Text 647, 86 rader
Skriven 2005-02-06 00:24:00 av Kevin Karmann (1:278/230)
Ärende: Was it just me?...
==========================



----- Original Message -----
From: "Tony Underwood" <tonyu@roava.net>
> It's fairly obvious that UPN wasn't all that interested in catering to the
> Trek fanbase with ENT.   If they had ben, they'd have paid more attention
> to story, pacing, etc and they'd have done more to promote their flagship
> concept (and is there a more well known show concept floating around
> today?) and kept its head above water, rather than just let it wither.

I've always felt that a network might be too constraining for a Trek show.
My impression is that, while there may have been some studio interference
from time to time (i.e. adding Worf to DS9), the Trek crew was mostly left
alone before UPN.  Oh, there might've still be restrictions -- not letting
the DS9 writers have more than six episode arc at the beginning of the
Dominion War, for example -- but not nearly as much as UPN tended to put on
them.  It wasn't until VOYAGER, after all, that we got characters running
around in catsuits and an attempt to pander to teenage boys with Archer
doing double entendres about T'Pol's breasts.  I think that they've gotten
away from quite a bit of that this year, thankfully, probably because UPN
doesn't really care anymore.

> It's been pointed out before that UPN is NOT the best place from which to
> launch (no pun) Trek...  their demographics tend to lean towards a
> different culture,

But where would it fit in?  The only other broadcast network Viacom has is
CBS and I'm not sure it could survive there either.  Although there are
occaisonal exceptions, SF doesn't seem to last too long on any of the major
networks.

> and added to this is the simple fact that UPN is
> generally relegated to UHF broadcast channels since it's the "new kid" on
> the block and most of the spectrum in larger metro areas is already
> accounted for... so UHF it is.

Here in Omaha, it runs on a local cable station, so you're out of luck if
you have only an antenna or a satellite provider.  Of course, UHF stations
count on the same principle anyway -- being picked up by cable, which puts
it on the same playing field as VHF, especially if the cable company
accomadates local stations by bunching them together (Omaha FOX station --
UHF channel 42 -- runs on channel 10 on cable).  Still, the local cable
doesn't necessarily have the best people operating the controls (or even
awake at the controls :-), as sometimes during ENTERPRISE commercial breaks
there will be about 30-40 seconds of black before local spots run, then we
join the episode already in progress.  Fortunately, that problem seems to be
corrected on the second run... but it can be annoying and sometimes fall at
the worst possible moments.

> Good:    It's quicker and cheaper than film by some margin and wastes NO
> recording media along with being extremely sharp and detailed in hi-rez
> form and easily edited and F/X'ed.   This is why we see such great CGI on
> the tube these days.

This is the major reason they changed over to it this season.  It has sped
up the process of filming considerably, in addition to saving expense on
film, etc.

> Bad:   Since errors and blown takes are on tape which is reusable, there's
> much less incentive to save such goofs for a blooper reel unless somebody
> specifically goes to the trouble to do so and sometimes shooting schedules
> don't allow this luxury; before, when such shows were shot on film, the

And this matters to us, the fans, how?  I've heard about blooper reels for
TNG that appeared at least early on at conventions, but decisions have been
made (by Berman, by Paramount, by whomever) that these will never be
released or seen by fans.  With a few exception -- such as some footage of
Genevieve Bujold as Captain Elizabeth Janeway on the first few days of
shooting VOYAGER in the first season VOYAGER DVD set -- these have never
seen the light of day.  As far as I know, they may actively destroy them,
though it also wouldn't surprise me if they kept such things for Christmas
parties or whatever.

Of course, it is possible that now that we're going into a dry spell, some
of this just *may* surface at conventions...

Kevin




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