First look at new Battlestar Galactica Episodes

mikrorechner writes "GateWorld has had a look on five new episodes of the upcoming season 2 of Battlestar Galactica. Beware of spoilers. In other news, season 2 will be shown first in the US by the Sci-Fi Channel starting July 15, with UK's Sky One following in October." If only UHD would simulcast in HD this would be perfect.

Comments

Speaking of spoilers....

[AtariAmarok]

Looking forward to more scenes of Starbuck flying around in a Cylon Raider that is packed with rotten corned beef.

Re:Speaking of spoilers....

[Anonymous Coward]

Mmm....Starbuck, naked and petrified, covered in hot rotten corned beef.

Epsiodes?

[Bananatree3]

My own little pipe dream:

Oh how I wish they would come out with a VR reality game for this! Imagine, a 3D game for Battlestar Galactica! :)

Re:Epsiodes?

[AndyChrist]

"Oh how I wish they would come out with a VR reality game for this! Imagine, a 3D game for Battlestar Galactica! :)"

Oh, a Virtual Reality Reality game?

Well, I'd buy it, but I forgot my Personal Identification Number Number for the Automated Teller Machine Machine.

Re:Epsiodes?

[angrist]

Looks like someone wants to check Six's oil.

Better watch out though, it'll cause hallucinations.

Re:Epsiodes?

[Eccles]

Better watch out though, it'll cause hallucinations.

You say that like it's a bad thing.

Re:Epsiodes?

[Austerity Empowers]

Hmm I don't know about Six, but I'd like to try my cylon detector probe on Boomer.

Re:Epsiodes?

[xMilkmanDanx]

Would've been funnier to see this moderated redundant.

Re:Epsiodes?

[EnderWigginsXenocide]

Go ahead, try it, don't be suprized when you end up being responsible for the start of the next phase of the cylons master plan.

Torrent?

[angrist]

Ok so who has the .torrent link?

*ducks*

Re:Torrent?

[Anonymous Coward]

Writing *ducks* at the bottom your comment does not automatically make it funny, as most Slashdotters such as yourself seem to think.

Re:Torrent?

[andi75]

Apparently, most moderators seem to think so too.

*ducks*

Re:Torrent?

[Arathrael]

I agree that it shouldn't, but I think more evidence is needed to determine whether it actually does or not. For example, if I put *ducks* at the end of this otherwise totally humourless post, does anyone find it funny?

*ducks*

Re:Torrent?

[Tablespoon]

It quacked me up...

_>

Re:Torrent?

[laurent420]

best BSG torrent i've found. miniseries and first season

Re:Torrent?

[NanoGator]

"It quacked me up..."

You're dithpicable.

Re:Torrent?

[ScentCone]

But then, since so many of the Kabuki-like slashdot posting/comment/moderation rituals are about form and timing (rather than about content, per se), you should be able to test with:

*geese*

Re:Torrent?

[SamSim]

Ducks are intrinsically funny.

Re:Torrent?

[Anonymous Coward]

*rimshot* seems to be another favourite around here, it never fails to get a laugh

Interesting

[taskforce]

A sure sign of the show's success is that it is now being shown first in the US as opposed to the UK as the first season was.

Re:Interesting

[youngerpants]

Why is this a sign of success?? I think this behaviour by the studios is disgusting.

OK, I can understand a simultaneous broadcast, but why doe the UK have to act as testers for the program, and then have to wait an additional 4 months because the test went well???

Karma be dammed, I'm going to download these episodes and boycott the TV showings. The UK are NOT second class consumers despite what the studios believe.

Re:Interesting

[crow]

Isn't this the same pattern they followed last year? The first half of the season is aired in the US first, with a break, followed by the second half. During the US break, the UK shows the whole thing.

Re:Interesting

[rokzy]

>I'm going to download these episodes and boycott the TV showings

same here. I'll buy it if you want to sell me it, but I won't beg.

Re:Interesting

[Richard_at_work]

No, last year SkyOne got the entire season before it started airing in the US, it started and finished in the UK before the US, we had a short break around Christmas (a week iirc) and that was it.

Re:Interesting

[ike6116]

Not second class consumers? Then prove it with your Euros. There is a reason the UK is a testing ground and I'll wager dollars (or euros) to doughnuts it's less personal and more economic than you think.

Re:Interesting

[slapout]

Have you seen most of the junk Hollywood puts out? They seem to think that all consumers are second class.

Re:Interesting

[Durandal64]

Hey, you guys gave us the first season before it aired over here, and we'll return the favor. BitTorrent makes all this "who gets what first" bullshit meaningless.

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

Whilst Dollars or Euros would be nice, Pounds Sterling would be even better. What with me being able to spend them in the UK and everything.

Re:Interesting

[toad3k]

This is not national favoritism, dude. Every station does this with every show, and they have since the beginning of time. They wait until their magic eight ball says they'll get the best ratings or ad revenue, then they show the show.

The networks just haven't brought their marketing department to the realization that cnosumers now have a choice in this matter now.

I'll watch the first 10 on sci fi, but after that it may well be that I'll download the rest, as I don't feel like waiting 3 months to resolve the inevitable cliffhanger sci fi adjourns on every season of every show.

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

"Then prove it with your Euros."

We use pound sterling you insensitive clod!

Re:Interesting

[wbattestilli]

Because SkyOne and SciFi worked it out that way. Neither really care about pissing off Brits or Yanks. They only care about $.

The show was very expensive. To mitigate risk, SciFi asked SkyOne to split the costs with them. SkyOne said fine but we get to show it first in exchange for helping you out.

Now for season 2, SciFi is confident and probably didn't need any help funding it. As a result SkyOne gets to wait for syndication like everybody else.

Re:Interesting

[Johnny Mnemonic]

same here. I'll buy it if you want to sell me it, but I won't beg.

Christ when will they get it. Newsflash: the intarweb makes the entire world one big market, and we laugh at the attempts to use 20th century notions of regionalism on us.

How about you try to change your models to accomodate piracy, instead of just whinge about it? 'Cause it has been amply demonstrated by now that there is no technical or legislative fix. The only way to manage piracy is by changing the demand structure, which, believe it or not, means giving consumers what we want when we want it.

It's up to you to charge us for it; failing that, we'll steal it. And until you can patent 1s and 0s, there's not a lot you can do about it. Simple, really.

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

Don't know but being one of those forced to rely on torrents to get the show, I hope the US episodes of season 2 will have the better UK intro music.
God that US version sucked bad!!!

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

SkyOne got Season 1 first because it wasn't ready to be aired in July, when SciFi traditionally starts new seasons. Depending on when SkyOne begins airing the second season, the UK could still very well see the final episodes before the US.

Also keep in mind that the series is quite expensive to film; that and SkyOne's willingness to whip out the checkbook suggests that it's highly doubtful SciFi's footing the bill for Season 2 alone.

Re:Interesting

[Mortimer82]

I live in South Africa, we don't even have it aired here, until I can order DVDs of the series I will most certainly use torrents. However, I am a bit dissapointed it's not being broadcast in HDTV format first, the AVI's come out so much better.

Re:Interesting

[BVis]

Have you seen most of the junk Hollywood puts out? They seem to think that all consumers are second class.

They are. What's your point?

Re:Interesting

[scotw]

Yep, they want to try and stop downloading and then they pull crap like this. They can kiss my ****, I'll be downloading it (but I'll also tell my Sky+ to record it - don't want them to have low ratings and not make a third series).

Re:Interesting

[LWATCDR]

Ahh but they would rather stop the US from downloading than the UK. The UK is a smaller market.
I am sure that if SKY ONE would pony up the money they could show it at the same time.
If not just torrent it. Frankly I am surprised they do not show it at the same time. Seems a much better solution to the download problem. I mean if you can watch it before you can download it what is the point?

Re:Interesting

[ctrl-alt-delete]

You may not be second class consumers, but your money is.

