Midseason Shows and Why They Sometimes Become Summer Shows

Well, here's another random post which is not on Saturday as the usual post. I was hoping to post this post later when it would be more time sensitive. But, it appears that I had nothing else ready at the moment so I better start working on more future posts. Anyways, don't expect a non Saturday post for a while after this as it will be a while before I can do that. Now on to the post!

Were you ever waiting to watch a new show and learned that it wouldn’t air until the summer? Were you wondering why it didn’t premiere sooner? Are you tired of my questions and just want to get to the actual point of this post? Well, I might as well do that.

Now sometimes the delay to midseason makes no sense. I’ll use various shows from last season as an example. The Whispers and the Astronaut’s Wives Club could have aired sooner than they did, but that didn’t end up happening. You’d think that the cancellation of shows like Allegiance would have prompted NBC to rush up the premiere of a show like Aquarius to fill in gaps, but instead they decided to just add more Dateline. FOX aired two hour movies on Fridays instead of programming like Wayward Pines. Why they did that is beyond my understanding.

Other times, you’ll see no room in the schedule for certain shows. So, they air in the summer. This includes shows that have premiered already and are moved to summer since there’s no time for it in the regular season anymore. An example of this was the show Reckless from a while back. CBS had no time to air it until the summer happened.

So for one reason or another, sometimes shows meant to be in the midseason schedule won’t end up airing until the summer instead. This includes both new and returning series. The reasons may vary and not make sense at times, but it happens a lot.

Commercials Drinking Game

This will not be the start of a new day for posting this blog as it could be a good long while before I can roll something to have that other option available anyways. Now, to the post: I thought of a really quick post to put in here so here's another drinking game that people can play. I take no responsibility for any dangerous situations that result from playing drinking games. Do not play drinking games if you are underage, pregnant, breastfeeding, taking medication that forbids alcohol use, or would certainly drink too much. Now with most TV shows, on network television at least, there are commercials that go along with it. So here's a drinking game for commercials.

Drink every time it says do not attempt, drink at every Easter commercial, drink every time a Christmas commercial airs in November or sooner, drink every time a commercial airs instead of getting back to the show (but only if you want the show to come back on) or drink every time it goes back to the show when you want it to air a commercial instead, drink every time a spot for another TV show airs, during election years you should drink every time there is a political commercial, drink at every Back to School commercial, drink at every commercial for taxes, drink every time either more than one product is mentioned in a commercial or if they use product placement in one.

On the Value of Final Season Orders

Sometimes a show that has been on for multiple seasons is announced as cancelled. It just leaves the airwaves sometimes with little warning to those that weren’t keeping track of ratings. Sometimes, certain shows are announced as cancelled for their upcoming season. Sometimes they just end a show and sometimes they give it a final season. What’s the value of final season orders?

Well, there’s a reason for cancelling a show this season versus cancelling a show next season. Why some long running shows don’t even get a notice of a series finale airing is beyond my understanding. But, there are some shows that just make sense to get a final season order. Or, it could be the strange case of CSI where it comes back next season for a mere two episodes.

Getting one final season can be a nice boost for a network’s ratings. Plus, you can’t say that the show didn’t get a chance as only long running shows tend to be dismissed that way. They want to give fans of the show a reason to watch. Maybe they hadn’t watched in a while and they will come back for the last season of the show. It works with my mother. It probably works with other people. It’s nice knowing that there is a planned end so people will watch it and what leads up to it.

One might wonder why final season orders aren’t more common. Of course, some of it has to do with the fact that a show hasn’t been on for long enough to justify them promoting them that way. Of course, you do have to wonder why they avoid promoting show’s episodes as series finale, instead giving them the misleading season finale, when they have no plans to air any more episodes after that one. But, there are values of this and you will probably see TV shows promoted as such every season to give fans a nice send-off. While not always present, sometimes it is just what people need.

The Nielsen Corporation and Why They’re Important

Who are the Nielsen Corporation? What is a Nielsen family? How accurate are they? Why are they so important to how television works? Well, I might as well tell you about them. Without the Nielsen Corporation, we might have a very different way of doing television. Or, quite possibly, we wouldn’t have television at all.

Now when it comes to television, one thing stands out as more important than the rest: ratings. Well, it may not actually be the most important thing in television, but without it, nearly everything else falls apart. Now sometimes bad ratings don’t matter as much when a show airs. Typically though, the ratings are what people strive for and bad ratings will get a show cancelled.

How do they know what shows get what ratings? Well, that’s where the Neilson Corporation comes in. By using a process of getting select families to represent a portion of the viewing audience, they get the ratings that we use. These families, known as Neilson families, are fundamentally the viewers of television as they report what all they’ve seen.

There has, of course, been criticism of the Neilson Corporation. Among them, there is the belief that they might not be accurate with their reporting numbers. A good example of this is the show Jericho. After it was cancelled due to bad ratings, fan response brought it back. When it did come back, the ratings were still considered low. Why would fans bring back the show only for them not to watch it? This would help support the belief that their numbers are not as accurate as they should be.

You might be wondering how the ratings are determined by those who aren’t a Neilson family. Well, honestly, if you are not a Neilson family, it doesn’t matter if you watch a show or not. Your ratings only count if you are part of the Neilson family research or if you filled out a survey of theirs over what you watched recently. And if you wonder if online viewing counts for anything, it might, but it wouldn’t change the numbers enough. Of course, this is another criticism of the Neilson Corporation.

