Sam Carter/Amanda Tapping Discussion/Appreciation

[sg-1fanintn]

This is probably how they'll explain away the ratings decline in SG-1 - it happened across the board. And, to be fair, it really did. For some reason, they didn't work out. I still think it's a marketing issue, but that's just me. When you don't market your two lead-ins as much as your anchor, I still think you're not going to get as much as you expected.

And I think it's interesting that SG-1, in S8, got relatively high ratings for their encore broadcast later in the evening. It might mean SG-1 was doing something right for the viewers of BSG who routinely came in later in the evening.

Very astute, grasshopper! Young mass media student learns much!

And on that note, I say, nighty-night! Back later today, I hope!

[Formerhost]

This is probably how they'll explain away the ratings decline in SG-1 - it happened across the board. And, to be fair, it really did. For some reason, they didn't work out. I still think it's a marketing issue, but that's just me. When you don't market your two lead-ins as much as your anchor, I still think you're not going to get as much as you expected.

And I think it's interesting that SG-1, in S8, got relatively high ratings for their encore broadcast later in the evening. It might mean SG-1 was doing something right for the viewers of BSG who routinely came in later in the evening.

Talk to MediaSavant about the ratings. All Friday's shows at 8 pm, 9 pm and 10 pm suffered because this year there was much stronger competition on network channels and so called "casual viewers" (not "die hard fans") made their choice to watch something else at these hours, plus there were The Olympic Games this year, but majority of them were returning at 11 pm to watch SG-1. And combined ratings for both airings showed that SG-1 got the best ratings of all 3 shows. 8 pm is not a good hour, because a lot of people are still outside their homes...

And as for the strong ratings for season 8, there wasn't such a strong competition on network channels like this year. MediaSavant explained that too.

BTW, I enjoyed the majority of season 9, maybe with the exception of 1 or 2 episodes, which bored me to death - Ex Deus Machina and Babylon. And it my opinion, season 9 was really good. But it's me...

[RealmOfX]

I'm game for Sam and Jack having a well-written proposal, wedding, marriage and family life with the 2.5 kids named Jacob, Grace and LaTeal'cetta Danielle in fanfic. But I honestly can't see any of that happening in the show. For one thing, the writers would just... oh man, the possibilities are frighteningly endless.

As long as they say without a doubt that Sam and Jack have been together since the last great ep, Moebius Part 2, I'll be OK. If they decide to throw a ring in there and a HI-larious comment made by Daniel and/or Teal'c, 50,000 points for them. But I won't hold my breath.

I'm with you on this (well maybe not the name LaTeal'cetta Danielle)

[the dancer of spaz]

Talk to MediaSavant about the ratings. All Friday's shows at 8 pm, 9 pm and 10 pm suffered because this year there was much stronger competition on network channels and so called "casual viewers" (not "die hard fans") made their choice to watch something else at these hours, plus there were The Olympic Games this year, but majority of them were returning at 11 pm to watch SG-1. And combined ratings for both airings showed that SG-1 got the best ratings of all 3 shows. 8 pm is not a good hour, because a lot of people are still outside their homes...

And as for the strong ratings for season 8, there wasn't such a strong competition on network channels like this year. MediaSavant explained that too.

BTW, I enjoyed the majority of season 9, maybe with the exception of 1 or 2 episodes, which bored me to death - Ex Deus Machina and Babylon. And it my opinion, season 9 was really good. But it's me...

Uh, no offense to MediaSavant, but all of these details have been well-known facts for a long time. It's not exactly a secret. We've even discussed them here for some time. The Olympics were an unexpected joke this year, and it would seem that what WOULD HAVE been February sweeps actually just carried over into March and April. And while I totally agree that SG-1 got the better combined ratings of the evening, and I've never been an advocate for BSG, it's not completely fair to compare the combined ratings of an 8/11 pm show (SG-1) with 9 pm/12 am (Atlantis) and 10 pm/1 am (BSG) shows. Especially when we all pretty much agree that BSG is oddly a fantastic lead-in for SG-1's later broadcast.