Re:Interesting

[ivano]

plural of euro is euro not euros

ciao

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

I live in Germany. Waiting months or years for good shows or movies to play at the cinemas or air on television is business as usual.

Re:Interesting

[mortis2600]

Why is it every time I hear someone from the UK, they're complaining about how they're not second class [whatever]? Simply put, the US has more people. More people Equals a better market. So what if you need to wait a few months? Deal.

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

But the UK IS a second class market, though. Don't take it personally, it's just a numbers game. Our population is about 5x yours and our GDP is about 6.2x as large. So a show could be much less popular, relatively speaking, in the U.S. and be equally successful financially speaking. If it makes you feel better, it's highly likely that during my lifetime, China and India will overtake the U.S.'s economy in GDP.

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

Unfortunately, the consumers prove them right, again, and again, and again. It makes me sad, but it's true. It seems that all the average American wants flashy drivel. :-(

Re:Interesting

[Bhalash]

The UK may be a smaller market, but its been shown time and again that a greater amount of downloading goes on their. I guess the four month+ delays between US and UK (I'm in Ireland, Irish channels don't even carry any of these shows) debuts gives people the incentive they need to download. On top of that, there's also the high cost and sparse extras in DVD boxed sets, compared to the US.

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

Cry me a river. I waited to see season one on SCIFI, you limey tits can wait for season two.

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

Using the word 'euros' is perfectly acceptable. It's widely used across Europe.

http://www.uta.fi/FAST/PP3B/euros.html

Re:Interesting

[orthogonal]

I live in Germany. Waiting months or years for good shows or movies to play at the cinemas or air on television is business as usual.

Yeah, but it all evens out: you guys always get to invade Poland first.

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

No way! Didn't you see Bad Boyz 2? Hollywood rocks! Long live Jerry Bruckheimer!

Re:Interesting

[NoodleSlayer]

BECAUSE the US Cable networks are on a different airing schedule then the UK.

Sci-Fi channel is set up to largely air new programs when the broadcast networks are in a down cycle (Jan. to Mar., Jul. to Sept.) and the new episodes of BSG came right after their Summer season. Sci-Fi could of aired them at the same time as the UK showings but elected not to because they preferred to wait for when new episodes of Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis would be available to air, that way all of their new content would benefit. It was a decision that paid off well for SciFi.

If you have a problem with the UK not showing the Battlestar Gallactica episodes at the same time as the US you should complain to your networks. This isn't because one side is "second class" to the other.

Re:Interesting

[LinuxLuver]

You won't be alone.

Those downloadable, HDTV quality episodes of shows that may not be shown in your country (whichever) for YEARS......is the market talking back to the folks who think they are in control. :-)

"You dictate my culture.....and claim to also own my culture? We'll see about that." :-)

Re:Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

"but why doe the UK have to act as testers for the program"

For the same reason that the US uses Iraq to test its latest armaments, or Viet Nam and Columbia to test its antifoliage agents, or South Korea to test its landmines, etc. etc: We'd rather someone else get screwed than us. We don't care who, as long as they're not us.

Re:Interesting

[Glen Ponda]

why doe the UK have to act as testers for the program, and then have to wait an additional 4 months because the test went well???

Don't ask me - ask them: http://www.sky.com/skycom/feedback/enquiry/0,,,00. html

Set your TiVos on stun...

[http101]

They may be able to curb some of the pirating if they would just broadcast simultaneously.

Re:Set your TiVos on stun...

[Cat_Byte]

They may be able to curb some of the pirating if they would just broadcast simultaneously.

No kidding! I've got every episode on my drive until it comes out on DVD. I can't believe a date still hasn't even been announced for the release of season 1 when it has been out overseas for months. I'm not pirating, I'm just impatient and want my copy now. I'm definitely anxious to get it on DVD 16:9 and free up a few gigs of space.

Re:Set your TiVos on stun...

[Dogers]

Don't know where you are, presumably US, so neener neener! ;)

Re:Set your TiVos on stun...

[Anonymous Coward]

I missed the first season when it aired mostly because I thought it wouldn't be any good so I didn't bother. Later, while using a P2P client, I decided to download one episode (season 1, ep 1) just to take a look. I was impressed. I've since gotten all in 16:9 (from HDTV broadcast) in Divx format and have burned them all to a DVD+R disc. I have a Philips DVD/mpeg4 player which plays them nearly perfectly. (I had to re-encode the audio at a lower bitrate to fit them all onto one disc, however, but that was no big deal.) Should the first season come out on DVD I'll buy it since I like it. I've already purchased the pilot movie since I downloaded that, too, and liked it.

Anyway, you can get it right now in 16:9 Divx off the P2P networks and either play it on your computer or a DVD player that supports Divx, or use ffmpeg to convert them into NTSC or PAL DVD compliant mpeg files and burn them all to a few DVD+R discs.

Re:Set your TiVos on stun...

[squiggleslash]

That might be a problem. If they show it at, say, 7pm in Britain, that'll mean it'll be 2pm the Eastern part of the US, or even earlier further West. Most Americans will be either at work, or if the weekend, at the stores or in church of having their lunches at that time.

Alternatively, if they were to show it at 9pm Eastern, in Britain it'd be two in the morning.

Ultimately I don't think there's an easy solution for this. Perhaps the best would be if the TV show is initially made avaiable for pay-per-view DRM'd streaming download a few days before they're due to show it on either side of "the pond". Then the diehards will get it immediately, and the only people who'll watch it on TV would be those who think that spending hours downloading a low quality rip is pointless anyway.

Re:Set your TiVos on stun...

[dorsey]

"Simultaniously" in this context means on or about the same day, as opposed to several months apart. It does not mean at the very same moment.

Re:Set your TiVos on stun...

[Cat_Byte]

LOL. Well at least we get to see it first for season 2 this time ;) neener neener neeeeeener.

Honestly I don't know why they don't just broadcast simultaneously. They should have learned from last season.

If only...

[yotto]

I missed season 1, but should be able to catch season 2 on TV. Too bad season 1's not coming out on DVD until (apparently) after season 2 starts. Really, do they realize the benefits of releasing a DVD of a seson of a television show BEFORE the next season starts?

Re:If only...

[bogado]

This would make the (countless) reruns have a smaller audience. They will launch it on DVD after the 3rd or 4th season when the public is tired of yet another end-to-end rerun of buff.. gallatica.

Re:If only...

[xirtam_work]

I've got season 1 on DVD, got it from my local store over a month ago. Region 2 of course.

Re:If only...

[duncangough]

*sigh*

Season 1 DVD, or would you prefer the Mini Series first?


Playaholics: Play LightingPool

Oh, and this crappy capatcha system is b0rked, ffs

Re:If only...

[yotto]

Season 1 DVD of Battlestar Galactica: 50 quid.
DVD player that will play UK DVDs: 20 quid (guess).
Plane ticket to London: 500 quid.
Seeing Season 1 of BSG before season 2 comes out: Priceless.

Re:If only...

[MindStalker]

Cost of shipping both from Amazon.co.uk: 9.97
Avoiding the London fog: Priceless

Re:If only...

[Anonymous Coward]

I have the DVD collection of Season 1, and the miniseries. I made them myself, but I still have them.

Re:If only...

[duncangough]

Funny, a thread that is full of comments pointing out that the web makes the west a global market and that regionalisation just won't cut it anymore (like delaying the UK series) and you get to whine about the DVDs whilst assuming that everyone will know you're in the USA.
Playaholics: Arcade pool

Re:If only...

[Robber Baron]

...cost of DLing DVD images from a.b.battlestargalactica: zero

Re:If only...

[Anonymous Coward]

Funny, apparently no one told you that slashdot is an American website. If you don't like it, go make your own. Nigger.

Re:If only...

[Goth Biker Babe]

Avoiding the London fog: Priceless

Believing a hundred year old stereotype. Priceless! ;-)

Re:If only...

