. This is usually in early winter and around Xmas as they have to move schedule around holidays (thanksgiving etc), US sport events and their catchup/re-run schedules anyway. It's only frustrating for us, in Europe because we don't have full picture of their TV roster.

UK series do not do this because they only last between 4 and 7 episodes a year, if that. But if British series followed 23-24 episodes per season rules, I'm sure BBC wouldn't try to compete with something like Olympics or World Cup, which is how yanks treat their baseball and handegg, I mean - American Football.

yep... bang on
 
Caporegime
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UK series do not do this because they only last between 4 and 7 episodes a year, if that. But if British series followed 23-24 episodes per season rules,
most american serieis are only 10-12 episodes now?

but anyway they dont like to compete with sporting events etc fot some stupid reason.

non of the shows I follow have christmas episodes either :S

everything is on a break until around 12jan
 

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Soldato
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most american serieis are only 10-12 episodes now?

The only shows with 10-12 episodes are either midseason shows (midseason/early spring, summer) or pre-scheduled series (where every episode from beginning to the end is signed off and made before the season starts) on commercial free channels (HBO, Cinemax, Showtime) or what's referred to as "cable channels" (USA, AMC etc).

Vast majority of autumn shows on air right now have 18+ episode runs and are subject to trial runs with additional script and episode orders and even sudden extensions and bridging. A good example of this kind of tactics would be something like "Switched At Birth". Storyline and quality is not that relevant, but it was just another summer family drama show. Proper single camera set up, hourlong, outside locations & all (none of that "in front of live audience" short jobs). The show was scripted for 13 episodes, but then received extension of 20 episodes, to a total of 32 episodes, to become autumn-spring show. The order was then shortened to 30 episodes, and moved back to summer-autumn status, before a week later season two order of 20 episodes in total was issued conditional on the show being ready for midseason in early January 2013. In other words, people who wrote 13 episodes for a show with cast and crew on short contracts, went through complete rollercoaster of in-out-longer-shorter-renewed and ended up writing and preparing 50 episodes in total between May 2012 and December 2013.
 
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Caporegime
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I can only think of a few series that dont follow the trend of 10-13eps per season
sons of anarchy
1-14 episodes per season (only one season had more than 13 eps)

Dexter 12 episodes per season

true blood
12 episodes per season

Homeland
12 episodes per season

American horror story
12 episodes per season

walking dead
season 1 - 6eps
season 2 -13eps
season 3 - 16eps

Game of thrones
10 episodes per season

Breaking bad
7eps for season 1
13 eps per season since

What american series follow the so called "23-23episodes per season rule" you talk off?

BSG , person of interest , criminal minds( i think)
are the only ones I can think of.
its very rare for an american series to have more than 10-13episodes?
 
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Soldato
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I can only think of a few series that dont follow the trend of 10-13eps per season

What american series follow the so called "23-23episodes per season rule" you talk off?

BSG , person of interest , criminal minds( i think)
are the only ones I can think of.
its very rare for an american series to have more than 10-13episodes?

Looks like you are only watching shows made by subscription channels:

Sons of anarchy [FX]
American horror story [FX]
Dexter [Showtime]
Homeland [Showtime]
True Blood [HBO - Summer Show, airs from June]
Game of thrones [HBO - Midseason show, airs from April]
Walking dead [AMC]
Breaking bad [AMC - Summer show, airs from June]

What american series have more than 13 episodes? Just about every show in "regular fall schedule" on ABC, CBS, NBC, CW or FOX. Tomorrow is Monday, on typical Monday you would expect to see:
Castle
How I Met Your Mother
2 Broke Girls
Mike & Molly
Hawaii Five-0
90210
Gossip Girl
Bones
Revolution

All of which will run over 20 episodes per season with exception of Gossip Girl which had a scheduled wrap-up/end.
 

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Soldato
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so I'm watching the ones worth watching then good to know

Hey, don't be a snob! :eek: But... basically.. I'd add a few titles there.. but yeah. The ones worth watching usually do quality over quantity.

Fall to summer scheduling with break in the middle is also why sci-fi from regular channels - SG, Star Treks etc are always full of filler - short arc episodes without progressing long arc/season long stories - oh, two of them entered the gate, tada!, they are stuck on a planet, that looks just like any generic Canadian location. Pine trees everywhere. They should walk around that forest glade in the middle in circles for half an hour I think. What will they do, what will they do. Oh, so good that unknown extra dude found them in 44th minute.
 
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Soldato
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I can understand taking a break so that they aren't competing with their sports, but most of the sports are on every week and have been for several months (while nearly all their shows are on anyway). I don't buy that people in the USA simply stop watching tv over Christmas, I know lots of people here in the UK who will watch at least some tv tonight, tomorrow and boxing day, and I fail to see how Americans are any different.

That leaves me wondering what they all watch if and when they do turn on their tvs!
 

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Soldato
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That leaves me wondering what they all watch if and when they do turn on their tvs!

They have this concept we don't understand in Europe. Reruns. This is their Xmas schedule for tonight. Notice the little red markers underneath:
xmasreruns.jpg


It's basically like watching +1 channel, or dave, but transposed by several months. I think the only channel that ever came close to this in UK was E4, when they started "reruns" of Friends. But that lasted few years and they were rerunning all seasons in separate slots in multiple slots across entire week (so on random Monday you would end up with episode 17 of season 5, followed by episode 2 of season 9, followed by episode 24 of season 1, it all made sense but you could only watch the show start to end in order if you started watching it at 7:30 two years earlier and only tuned in for that slot for the next 236 working days).
Networks rerun episodes after November sweeps week (look up Nielsen ratings sweeps week for explanation of that), mostly from from middle of December until middle of January. 8 weeks from middle of January is the "mid-season" - that's where most of the networks try out new shows that didn't fit into the fall schedule. Some networks have dedicated short run shows, but most just use "selection B" that didn't make into the regular fall schedule. Just like regular fall shows, which are contracted with 23-24 episodes in mind, but only receive 12-13 episode orders before they go on "hiatus", the mid-season shows usually get 6-8 episode orders before extension. The surviving shows from fall season then return into their regular slots and run until end of spring, early summer.
The only exception to the rule is guaranteed hits - in the last years it would be something like "24" or "Lost", which would be slotted consecutively week after week without break in the middle and be paired with another successful show, often some sort of reality Talented Idol Dancing in Jungle, or something similar. One would run for 20-22 weeks from end of august to early spring, then the "hit" show would take over from Jan/Feb to May/June, creating one long "high budget" spot in a schedule for the advertisers.
 
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