And even though the big four networks are moving into year-round programming, there are many other things that aren't taken into account by the network and MediaSavant, when they explain the ratings decline, like - again - BSG's advertising, which far surpassed SG-1's and Atlantis'. And even with that advertising, BSG still took a dive. On that note, I don't see how that exactly inspired such confidence in Sci Fi to move them to an October premiere, where their own mother network has begun placing competitive programming. Whatever.

I'm in no position to tell them what they're doing wrong, of course. But when I see BSG banner ads online, hear ads on the radio, and see ads on USA and NBC, but I see next to nothing sent to the mainstream markets in regards to the Stargate series, I have no problem understanding why SG-1 and Atlantis struggle opposite BSG. But that's all on the network. The crappy writing, character/plot/arc development are all on the writers and the producers at Bridge. And no amount of advertising can help them when that's happening. There's absolutely no reason why Ethon, one of the best eps of the season imo, received the lowest rating of them all - unless you take into account the fact that a relative stinker or two preceded it (Ripple Effect not included).

It's a bloody cycle that can only be fixed when both Sci Fi and the boys at Bridge decide to raise the bar a little. Only then (again imo) will ratings be salvaged.

[Formerhost]

Uh, no offense to MediaSavant, but all of these details have been well-known facts for a long time. It's not exactly a secret. We've even discussed them here for some time.

And even though the big four networks are moving into year-round programming, there are many other things that aren't taken into account by the network and MediaSavant, when they explain the ratings decline, like - again - BSG's advertising, which far surpassed SG-1's and Atlantis'. And even with that advertising, BSG still took a dive. On that note, I don't see how that exactly inspired such confidence in Sci Fi to move them to an October premiere, where their own mother network has begun placing competitive programming. Whatever.

I'm in no position to tell them what they're doing wrong, of course. But when I see BSG banner ads on online, hear ads on the radio, and see ads on USA and NBC, but I see next to nothing sent to the mainstream markets in regards to the Stargate series, I have no problem understanding why SG-1 and Atlantis struggle opposite BSG. But that's all on the network. The crappy writing, character/plot/arc development are all on the writers and the producers at Bridge. And no amount of advertising can help them when that's happening. There's absolutely no reason why Ethon, one of the best eps of the season imo, received the lowest rating of them all - unless you take into account the fact that a relative stinker or two preceded it (Ripple Effect not included).

It's a bloody cycle that can only be fixed when both Sci Fi and the boys at Bridge decide to raise the bar a little. Only then (again imo) will ratings be salvaged.

A for BSG moving to October... as far as I've heard, or rather read on another board, they finished production of season 2 very late last year, November probably and they are starting filming 3rd season this month. So it's just technically impossible for them to be ready with the first episodes to be aired in summer.

When exactly was Ethon aired? And what was the competition for this episode on another channels?

[the dancer of spaz]

A for BSG moving to October... as far as I've heard, or rather read on another board, they finished production of season 2 very late last year, November probably and they are starting filming 3rd season this month. So it's just technically impossible for them to be ready with the first episodes to be aired in summer.

When exactly was Ethon aired? And what was the competition for this episode on another channels?

I dunno. Dancing with the Stars? Something lame.

And, it should be noted, that people on the West Coast with DirecTV get the show at the exact same time as the people on the East Coast, which is two hours earlier, thus eliminating the problem of coinciding shows.

[Formerhost]

I dunno. Dancing with the Stars? Something lame.

And, it should be noted, that people on the West Coast with DirecTV get the show at the exact same time as the people on the East Coast, which is two hours earlier, thus eliminating the problem of coinciding shows.

Dancing with the Stars (of course local versions, with local Stars) is extremely popular all around the world, in Poland too, although I haven't watched this at all.

Wait a sec... 8 pm on the East Coast is 6 pm on the West Coast, right? Not good idea, much bigger chance that even more people are definitely outside their homes.