[MindStalker]

Shrugs, it was funny laugh. Though stereotypes generally have reason. I'd bet london is foggier than most places.

Finally some good Sci Fi

[Essef]

How in the name of all that's holy did Star Trek Enterprise survive so many seasons while Firefly got cancelled and the excellent BSG only had 15 episodes made.

They should do simultaneous release to DVD as the episodes air... Ok, one can hope :)

Re:Finally some good Sci Fi

[AtariAmarok]

"How in the name of all that's holy did Star Trek Enterprise survive so many seasons while Firefly got cancelled and the excellent BSG only had 15 episodes made."

BSG had only 15 made because they were reluctant to commit to more without knowing if it would be a hit or not. "Star Trek" lived on a huge amount of television innertia: oddly enough, each season was better than the one before. "Firefly" I do not care about, and agree with the cancellation decision: I could barely watch 1/2 hour of the pilot.

Re:Finally some good Sci Fi

[circusboy]

pity, it got better after they stopped all the exposition.

Which, according to the commentary on the DVD, was duplicated in the first episode, as it was filmed first, and the "pilot" was done later, and that had to have exposition because it was the "pilot." So they ended up with two episodes full of exposition.

Re:Finally some good Sci Fi

[91degrees]

"Firefly" I do not care about, and agree with the cancellation decision: I could barely watch 1/2 hour of the pilot.

Which is rather a shame, since the pilto episode they showed was really not a great episode.

Sorry. It's sounds like I'm being an apologist here, and it may turn out that you'd have hated it anyway, but judging by that episode isn't really fair.

Re:Finally some good Sci Fi

[SisyphusShrugged]

Well Firefly is actually a good show, and BSG is amazing. My problem is with that horrendous Star Trek show (regardless of the incarnation), I have never been able to sit through a few minutes of that show, every episode is either 1. Oh no the "Holodeck" broke again (for the 100+ time), lets see all the characters wearing period costumes run around for a bit, regardless of the fact that Holograms would lack any physical substance. 2. Oh no, we accidently went back in time somehow (for the 100+ time) lets see all the people in period costumes run around for a bit. 3. Oh no we landed on a primitive planet (for the 100+ time) lets see all the people in period costumes run around for a bit.

Re:Finally some good Sci Fi

[RazorJ_2000]

...because they probably spend their money and time hiring brainless MBAssholes who don't know anything about their target audience other than what they think their demographic reports say.

I lay copyright on the word "MBAssholes".

Re:Finally some good Sci Fi

[Anonymous Coward]

4x18+4x19 (of enterprise) was the best episode in star trek history. It was just so realistic, for once the humans weren't communistic do-gooder "omg we can't shoot at the enemy, they could get hurt" pussies. It reminded me of good-ole B5, where humans actually were descendants of our human race, and not some wierdo happy-puppy-land humans. And also something about a large terran empire with other species as slaveraces is very interesting... :)

P.S. WTF? I guess i'm not human :P
http://images.slashdot.org/hc/98/c7153c6329e0.jpg

Re:Finally some good Sci Fi

[Elaarni]

Enterprise had a ton of potential, but fell into the classic "Trek trap" of the episodes revolving around alternate timelines and temporal wars. BSG was pure Sci-fi gold, it was another B5, where I eagerly anticipated watching the next episode. I think maybe I watched Firefly expecting something a little more than "The Wild West in space" the pilot was painful to watch, the characters seemed horribly bland, and really turned me off even looking at another episode. The dusty west theme made me think they were trying too hard to capture too many demographics or something, Im sure others saw it in a similar light, since it was relegated to the rubbish bin.

Don't reply with spoilers please...

[rokzy]

...but I hope the captain doesn't die. he's a great character played by a good actor.

if you need to kill someone, kill that alcoholic 2nd in charge. he was just a bit boring and had a slut for a wife.

Re:Don't reply with spoilers please...

[Anonymous Coward]

basically all BSG characters (perhaps except Adama ) deeply suck. The production made the show tougher to attract adult people and the final result is a total crap filled by asses which cannot compete even with Voyager.

Don't believe me? Fine. Then name 3 BSG characters and something about their life when they're not playing with cylons, now do the same with 3 Trek characters. Surprise! BSG characters are even less developed than most throw away aliens from other scifi series.

Re:Don't reply with spoilers please...

[zaq121]

I don't know if Adama dies or not, but I am starting to like the XO. Obviously he will be in charge for the next few episodes, lets see what happens.

Already been done...

[Anonymous Coward]

Already been done...just Google for "Wing Commander"

UHD? Please Expand

[theGreater]

University of Houston Downtown? Have I been living under a rock, that I fail to instantly parse UHD? It might as well be the zcjisnx captcha below, that I may or may not get right on the first try.

-theGreater.

Re:UHD? Please Expand

[Mean_Nishka]

It's Universal High Definition, SCIFI/USA/NBC's parent company's HD channel. And as with anything HD, I don't receive it on Comcast.

UHD ran the entire first season in HD shortly after its run on Scifi.

Re:UHD? Please Expand

[Anonymous Coward]

Universal High Definition, SCIFI/USA/NBC

Ahh yes universal, as in American :-)

Re:UHD? Please Expand

[Molochi]

no I think it's universal, as in Universal Pictures.

spoilers!!

[Cat_Byte]

Argh I read the first page and stopped. Those aren't spoilers, its a walk-through of what happens just like the overview of 'Lost' on the ABC website. Don't read it if you don't want big time spoilers. It even ruins the suspense of the cliffhanger at the end of season 1. BAH!

Re:spoilers!!

[raehl]

What are you doing reading about season two if you havn't seen season one yet?

Re:spoilers!!

[Anonymous Coward]

That's what "spoilers" means! It may spoil the experience if you read them -- why did you look if you knew this? Couldn't help yourself?

Re:spoilers!!

[Anonymous Coward]

damnit, now YOU just ruined the suspense at the end of season 1.

Re:spoilers!!

[Cat_Byte]

Uh...who said I haven't seen season 1? I'm the one talking about having it on my HD until they get off their butts and release it on DVD ;)

It's not that easy...

[Kjella]

...very often, to price a show, to sell a show or to evaluate purchasing a show, you need to have numbers to go on. Living in Norway, I can assure you *no* show is broadcast simultaniously with the US. They always go by first season's US figures when selling here. I'm not sure how they do it for movies, but my impression cinemas they run all the big hollywood blockbusters, and then see how many weeks to keep it on. TV shows are like a one-off airing, a bit different.

Kjella

Re:It's not that easy...

[BeeRockxs]

German pay tv shows current US series about a week or two after they air in the US.

+5 Insightful

[vrai]

There's no way I'm going to wait until October to see this, and I suspect that the final few episodes will be heading the other way across the pond (if they break for three months in the US).

There is no excuse not to broadcast shows that already have a UK distributor in the UK at the same time as in the US. I'm quite happy to sit through adverts if something is worth watching; but I'm not going to wait months for a show that's available as a torrent.

Re:+5 Insightful

[rsmith-mac]

I suspect that the final few episodes will be heading the other way across the pond (if they break for three months in the US).

BSG season 2 is reported to be 20 episodes, just like the Stargate series. Additionally, they all premiere on the same date, July 15th, so what SciFi will do is fairly obvious. All 3 shows are going to be played together, so that they will end up going on break after the 10th episode airs, meaning that Australia/Canada/England should all end up ahead of the US at the end, just like they did with the Stargate series this year.

Of course, what makes this all so interesting is that it means SciFi will have some massive weight in the Friday night time slot; 3 strong sci-fi shows together like that is going to secure virtually every consistent sci-fi viewer, so it should put SciFi on good footing this year.

Shown first in the US?

[Shaper_pmp]

"In other news, season 2 will be shown first in the US... starting July 15, with UK's Sky One following in October."