I’m not sure if there’s anything else that is important enough for me to mention in this blog post of mine. There are some parts about it that I don’t fully understand, like sweeps. I just know that they are important in certain parts of the year. But that’s all I can think of mentioning about the Neilson Corporation this time around.

Network Specific Daytime Shows

Well, this is the last of the current blog posts of daytime shows that you’ll see. This is basically just a wrap up of various daytime shows that air only on a specific network. My apologizes if this is mostly just CBS shows, but this will have the rest of the shows that I’ve seen, in terms of daytime shows.

The Talk: Status- Currently on CBS. It is typically live. In the Central time zone, it airs at 1 pm. Why I’ve seen it- I originally liked it and watched it since I felt there was nothing better on at the time. I guess I just wanted to see a new talk show to see what it is like. Description- A group of five women host a talk show talking about various subjects from current events. Notable People- Aisha Tyler, who also hosts the current Whose Line is it Anyways?, is one of the current cohosts. Julie Chen, former CBS news journalist and current host of Big Brother, is another cohost, typically the more main one. Sarah Gilbert, formerly of Roseanne among other shows, is a cohost and the main creator of the show. Pros- The show can be funny and interesting from time to time. They allow viewer interaction with videos and tweets one can send in. Cons- The show can be dull and pointless at times. Typically, it just comes off as a bunch of women gossiping. Also, there tends to be pointless cooking segments from time to time that I personally don’t like. Note to Parents- Some of the stuff they talk about isn’t appropriate for kids. Plus, they typically air this at time most kids would be at school, although if they are off school for whatever reason, then maybe high schoolers could watch this, but not much younger. Recommendation- I honestly don’t know what to say here. I watch it from time to time, although I typically miss it and don’t care that I do. So if you happen to like it and it fits in your schedule, then you might enjoy it. Otherwise, tune out. Prediction- Not knowing the ratings of this, I’d say that it is likely to last a long while it just as easily might not. Reception: negative. Grade: C+.

The Price is Right: Status- Currently airs during the daytime hours on CBS. The time is different for each affiliate. Why I’ve seen it- My grandfather liked and watched it while he was still alive. Plus, this is the type of show that most people have seen anyways. Noteworthiness- The show has lasted over 40 years, last I checked. Description- This is a game show where various contestants compete to potentially win select prizes, typically by guessing the right price of it. Notable People- Drew Carrey, comedian known for the Drew Carrey show, is the host of this show. Pros- The show is interesting and fun to watch. Cons- Many people don’t like Drew Carrey as much as the previous host (Bob Barker). The show has too many commercial breaks and tends to happen too fast. Note to Parents- While this would typically air when your kids are in school, when they aren’t, they could watch this at any young age as there’s nothing objectionable to kids in here. Recommendation- I like it and watch it whenever it works out for me. Prediction- This show will probably stay on the air a good while, pending potential bad future hosts. Reception: generally praised. Grade: A.

The View: Status- Currently airs in the morning on ABC. It is live and airs at 10 (last I checked) in the Central time zone. Why I’ve seen it- This is actually a bit weird: after The Talk was constantly compared to this show, I ended up watching it just to see what the differences and similarities are. Description- A bunch of women talk about different things as they cohost a show. Pros- The show can be interesting and informative. Cons- The show can be a bit too political. Note to Parents- This show probably has enough talk in it that isn’t good for kids, but some ages like teens can watch this when they aren’t in school. Recommendation- I’m not sure what to say about whether or not you should watch it. I don’t, but maybe other people who would have time for it would like it. Prediction- I actually see this ending soon since all the host changing has to be bad for it. But, I could easily be wrong and this could continue to last. Reception: negative. Grade: C-.

Let’s Make a Deal: Status- Currently sometime during the daytime hours of television on CBS. It airs at different times in different regions. Why I’ve seen it- I was interested in it. Noteworthiness- This is a revival of a show with the same name that was previously hosted by Monty Hall. Description- Contestants are picked out of an audience to compete for various prizes and avoid getting no prize or a zonk (a fake/joke prize). Notable People- Wayne Brady, a well known comedian who was host of the primetime Don’t Forget the Lyrics, had a recurring role on How I Met Your Mother, and also works on Whose Line is it Anyways?, is the host of this show. Pros- This show is fun to watch. Improvisation on the show helps keep it entertaining. Cons- The contestants can be dumb. Parts are predictable. Some of it can be considered too easy for a game show. Note to Parents- This is probably good for kids of all ages, provided they aren’t in school when they are watching it. Recommendation- It all depends on what works with your schedule. I watch it from time to time and imagine that others would like it too. Prediction- This could last a long time. It has lasted long enough for now, but it’s unknown what could change the ratings and result in it potentially ending. Plus, if it came back once, it could come back again. Reception: somewhat positive. Grade: B+.

Best and Worst Show from 2015

Well, here’s my regular quick post were I finish with the last major and biggest award from both the Silver Globe awards of mine and the Golden Huckleberry awards of mine. What was the best show from 2015? What was the worst show from the 2015-2016 TV season? Read on and find out.

Best show on television in 2015: The Late Show with David Letterman

Worst show on television from the 2015-2016 TV season: American Idol

That’s pretty much all for this quick blog post. You can read the winners of both my good awards and bad awards in previous blog posts. It will tell you what was nominated for best and worst show on television from the previous TV season or year.