[RealmOfX]

Thanks to everyone for your episode selections the other day. I've spent an enjoyable couple of days watching Sam eps or fast forwarding to Sam scenes ( with an occasional stop for Janet scenes).

I'm about to watch Entity and I think I'll follow it up with Moebius. I'm simply in awe of AT and how she expresses herself non verbally. I really love how AT & MS did their geek selves in Moebius.

16 more days till I get this cast off my arm
20 more days till the physio starts

[Formerhost]

16 more days till I get this cast off my arm

Welcome to the club, I got the cast off my left leg 2 weeks ago and I'm still not allowed to stand on this foot with the full weight.

[Myrth]

Awww thanks!!!

I just realised reading my post that it may sound like I'm not happy RDA is coming back... which is not the case at all... I'm quite thrilled about it. I miss him terribly on many levels in the show.

So I now consider myself disclaimed

Myrth, I'd love to green you for this post, but since I'm all out of jello right now, this will have to do!!!

[Tracy Jane]

Well crap, for the past year I've thought I was a Samandan. Guess I'm not one either since I've never written a fic.

Of course you're a Samandan, Kat, and a mighty fine and great and important one. And mother to are littlest Samandan too!

[chocdoc]

Uh, no offense to MediaSavant, but all of these details have been well-known facts for a long time. It's not exactly a secret. We've even discussed them here for some time. The Olympics were an unexpected joke this year, and it would seem that what WOULD HAVE been February sweeps actually just carried over into March and April. And while I totally agree that SG-1 got the better combined ratings of the evening, and I've never been an advocate for BSG, it's not completely fair to compare the combined ratings of an 8/11 pm show (SG-1) with 9 pm/12 am (Atlantis) and 10 pm/1 am (BSG) shows. Especially when we all pretty much agree that BSG is oddly a fantastic lead-in for SG-1's later broadcast.

And even though the big four networks are moving into year-round programming, there are many other things that aren't taken into account by the network and MediaSavant, when they explain the ratings decline, like - again - BSG's advertising, which far surpassed SG-1's and Atlantis'. And even with that advertising, BSG still took a dive. On that note, I don't see how that exactly inspired such confidence in Sci Fi to move them to an October premiere, where their own mother network has begun placing competitive programming. Whatever.

I'm in no position to tell them what they're doing wrong, of course. But when I see BSG banner ads online, hear ads on the radio, and see ads on USA and NBC, but I see next to nothing sent to the mainstream markets in regards to the Stargate series, I have no problem understanding why SG-1 and Atlantis struggle opposite BSG. But that's all on the network. The crappy writing, character/plot/arc development are all on the writers and the producers at Bridge. And no amount of advertising can help them when that's happening. There's absolutely no reason why Ethon, one of the best eps of the season imo, received the lowest rating of them all - unless you take into account the fact that a relative stinker or two preceded it (Ripple Effect not included).

It's a bloody cycle that can only be fixed when both Sci Fi and the boys at Bridge decide to raise the bar a little. Only then (again imo) will ratings be salvaged.

Great points, Spaz. In regard to advertising, Season 7 didn't get much advertising compared to BSG now, yet its second half did better than season 9's second half. Season 8 and Atlantis did get more advertising at first and I'm sure that helped the ratings initially, but so did the beginning of season 9 with all the hype of BB and CB coming on board. I guess what I'm saying is that Stargate has never received that much advertising and yet it did better in season 7 and 8 than in season 9.

And Stargate has always faced competition. To say that the ratings fell because of stronger competition---well, okay, the competition was stronger in that more people decided not to watch Stargate this year. The question is, why? When the summer Olympics was on, Stargate did much better against it in season 8 than this year with the Winter Olympics. Maybe, just maybe, some causal viewers really are turning away because, gasp, they really don't like it. It is very different. I don't mind people saying that compeition from other networks is one reason for the fall, but if that is all it is attributed to, it is a copout. Yes, all three shows saw falling ratings, but BSG continued to perform better, on average, than the other two.