I think I speak for all UK Slashdotters when I say... bollocks.

But seriously (and no doubt unpopularly), why? Like the US doesn't get enough of the good stuff first, now Sky's giving away one of the few programs we get to premier? Bastards.

Re:Shown first in the US?

[OS24Ever]

I think I speak for all US Slashdotters when I say... HA HA :)

It was a tough few months not downloading those episodes. I wanted the show to survive here in the US. Though I can't understand why they won't show them in both countries at the same time considering how successful they were, unless Sci-Fi paid more to get a 'world' exclusive

Re:Shown first in the US?

[nerd_tek]

Explain then how the UK gets Season One on DVD before the US does? Since my cable company took away my Sci-Fi channel and replaced it with Lifetime, I'm totally up a creek.

Re:Shown first in the US?

[Anonymous Coward]

I think I speak for a lot of US Slashdotters when I say, oh yeah, cheers, mates, for capping the Season One episodes off of SkyOne for us and seeding the torrents. I'm sure someone will return the favor for you -- especially since you lot download the majority of all US TV episodes.

Anyway, you still got Doctor Who and we have to download it for the forseeable future!

Re:Shown first in the US?

[phxbadash]

Actually I believe Sci-Fi was the one who bank-rolled the series to begin with, SkyOne helped finance the first season and got exclusive first rights to that season but I'd imagine Sci-Fi re-negotiated when the series ratings went through the roof.

Re:Shown first in the US?

[Ironsides]

But seriously (and no doubt unpopularly), why? Like the US doesn't get enough of the good stuff first, now Sky's giving away one of the few programs we get to premier? Bastards.

Oh bollocks, What does the US get that's better than what you have in the UK? Lost? Surivivor? Fear Factor? Big Brother? There are 4 (sometimes 5) shows I watch a week. SG1, Atlantis, CSI and Battlestar Galactica. Everything else I consider trash at this point. I would much rather have access to the BBC programming than anything else on NBC, CBS (except for CSI), ABC and FOX.

Besides, You're getting Dr. Who right now (among others). Who knows if it will ever be ported across the pond to the US.

Re:Shown first in the US?

[Anonymous Coward]

> bollocks

Indeed. I will therefore be downloading it.

I might have not bothered downloading it if there was less than a month difference between US and UK.

I would even not download it if they released the season on DVD in the UK within a month of the US showings. Yes, I'd PAY FOR IT.

Let's see, I have a choice between:

waiting three months (and being spoilered to fsck)

and

three megabit per second download ... I think I know which is going to win.

Re:Shown first in the US?

[quacking duck]

Besides, You're getting Dr. Who right now (among others). Who knows if it will ever be ported across the pond to the US.

It's already been "ported across the pond". Both ponds, in fact: Dr Who airs on both Canadian and Australian television, and none of that 3-months-later bullshit either. At least in Canada, it's a mere two weeks behind.

Re:Shown first in the US?

[0111 1110]

I wanted the show to survive here in the US.

Are you aware of how the rating system actually works? Did you call up the SciFi channel to let them know that your TV was on and tuned to their station? You should at least have let them know if you wanted to be counted. It doesn't happen automagically.

Re:Shown first in the US?

[OS24Ever]

Yes, and also my TiVo reported my viewing habits anonymously as well, at least that's what the user agreement says.

Re:Shown first in the US?

[ShootThemLater]

What does the US get that's better than what you have in the UK? Lost?

Well, yes - Lost. It might not be to your taste for some reason, but I think the general consensus is that it's pretty damn good. Yet the first season has now finished in the US but not even started here in the UK (slated for August now, apparently)

Buyers here in the UK missed a trick with that one I think - how many of us will never watch it now on legitimate TV (and never see those adverts) because we would not wait?

On the other hand, you can argue that the minority of us that have taken the torrent route and have nothing but nice things to say about it will cause more than that number to watch it thanks to word of mouth.

But where TV companies are concerned, I generally favour the incompetence explanation over a cunning plan... Either way, it's the viewer in the UK that loses out.

HDTV?

[carlhirsch]

Sci-Fi channel doesn't provide an HDTV signal anywhere, right? Isn't the DirecTV signal SD?

One of the nice things about downloading the Brit Sky torrents was the fact that they were in hi-def.

Re:HDTV?

[Anonymous Coward]

Um no. Sky is all SD, what the hell are you talking about? Digital yes, hi def no.

Re:HDTV?

[vrai]

Sky doesn't broadcast in HD TV, they won't even be shipping set-top boxes that support it until Q4 2005. The torrents were nothing but bog-standard PAL (576 lines interlaced at 50 half-fields per second).

Re:HDTV?

[Junior Samples]

The Canadian downloads have been the cleanest. They don't have that annoying SciFi logo in the lower right corner of the screen. I've seen the Sky One logo on their feeds in the upper left corner, but it's not as annoying as SciFi's.

There have been HDTV torrents of Stargate Atlantis and Battle Star Galactica, but I don't know the origin of the broadcast source.

Re:HDTV?

[Ravalox]

I think they are from Australia. I think the HD eps are being shown on a station in Australia and then are trickling onto torrent sites.

Re:HDTV?

[Goth Biker Babe]

But that's the rub. PAL is better quality than NTSC standard definition. I think it will be harder to sell HD over here because although it is better the difference is not so great.

Re:No spoiler

[imthesponge]

also, he was pregnant.

Homer on Starbuck Episodes...

[losman]

mmmmm... corned beef...

What sort of...

[Anonymous Coward]

From the article:

The first, 13-episode season of the hit new series aired first in the United Kingdom, beginning last fall. SCI FI waited until January to premiere the series, which has proved a ratings winner on both sides of the Atlantic. What sort of a 'premiere' is that? Showing it second is not premiering it. I'd grant that there are premieres and network premieres, but Sky One is network so that's out too.

Third times the charm

[Johnny Mnemonic]

So they ended up with two episodes full of exposition.

And we're likely to get a whole 'nother run through for the first 20 minutes of the movie. Joss must be getting tired of telling the same story, paraphrased.

Re:Third times the charm

[circusboy]

nah, people are getting more 'sophisicated,' look at how much of the story in between the "matrices" and starwars II and III was left to books, cartoons, video games etc. with no further explanation in the movies. It wasn't till I read the ebert article that I understood why gen grevious was wheezing throughout SWIII, and that was covered in a cartoon. in a way this is nice, because it cuts down on expo, but on the other hand it's much easier to lose track of where the story is supposed to be.

Here's hoping Joss can sort this out in the trailers, I think that would be a novel way to go about it...

(now I just have to move somewhere there are movie theaters...

Why must...

[eno2001]

...SciFi persist in making these dreary, crappy, rehashed programs when there are already ton's of decent programs out there in the SciFi vein? Where is Doctor Who 2005 for example? If anything, there should be a presentation of that wonderful series here in the U.S. I've been watching it via eDonkey since no channels here seem to be enlightened enough to show it. A pox on SciFi because they also ruined and then killed off Sliders as well. That was one of the only other science fiction programs that the U.S. has made in recent decades that was worth anything.

But no... American SciFi audiences have been high jacked by the action/adventure crowd. Think about how lame most science fiction is today. Almost 100% of it is war stories or action movies set in the future with a bunch of lame CGI FX. It could be so much better if the focus was on speculative fiction which extrapolates REAL science with REAL social issues and shows us what COULD be if we all band together and work hard to make the future a better place for everyone regardless of who they are (except for the non-transhumanist troglodytes who should jus[tt] be evolved out of existence).

