i don't mean to insult anybody's 'show'(and god knows ours has a "camp" reputation)but many of the shows on this poll surprised me...
i knew shows like 'dr.who' and 'star trek'(and d.s.)had wildly devoted "cult" fanbases but do some people really consider 'scarecrow and mrs.king' to be the "best show ever"?
there are several others that left me a bit perplexed as well.
*Smiles.* Your question is quite reasonable, mscbryk.
It's one often heard about the TV Vote poll. Usually, though, it's leveled by sci-fi fans at the fans of the westerns that have done so well; they just don't realize that the TV watchers of the early days of television have a strong, nostalgic attachment to the shows with which they grew up, just like Dark Shadows fans do.
As for some of the other shows in the Top 40, such as Lexx, Cleopatra 2525, and others of more questionable merit, well, many of them got where they are in the poll, simply because their fans caught wind of TV Vote early. Now, in the face of other fandoms come late to TV Vote, they are gradually falling off the leader board, as did Hercules, which, about 22 months ago, was #16 (though, in truth, relative to Cleopatra 2525, for example, Hercules was a masterpiece of television art!).
In comparison, Dark Shadows, which we voters have only been organized in advancing out of the Nominations poll for a little over a year (where it had lain at 519 votes, with only one vote all the previous year), is a fandom powerhouse. Not only has the organized effort of the Dark Shadows voters achieved an enormous feat in a relatively short span of time (the poll, itself, is over 5 years old), but, once visible in the Top 40, it has enjoyed an sudden surge in votes from long-time fans who hadn't realized it was there.
One vote-leader for Battlestar Galactica (2004) was delighted to add his votes; he stated the same story we've all heard, over and over: He ran home from school to watch. Well, he wasn't the only one; Dark Shadows got a jump of over 100 votes per day, once in the Top 40. As well, now that Dark Shadows is on the radar, so to speak, it is generating a lot of interest and curiosity from fans of other, even wildly-unrelated shows, which helps to expand the fandom.
So, while it is easy to dismiss the TV Vote poll as meaningless, it has never been intended to act as a scientific poll. Rather, it is a barometer of Fan Power, the devotion of fans who are willing to vote, up to once per hour, to see their favorite show advanced among the others. Current projections show Dark Shadows, a 41 year old show, destined to reach the #6 spot, among a pack of more recent shows supported by equally devoted fandoms.
Not bad, in my opinion, and, with the added effect of drawing new interest to the show, entirely worth the effort, never mind the fact that those of us voting have had a lot of fun, along the way.
-Raycheetah =^[.]^=