When can a fall in ratings be attributed to---gee we may be losing fans/casual viewers -- they may be less enamoured with the show? What does it mean to lose against competition? It means they found other shows more exciting this year than in second half of season 7 and all of season 8. To me, its a combination that TPTB should consider. It's not just stronger competition. It's the fact that this new direction can't hold up against that competition. I hope things change for season 10.

[ChopinGal]

Thanks to everyone for your episode selections the other day. I've spent an enjoyable couple of days watching Sam eps or fast forwarding to Sam scenes ( with an occasional stop for Janet scenes).

I'm about to watch Entity and I think I'll follow it up with Moebius. I'm simply in awe of AT and how she expresses herself non verbally. I really love how AT & MS did their geek selves in Moebius.

16 more days till I get this cast off my arm
20 more days till the physio starts

Welcome to Samanda, Realm. You hit the nail on the head, Amanda is one of the most expressive actors out there and some of those Hollywood flash-in-the-pans should take lessons from her. She can say so much with a look, a glance, a gesture, body movement. I think that she decided to incorporate the clenching of her sleeves as part of her geeky persona for Moebius because it was a mannerism of hers when feeling unsure or nervous. AT always stays in character even when the scene's focus is elsewhere.

I think her fine acting is why many of us have fallen under her spell. It's so refreshing to find and celebrate excellence in this often mediocre world.

Watch some of the lighter episodes too besides Moebius ... like Urgo, Tin Man, Window of Opportunity, 1969, Avenger and Wormhole X-treme. Hopefully, they'll make you laugh and all those extra endorphins will speed up your healing process! Take care!

[Forestia]

Na ahh!! Read the royal scribe. You have to be a writer of fic unless it's changed from the last time I read it?

I know this has been established, just thought I'd throw in my 2 cents...

The Royal Scribe is a list specifically for Samandans who have written fanfic. It is not a list stating who is a Samandan. If you love Sam and Amanda, you are a Samandan.

I, for one, know that I'm a Samandan and no one is going to tell me different just because I can't write fanfic!

Oh that's right someone asked her if she had picked out names for any future children. I remember her saying there was a boy's name she really liked. I'm thinking it was Nicholas, but that's probably wrong. Then she said there was always Jack, Daniel, Teal'c... and APOPHIS! rofl The woman is a hoot. Someone really needs to put her on SNL or Comedy Central.

Yeah, she could host a show and they could have a spoof of SG-1 Ok, wishful thinking, but that would be so cool!

one thing that i liked about Gatecon was that it was fanrun....and since they were fans and had interaction with other fans, well they knew who some of the more...unique fans were. And there was a security detail just to keep an eye on those that they knew wouldn't/couldn't behave appropraitely

since creation is corporation run, they don't have any idea who the attendees are beyond whether or not thier check bounces

I'd like to go to a fan run con sometime. I've heard they are less formal than the corporate run cons, but they obviously still pay attention to security

[minigeek]

Talk to MediaSavant about the ratings. All Friday's shows at 8 pm, 9 pm and 10 pm suffered because this year there was much stronger competition on network channels and so called "casual viewers" (not "die hard fans")

Due respect to MediaSavant; I think you can make pretty much any excuse up if you want to find a 'reason'. Quite frankly, viewer interest has declined. The Stargate SG-1 of season nine is not Stargate SG-1 anymore, it's ... something else. All the numbers do is illustrate that a lot of so-called 'casual viewers' (with the noteable exception of portions of the ex Scaper sect) really don't care for the new so-called 'direction'. Prior fans of Claudia and Ben have hopped over and are enjoying their favorite celebrities go on, as well they should, but SG-1 has lost a lot of integral ground otherwise with long-time Stargate viwers and with casual viewers who no longer even know "what the heck is going on" due to the deliberate vagueness that's been presented this year apropos of Jack's sudden departure (for one thing), the "new SG-1 band", the leadership issue, the new add-water-and-stir characters, and I could go on. But I think the point is pretty clear.

mg