Every show that I've seen come out of the SciFi channel as an "original" has sucked ass. Every series that started out on another network with great promise has been ruined and then unceremoniously killed by SciFi (Sliders, SG-1, Andromeda, etc...). They also seem to be completely missing the boat where their audience is concerned. The channel should be split into two channels: SciFi Prime and SciFi Classic. SciFi Prime can show what they believe to be the best science fiction that they produce. SciFi Classic can show the best science fiction of the 50s, 60s and 70s. Why don't they show Night Stalker anymore? What about the original Outer Limits? What about Lost in Space? Where are all the greats of science fiction like "The Angry Red Planet", "Invasion of the Body Snatchers (50s)", "Forbidden Planet (or anything with Robby the Robot)", or even Have Rocket Will Travel??? There are tons of good science fiction films that are completely ignored by this stupid network. West World, Logan's Run (both the film and the series), Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (both the Buster Crab and Gil Gerard vehicles), The Andromeda Strain, Woody Allen's Sleeper is even a better science fiction film than anything SciFi has ever originally made!!!

I hate the SciFi channel!!! They've ruined science fiction for the current generation. Ray Bradbury was the god of science fiction writing!!!! Long live Philip K. Dick!!!! Viva la Heinlein!!!!!!!!!

Re:Why must...

[twoshortplanks]

"Where is Doctor Who 2005?"

On BBC1 every saturday night slap bang in the middle of prime time viewing?

Re:Why must...

[AtariAmarok]

"The channel should be split into two channels: SciFi Prime and SciFi Classic. SciFi Prime can show what they believe to be the best science fiction that they produce"

You left out an important part of SciFi's programming: made-for-TV-movies about giant bugs/worms/vermins attacking redneck towns. Mansquito, Tremors, Mant.... if it squirms or crawls, you can bet some guy in a John Deere cap is ready to shoot it in a blaze of fakey CGI bug-ichor. Seriously, the channel devotes way too much time to this "genre".

Re:Why must...

[Timberwolf0122]

In defense of the sci-fi channel Mystery Science Theater 3000 was kick ass!

WHY GOD WHY DID YOU GET IT CANCELED?? DOES IT MAKE YOU FEEL LIKE A BIG MAN TO TOY WITH ME!!!!

I can but hope MST3K-TNG is made one day.

I do agree about sliders starting to suck. SG-1 I can say (I am only on the season 5 box set) is so far brilliant and I now have a secret supply of Jaffa cakes I eat when watching.

Re:Why must...

[eno2001]

I am sorry for that oversight. I've been around these imperial 'Muhricuhns for too long, they are starting to rot my brain and make me forget that people in the U.K. read Slashdot.

Re:Why must...

[smooth wombat]

Why don't they show Night Stalker anymore?

Because there are only 20 episodes of the original? SciFi would have two choices: either run the episodes once a night every night or once a week for twenty weeks.

After you've run the episodes, then what? Repeat them?

Also, if you'll notice along the left side of the page I linked, right below the picture of Darren McGavin, there is a link from October of 2004 which says that ABC is in the process of remaking the Night Stalker series. Oh wait, that new series will be showing this fall.

Perhaps you missed the Night Stalker marathon on May 18th? (bottom of the page)

Re:Why must...

[Depili]

Well, I wouldn't count the new galactica as a "dreary, crappy rehashed program", yes the idea is old, but the series is something quite different from the old. I would welcome more scifi series like BSG and firefly, where the characters play a major part, not the "hey, let's meet planet of the day" kinda series with crappy actors, like stargate.

Re:Why must...

[Anonymous Coward]

they eschew 'the prisoner', 'popeye in the land of the goons', or 'barbarella' and you can forget seeing 'robinson crusoe on mars' (pass me an oxygen pill there Friday). Even that tom swift ripoff animated series with LBS recast as a comic sidekick of color, clutch cargo, and acquaman beat out the SciFi channel crap.

Give me cowboy beebop or bubba hotep anyday over SciFi ch.

Re:Why must...

[Anonymous Coward]

...SciFi persist in making these dreary, crappy, rehashed programs ... have you even watched the new BSG? You sound like you're talking out of your ass on this one. BSG is articulate, funny, insightful with great characters, dense interpersonal conflict, etc. Hell, the one where the President stares down the Cylon suicide bomber is the sort of thing X-Files would have done in its first few seasons.

A pox on SciFi

From your parents' basement you stab at thee, huh?

Every series that started out on another network with great promise has been ruined and then unceremoniously killed by SciFi (SG-1)

What drugs are you on? SG-1 is still on, going into its 9th season and is as popular as ever.

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (both the Buster Crab and Gil Gerard vehicles) "Beady-beady-beady, hey BUCK!" I don't know what was worse about that show: the snarky robot or the guy dressed up in the stupid birdman outfit. If that's your standard of better SF...

But no... American SciFi audiences have been high jacked by the action/adventure crowd. Think about how lame most science fiction is today. Almost 100% of it is war stories or action movies set in the future with a bunch of lame CGI FX. It could be so much better if the focus was on speculative fiction which extrapolates REAL science with REAL social issues and shows us what COULD be if we all band together...

Gee that would be great. The problem is that there's a limited audience for non-space opera SF. The same 20 million people buy 90% of the SF out there and, as refined consumers as we may be, much of that SF will never escape this SF Ghetto. The other 90% of the population buys into that 10% you badmouth. It's a classic Long Tail. To expect them to not like mass entertainment is the same simplistic declaration of "Stop buying Britney's albums and we won't have to deal with her TV show and marriage to K-Fed"/"Stop shopping at Wal-mart"/"Stop eating at McDonalds".

So finally Sci-Fi has found a show in BSG that has the good post-Buffy/Angel character development + fantastical universe angle and you whine because it isn't Gravity's Rainbow? Get over yourself.

Re:Why must...

[Anonymous Coward]

Wasn't MST3K a commedy central show, and not a scifi channel show?

Re:Why must...

[Zak3056]

In defense of the sci-fi channel Mystery Science Theater 3000 was kick ass!

Actually, this goes to the point of what the grandparent was getting at: MST3k was originally on Comedy Central (actually, it was originally on KTMA but we dont need to go into that) and Scifi pretty much just ruined and cancelled it.

Re:Why must...

[Total_Wimp]

Why must... ...SciFi persist in making these dreary, crappy, rehashed programs when there are already ton's of decent programs out there in the SciFi vein? Where is Doctor Who 2005 for example?

You're calling BSG a rehash but you're looking for more Doctor Who? This isn't a crack on Dr. Who, just a warning that if you want to crack on BSG you should at least have a reason that you don't contradict in the very next sentence.

TW

Re:Why must...

[Anonymous Coward]

Haha your kidding right? SLIDERS? and I love how your bashing SciFi for REHASHING old shit, and you bring up Doctor Who 2005.. uhh hmm let's think about it.. oh wait.. that's REHASHED shit.

Re:Why must...

[AGMW]

... and they editted out the sound of cracking skulls in the last two-parter so it was less upsetting.

I really hope they put stuff back in for the DVDs when they come out!

And don't forget the handy Sunday repeat (BB3 or 4 at 7pm).

Re:Why must...

[cshark]

Spoken like a true fuddy duddy. Great job.

You did conveniently forget to mention Stargate SG-1, which started on Showtime, and has not been ruined, cancelled, or changed much at all for that matter. The ignorance of one sided Puritanism shows its ugly head again on the dot.

I like Battlestar. I like the direction they've taken it in; dark, sexy, mysterious, it's good tv any way you cut it. I would like to see more.

Re:Why must...

[Anonymous Coward]

Scifi doesn't kill EVERYTHING...

Sliders

OK, got me there. Scifi turned it into Movie-Planet-Of-The-Week. Even Jerry O'Connell didn't want to stay with that turkey, although oddly enough after he left it started to not suck quite so much. Londo Mollari was a great villain for that show.

SG-1

Buh? It's still their highest rated show, and after a brief lack-of-Michael-Shanks problem, it's still good into season 9. Have you watched Season 1 lately? It's pretty bad. :P

Andromeda

Andromeda was ruined LONG before Sci-Fi picked it up, ever since the season 2 episode "Ouroborus" after which Robert Hewitt Wolfe (who should really team up with Manny Coto and make the Best Scifi Show Ever) was unceremoniously shown the door and replaced with Executive Producer Kevin Sorbo. SFC didn't do too badly with the mangled half-alive corpse that Tribune left them.

Re:Why must...

[eno2001]

Well played sir! And for your next act will you question my sexuality, make disparaging remarks about the female members of my family and threaten to challenge me to a pugilist's duel?

Re:Why must...

[CloudsSpaz]

Is this a joke? It's obvious you haven't even seen the new Battlestar Galactica, judging by your post. Or Farscape even, which is one of the most brilliant character driven shows I've ever seen. Then again, I guess that's to be expected from someone who thinks Andromeda was "killed" by SciFi. Hate to break it to you bud, but that Hercules in Space show was dead long before SciFi had anything to do with it.

Re:Why must...

[0111 1110]

Someone at the SciFi channel is obviously a Roger Corman fan. Don't we have enough of those 50s and 60s style monster movies? It's like the new century's answer to Creature Features. Most of them are BAD. So bad as to be completely unwatchable. As if to be truly authentic, even the acting is bad (wooden) in some of them. I did see a SciFi made vampire movie (can't remember the name) that was pretty good though. I'd like to see them continue that story. If I want to see cheese, I'll actually queue up an old Toho Studios film to watch miniature cities get stomped on by dancing japanese guys in rubber suits.

Re:Why must...

[mriker]

Why must... ...SciFi persist in making these dreary, crappy, rehashed programs when there are already ton's of decent programs out there in the SciFi vein?

Have you even seen the show? Battlestar Galactica is anything but crappy, and rehashed. In my opinion, it's a very original show with terrific stories and high production values.

And tons of decent sci-fi out there? The vast majority of it is crap, in my opinion.

Re:Why must...

[Anonymous Coward]

What I want to know is why did they stop showing anime? I remeber when I was little I would sneak down to the living room to watch it early in the morning. I wish they would bring it back.

Re:Why must...

[Anonymous Coward]

Some interesting choices but fairly mainstreem

I would like to see some A.E. Voght, David Weber(pretty contemporary), Ben Bova, Lin Carter, Andre Norton, and literally dozens more you find on your Used Bookstore shelves.

Re:Why must...

[Anonymous Coward]

> ...SciFi persist in making these dreary, crappy, rehashed programs when there are already ton's of decent programs out there in the SciFi vein? Where is Doctor Who 2005 for example?

Holy crap man, read sentence #1, then #2. The cognative dissonance floored me.

Re:Why must...

[eno2001]

You have apparently never seen my classic:

"This is literally the proverbial rock and a hard place".

That one got lots of raves like yours.

Re:Why must...

[Eric S. Smith]

..what COULD be if we all band together and work hard to make the future a better place for everyone...
[snip]
...Philip K. Dick!!!!

Yikes, thanks for the warning.

(I know I took them out of their context, but I loved the way those two fragments clashed. Of course there's room in futuristic fiction for positive and negative visions, and we can find both engaging.)

Re:Why must...

[Blakey Rat]

I think they're hilarious. I swear that those movies are more spoofs than anything. About half of them are just pure ripoffs of something that was in theaters a few years before. (Like "snake king"... same plot as Anaconda, a tenth the budget.) All of them "star" actors who are physically attractive, but have the charisma of a dead fly.

My theory is that they're ramping up to create a new MST3K. At least... one can only hope. But the majority of those Sci-Fi Original Movies fall into the "so bad they're good" catagory.

Re:Why must...

[GoatPigSheep]

hmm babylon5... One of the best (and original) sci-fi shows ever... NOT ACTION BASED AT ALL (although it had some great action scenes that were ussually quite important to the story)

Battlestar Galactica... Based on an old show and completely different, and a great story and characters and good FX, also very character driven...

Sliders.... In my opinion, a VERY action based show. I mean they slide into a new dimention every episode... At least B5 and the new Battlestar series have some long story arcs going

Re:Why must...

[Blakey Rat]

I thought the Sci-Fi Episodes of MST3K were the best of the bunch. Maybe I'm alone here... but it's also not like the show didn't get a good run. It ran, what, 11 seasons? That's a miracle for a 2-hour timeslot show with a unique premise.

The real problem is that sometimes they showed movies that really weren't all that bad at all. If you watch, say, "I Accuse My Parents" in isolation, sure it's no Hitchcock, but it's not a bad movie either. They should have done some more weird Japanese imports.

Re:Why must...

[eno2001]

I don't like story arcs. I like self contained sotries that I can jump in and out of without having to devote my life the watching the show. Of course, I didn't like B5 either. Most of it's fan base was too pretentious. I'm also not really into character based stuff. I want to see more focus on technology and the social effects. For example, the idea of nanotech eliminating all poverty but possibly causing new problems. That's intriguing.

Re:Why must...

[f-bomb]

or on CBC every Tuesday at 8pm

http://www.cbc.ca/doctorwho/

I live in WA, but get CBC via Comcast anyway

Re:Why must...

[AdamPiotrZochowski]

... killed by SciFi : Sliders, SG-1, Andromeda, etc....

Fox tried to kill Sliders, saved by SciFi http://www.sliders.net/
StarGate : SG1 - still running http://www.tvtome.com/StargateSG1/
UPN tried to kill Andromeda saved by sci fi

three out of three wrong...

--
/apz, Wait for that wisest of all counselors, Time. -- Pericles

Re:Why must...

[Timberwolf0122]

Joel was funny but I found Mike Nelson had a better batting average.
Top ten episodes:
1)Space Muntany
2)Puma Man
3)"He tryied to kill me with a fork lift truck!"(you know the one)
4)Sequal to 3
5)The Deadly bees
6)Prince of Space
7)The Incredible melting man
8)Parts: The clonus horror (saw a trailer for the 2005 remake!)
9)Wearwolf (or should it be waar-wilf)
10)Gorgo

Excepting the ginchy chix BSG's on par with Plan 9

[Anonymous Coward]

How about some good TeeVee SciFi?

Any of you 'big bux burning hole in pocket' /. readers care to fund a pilot based on Dahlgren?
I envision a revolutionary 100% product placement production with no stand alone commercials. Imagine! Commercial free commercial TeeVee.

Seeing as the protagonist would have to take about three shits per episode to remain true to the novel, it's a natural to add comments on the quality of a sponsor's fine asswipe product to his minds narration. There's equal room for plenty of other, true to the novel, products as well. Go read.

The novel's controversial(as far as prime time TeeVee goes) sexual overtones make for a huge guerilla marketing opportunity and will guarantee big audiences from the get go.

I see Samual R. Jackson in the leading roll and a spot for that Vulcan chick with the luscious low slung ass from the latest, RIP, starheck series. There's even a place to plug in Kirk given an adequate quatloo supply.

Musical score? How about dueling Japanese girl bands. 5678, cibomato, etc.

Evidence

[The New Andy]

Here is evidence for you:

CNN

Many jokes submitted contained references to animals. Jokes mentioning ducks were considered particularly funny.

Re:Evidence

[Anonymous Coward]

The Canadians have the weakest sense of humour, according to the survey.

Being a US citizen living near the US/Canadian border, I can confirm this.

I kid.

Re:Evidence

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm not surprised we scored low on those, look at those jokes..they're not even remotelly funny? Points for beers being in them, but without moose, hockey, and sex, how can a joke possibly be funny??

Re:Evidence

[uberdave]

Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Jim Carrey, Thomas Chong (of Cheech and Chong), Don Harron (a.k.a: Charlie Farquharson), Phil Hartman, Eugene Levy, Rich Little, Howie Mandel, Andrea Martin, Rick Moranis, Mike Myers, Catherine O'Hara, Martin Short, Steve Smith (a.k.a: Red Green), David Steinberg, Dave Thomas, and a few others may disagree with that survey.

Re:Evidence

[Anonymous Coward]

Don't forget Bob Hope, Stan Laurel, Arnold Schwarzenneggar, Yakov Smirnov, that guy who does that thing on that TV commercial, and, of course, the inimitable Davis Hasselhoff.

Re:Evidence

[uberdave]

None of the people on your list are Canadians (expept possibly "that guy who does that thing on that TV commercial"?). Bob Hope and Stan Laurel are British, Arnold Schwarzenneger is Austrian, Yakov Smirnov is Russian, and David Hasselhoff is American.

not another one presequel to another galactic show

[Ham_belony]

pffff.....when are they going to stop with that crap, I getting tired of hearing about adventures from space. Rather see a rerun of Alfred Hitchcocks 'The Lodger' At least this is based on a true story although it doesn't reflect the truth of that story.

most science fiction is today

[wiredog]

Most SF has been that way since HG Wells and Jules Verne were writing.

UHD.. looks like it's there

[freality]

http://www.universalhd.com/Series/index.shtml#BATT LESTAR_GALACTICA

Re:UHD.. looks like it's there

[Jah-Wren Ryel]

That is season one - note how it only showed up on UHD after it finished its run on SciFi. The article poster was referring to season two, which will probably suffer the same delay. If they were smart, they would simulacast season two on both SciFi and UHD.

MOD PARENT UP

[squiggleslash]

I forgot one thing: ultimately they should use a modern streaming technology such as Windows Media, or even better the cross-platform Real Media - the la[tt]er may have its critics, but it is, at the end of the day, available to more people. Sorry, I intended to put the above paragraph in the parent comment, please read the parent comment as if it had that paragraph in it.

I'm sorry but ...

[SpooForBrains]

about the only things I can agree with you on are The Andromeda Strain (one of the few decent Crichton adaptations) West World (oh, look Chrichton again) and Logan's Run.

I mean, you're using Sliders as a basis for judging what constitiutes good sci-fi? Really? Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan, but highbrow entertainment it aint.

Personally I think it's a pretty good time for Sci-fi at the moment. The Serenity movie's coming out soon, Dr Who is on TV again (and it's awesome), I'm loving BSG so far, and lots of people are getting excited over Lost and Atlantis, not that I've watched either.

Looking back to last year, when the world looked pretty grim - no Buffy, no Angel, Firefly and Farscape cancelled and seemingly nothing rushing in to fill the void - I'm grateful for what we're getting now, and I want more.

Spoilers?

[AIX-Hood]

Not sure what the point of posting an article like this is, when it's nothing BUT spoilers.. it's 2-3 line sentences of each episode saying exactly what happens in each episode.. if you read any of it at all it's all spoiled. Why is this beneficial to anyone?

Re:Spoilers?

[goober1473]

lucky for me I have a crap memory and have to wait until October...

Recipreversexclusion.

[aug24]

But by making a funny post, you weren't testing that. So...

*ducks*

Justin.

Re:Recipreversexclusion.

[torpor]

your test failed! mine is better!

*ducks*

Re:Recipreversexclusion.

[Anonymous Coward]

Be free of any bias, the post must stand by itself as much as possible. Therefore, the best test is the following child:

An offer to help

[TheHornedOne]

If Starbuck needs help with that repopulation thing... /all I'm saying is that I'm here to help

Re:An offer to help

[GPLDAN]

There are Starbuck guys (and gals) and there are Boomer people. I, personally, think Boomer is the better looking one. The Cyclon chick just looks like Farrah Fawcett.

Re:An offer to help

[BiggerIsBetter]

I'll second that. Boomer is the hottie of the show. Starbuck is a little too butch (yeh, she's supposed to be) but they got it right with Boomer. Cute girl, good character, and well acted emotion. Cylon or not, I'd hit it.

The SCIFI Channel is Great

[Marrow]

Farscape
Stargate SG-1
Stargate Atlantis
Battlestar Galactica
Babylon-5
Outer Limits

Maybe they dont make some of them, but they pay for all of them. That gets them made.

I would sacrifice 100 of my channels to keep SCIFI running.

And science fiction is hurting right now because society is starting to feel hopeless and helpless. We are retreating into self-indulgence and paranoia. Scifi today is the Matrix (as if that were something to aspire to).

That same hopelessness gripped the 70s and was difficult to shrug off. Its brought on by a lack of leadership, vision, and trust.

Re:The SCIFI Channel is Great

[StarWreck]

I would sacrifice 100 of my channels to keep SCIFI running.

Yes, I too would sacrifice the home shopping network, Oxygen, and Lifetime to keep th Sci-Fi channel alive.

Re:The SCIFI Channel is Great

[STrinity]

Farscape
Stargate SG-1
Stargate Atlantis
Battlestar Galactica
Babylon-5
Outer Limits

Babylon 5 and The Outer Limits aren't SciFi originals, which is what the parent poster was complaining about. And for that matter, I don't recall the last time SciFi ran B5. A couple years at least.

Re:The SCIFI Channel is Great

[plover]

Can we sacrifice them anyway, regardless of SciFi channel's status? Please? Let's throw them on the altar, pull out the wicked looking wavy-bladed dagger, and have us a real Old-Testament kind of sacrifice.

I'm so looking forward to this...

Universal's HD channel

[ProfBooty]

universal has an HD channel that broadcasts the episodes in HD, just not at the sametime as they are shown on scifi.

Notice the Google ads?

[EvilStein]

I got a block of 4 ads - all but 1 were for "Miss the show? Download it here!" sites.

I bet the MPAA would blow an artery if they saw that. :P

NOT FUNNY: Proposed Plot for Next Episode

[Anonymous Coward]

Hopefully, "Battlestar Galactica" (BG) will try to achieve what "Star Trek: Enterprise" (STE) avoided. Namely, BG should occasionally make social commentary on the pressing issues of today. For example, BG could use Tibet as the theme. BG is the Tibetan freedom fighters. The empire is, of course, China.

Let Sci-Fi be much more than lights, action, and camera. Let Sci-Fi be a moral lesson on the crises of today.

Save your energy - Buy the DVD's

[gadlaw]

Dubious tastes indeed. If Sliders, Andromeda and Buck Rogers have anything in common it would be on the bottom of my list of good scifi. The Sci Fi channel as it happens has shown all of those shows and you just have to know when to find them. But there is a solution for you. Go to Amazon.com and buy the things you like. I've solved your problem about finding the shows you like. Sorry, can't do anything about those shows you like though. :-)

Re:Save your energy - Buy the DVD's

[Blakey Rat]

Hey now, Buck Rogers is fun as hell.

My personal least favorite is Space: 1999. Even the premise of that show is utterly moronic, and the effects are worse. (Ok, the Eagle moon lander is a cool design, but most effects on that show sucked.) Buck Rogers maybe didn't have "thinking man's" plots, but it was fun and the effects were good for the time.

Re:Save your energy - Buy the DVD's

[plover]

Oh, come on. Don't be dissing Space: 1999.

Space: 1999 made it easy for every fanboi to whip up a glowing-light stapler-based laser gun. The kids who made Star Trek phasers and communicators, now they had to work for their entertainment. But Space: 1999's props all look like they came out of mom's basement or dad's garage workbench, (and mostly because I think they did.) That made it easier for the kids to have their own As-Seen-On-TV toys.

And Martin Landau? Now there's a guy who knows how to act his way out of a paper bag! No cliche phrases, no hackneyed punch-out-the-bad-guy-and-kiss-the-girl storylines, just pure thespianism!

First look at BG

[baomike]

Must I?

I really just wanted to confirm I was human, one never knows....
If you see this it means I am not a script ...
and YEA another day of existance.

Re:NOT FUNNY: Proposed Plot for Next Episode

[cybpunks3]

Maybe they can have an episode that comments on the phenomenon of TV and film constantly needing to remake franchises, but in a way that completely destroys what made the original appealing.

Beer, Moose, Hockey, Sex!?!

[dgatwood]

How could a joke containing beer, moose, hockey, and sex be funny.... Oh, no. I'm suddenly seeing images of a drunk hockey player/coach/whatever having sex with a moose. Aah! My eyes!

An inebriated Mickey Redmond walks into a bar along. The bartender says, "You look depressed." Mickey replies "I think I'm going to have a baby." Bartender asks, "So what's the problem?" Mickey replies "Well, she wants to name it Mickey Moose."

To get back on-topic, though...

Boomer walks into a bar. The bartender says 'what'll it be'? Boomer says 'Cylon'. (Okay, bad joke.)

Re:Beer, Moose, Hockey, Sex!?!

[sentientbeing]

A Cylon walks into a Starbucks.....

It'd be perfect if UPN simulcasted it...

[YesIAmAScript]

UHD? I'm supposed to pay extra to watch shows in HD? They only air like 4 original shows a week. Universal already has UPN, and UPN has HD. Heck, UPN just lost their front-runner Sci-Fi show. It'd be perfect if this were simulcasted in HD on UPN so I could see it for free instead of getting soaked for more money.

what about the writers?

[0111 1110]

Great spoilers and all (wish I hadn't read it) but who is going to be doing the writing?

I hope they have axed Carla Robinson and Jeff Flaming and hopefully even Bradley Thompson and David Weddle from the writer lineup. They suck. They aren't science fiction writers and can't write. They are responsible for the only bad episodes in season one. And why in the name of god is it necessary to use a different writer for each episode? It's so fracking stupid. Obviously the episodes are going to be uneven if you do that.

David Eick, RDM, and Michael Angeli should be doing all the writing. They actually know how to write. Toni Graphia is not that bad either. I pray to the Lords of Cobol that these folks will be doing all the writing for season 2. We don't need any more filler episodes like Secrets and Lies or You Can't Go Home Again. I'd rather have fewer episodes and better writing.

Re:NOT FUNNY: Proposed Plot for Next Episode

[Anonymous Coward]

Awww. Did someone take your campy little Battlestar show, wipe the 70's off of it and make an excellent show out of it? Poor dear...

Re:Excepting the ginchy chix BSG's on par with Pla

[VAXcat]

Dhalgren...yuck, the book was bad enough. Delany has written some great novels that would adapt well to cinema and make fantastic movies..."Babel-17", or "The Einstein Intersection"say, or "Nova"...come to think of it, they could make a hell of a TV series out of Nova...some episodes from the point of view of the Captain, some from MOuse, and some from the Gypsies. But not Dhalgren

Re:NOT FUNNY: Proposed Plot for Next Episode

[Picard102]

if by appealing you meant to type crap then yes, I see your point.

Re:Excepting the ginchy chix BSG's on par with Pla

[Anonymous Coward]

I needed something to tie to in asswipe sponsorship...'counterclock world' which is just too far out there for the gentle masses.

You've got to admit, It's a great candidate for film noir, black and grey, scifi.

I don't have cable TeeVee. Do any of the Cronenberg films make it to SciFi channel?

Richard Hatch ?

[Gorimek]

Frome the article; Sagitaron representative Tom Zarek, played by Richard Hatch

Is that that Richard Hatch?? Fat naked gay survivor winner Richard Hatch?

Re:Richard Hatch ?

[NeuroManson]

No, it's the other Richard Hatch: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0368745/

Re:Richard Hatch ?

[Anonymous Coward]

How about Richard Hatch who played Apollo in the original series?

Re:Richard Hatch ?

[CXI]

Oy! Your comment makes me feel old.

This is news???

[Anonymous Coward]

This has been around for almost a month (5/5/2005)!!!

Re: Dux (was Re:Torrent?)

[uhlume]

I beg to differ. Ducks are funny in nearly any context.


(@_
\\\_\
<____)

UHD has been advertising Season 2 forever.

[Viewsonic]

Since they started showing Season 1 on UHD, they've been advertising Season 2 the entire time. They even show the last episodes cliff-hanger in the damn advertisement and it hasn't even aired yet!!

Post collapse product placement?

[leftie]

How exactly do you sell product placements for a post collapse project? Vin Diesel did as much as you can do with blatantly placed sunglasses already in the Riddick flicks, so that's out. How many old cans of Spam and boxes of Twinkees can you have the characters find in rubble?

Kids are so cute when they start talking.

[leftie]

I'll bet you didn't know this Battlestar Galactica was on television before, huh? Yep. It's true :-)

Get used to the American Theme Music ;)

[Picass0]

I was so used to hearing the theme music they use in the UK, it will be wierd hearing the one on Sci-Fi.

Or, um, my friend says he was used to that music.

Whatever he means by that :D

Not Captain, Commander!

[ancarett]

If you're talking about the character portrayed by Edward James Olmos. That's Commander Adama.

Captain Adama's his Viper pilot son, aka Apollo. Check out the character list over at Scifi.

Re:Not Captain, Commander!

[Matt_R]

It is common to call the person in charge of the ship "Captain", even if they're a lowly ensign.

I'm not sure how BSG's rank works - in the US Navy, Commander (O-5) is lower than Captain (O-6). The USMC have an O-3 Captain but do not have the rank of Commander.

A bit of googling shows the rank structure listed 1/2 way down this page: http://blog.scifi.com/battlestar/archives/2005/02/

So it's a mixture of Navy and Army ranks..

I hear that...

[frank_adrian314159]

... Rick Berman is going to edit out the sci-fi parts, leaving the sex, slap a Star Trek label on it, and release it to theatres.

Remember you heard it here first!

Season 1 Soundtrack info

[ancarett]

Bear McCreary put together a great soundtrack for season one that will be released to stores in June. You can listen to samples on his site or on the record company promo page.

Re:NOT FUNNY: Proposed Plot for Next Episode

[carninja]

I hardly found the original appealing. It was waay too campy. The new one is MUCH better. (Ratings alone should prove my point.)

I watched

[pair-a-noyd]

about 10 minutes of this show a few months ago.

I could not tolerate the jerky camera technique. It leaves me feeling nauseated.

Why the fuck do they have to jerk the camera around like a 5 year old kid is handling a 80lb camera??

I guess they figure they can distract you from the digital effects artifacts that way.
Rather than take the time and effort to do a good job on the effects, they cover up cheap, shitty effects with shitty camera work.

I was a huge fan of this show when it aired in the 70's, but this mess, no way..

Re:I watched

[mad flyer]

Ok, first I must admit that I also feel with a weak stomach with this kind of camera moves.

But it add a "i'm inside this battle" feel that you don't have with clean and slick steady cam behaviours.

Like for plane fighting shots, if you see it from a chase plane angle (or better, a rudder tail cam) you really are into the fight. Not just some kind of passive observator that look at planes far away.

Let's call this "immersive"

Re:I watched

[Anonymous Coward]

Problem is you get:
I'm inside the battle in the bathroom.
I'm inside the battle on the bridge.
I'm inside the battle in this dramatic scene where people cry.
I'm inside the battle where people fuck for no reason then empty headed viewers thing it makes the whoe "deep and meaningful".

You can still watch it on TV

[cyberformer]

Friday and Monday nights. They started re-running it right from the beginning as soon as the series ended, so that people who'd missed it would have another chance to see it.

Unlike most other shows that go to reruns, BSG is being shown in the correct order, and they'll just have time to show all 13 episodes before season 2 starts, so you won't have to suffer the three-month gap between seasons! They even posted the first episode online (legally, I mean, on the official site).

The mini-series is even better, but that is out on DVD, and it's also been on regular broadcast TV (NBC, I think).

I think I speak for all Aussie Slashdotters...

[Anonymous Coward]

when I say... Hope you Seppos get the torrents out as fast as the Poms!

*ducks*

[Anonymous Coward]

*ducks*