DS run on SciFi to end Dec. 30

ShadowGram announced tonite that DS' run on SciFi will end on Dec. 30 with approximately 1 month worth of episodes left unaired.  This is when the network contract will end, and the series will not be renewed.

Pre-emptions in the meantime will occur on Nov. 11, Nov. 27, Nov. 28, Dec. 25, Dec. 26, and Dec. 31., with the possibility of more.  The show will otherwise continue to air twice a day.

ShadowGram stated that "discussions are underway to hopefully find a new TV home for DS reruns."

Bummer.

ShadowGram announced tonite that DS' run on SciFi will end on Dec. 30 with approximately 1 month worth of episodes left unaired.

Oh, well. But as I said before, the forum will continue regardless of whether DS has a home or not...

BTW, fans who may not own the MPI tapes for the episodes that Sci-Fi will be skipping and may not be able to buy them right away because of the expense of the upcoming holidays or whatever needn't worry that they'll be left wondering how the 1841PT storyline ends. I'm sure RobinV will be more than happy to continue to post her wonderfully detailed Robservations synopses - and I can probably be persuaded to illustrate them with loads of screen captures so that it'll almost be like watching the episodes themselves. 

That's a wonderful idea, Ir-Bi.  It would be like reading a serial in magazines of yester-yore!

Gerard

Didn't this same thing happen when Dark Shadows ended it run before and was taken temporarily off the air.  I'm thinking it was taken offthat time as well without being able to complete its run of episodes because people were not happy about this happening.  Seems to me that if Sci-fi had pre-empted the series a little less often that they could have then shown the last episodes and allowed fans who have not seen them the chance to do so.

As for Sci-fi's decision not to pick the series up again, this is the same type of thing they did a few years ago.  It is a programming cycle.  Their programming changed and went away from older series and then eventually they went back to them.  Hopefully, DS will find a new home and fans can continue to enjoy it.  The fans of DS are luckier than some because we still have the VHS and DVD releases of the series, but fans of other classic series, once it goes off the air, they are just out of luck.

Raholt

Didn't this same thing happen when Dark Shadows ended it run before and was taken temporarily off the air.  I'm thinking it was taken offthat time as well without being able to complete its run of episodes because people were not happy about this happening.

The second run did complete. (They even ran episode #1 a third time.) But the probable reason that you're thinking that they didn't is because they tried to sell us a cock'n'bull story about how their contract was supposedly ending weeks before they'd be able to complete that run, but because they were so "committed" to the DS fans and "supportive" of the show, they were moving heaven and earth to renegotiate with WorldVision to extend their contract so that the run could be completed. Funny how they showed their true face (see reply #18 in "Screw Sci-Fi---Let's Get DS On Soapnet," currently on page 2 of CE/A '03) once they realized that they weren't fooling anyone after they were confronted with the fact that we knew the exact terms of their WorldVision contract because they had been published in the entertainment trade paper Variety. 

Hey gang,

Here's a brief list of the classic science fiction/horror television shows that the cerebral cretins (in their "infinite" wisdom) over there at the Sci-Fi Channel have pulled the plug on, over the years:

1. Lost In Space
2. Sightings
3. The Time Tunnel
4. Beauty And The Beast
5. Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea
6. Land Of The Giants
7. The Invaders
8. Star Trek (The original one, that's been relegated to, I believe, 6:00 AM, EST on Saturdays.)

And, now, our beloved Dark Shadows is set to packed away on some dusty storage racks with the likes of "Manimal" and "Max Headron."   What can I say, but with "friends" like the programming department at the Sci-Fi Channel, we certainly don't need any enemies.

Bob the Bartender, who laments, "Et, tu, Sci-Fi Channel?"

To me, Bob, it's like how American Movie Classics also went into the quality dumpster.  Oh, we may still get a true classic every now and then, but AMC's new standard is Airport 77, with commercial interruptions every eight seconds.

I remember Sci-Fi "back in the good old days."  I was fortunate enough to live in an area (Anchorage, Alaska) where our cable network added it from the moment it premiered.  There were all the TV classics (ah, to have watched Boris Karloff's Thriller again, which so terrified me as a kid), and the cinematic ones as well, plus those delightful shorts they ran, and really well-done documentaries.

But, alas, like the powers-that-be at AMC, it has been decided that that form of quality programming isn't groovy enough for the audience Sci-Fi wanted, meaning anyone under the age of adult maturity.  We're just a bunch of old fogies to them.

Gerard

I don't know anything about the way contracts for the right to air a program are written.....but I can't believe there's no way they could have finished the run of the show.......if they actually gave a damn about that.

If the contract was for airing the show, in it's entirety, then it should run to the end.  Sci Fi has pre-empted this show so many times, it's probably taking months longer than it would have if they'd just kept to the schedule....and they would have known that all along.

On the other hand, if the contract is predicated on a specific date, then AGAIN they knew they would never get the whole show in once they began pre-empting.

Either way, it's obvious that this time around, Sci Fi knew and didn't care that the show wouldn't end....it would just disappear.

I only remembered last night that I'm paying an additional premium to have the Sci Fi channel......and you an be sure I'm giving them the boot as of January 1!!

This is my first time watching "Dark Shadows."  I have been watching DS since the first episode that aired back on May 17, 2001, on the Sci Fi channel.

I am very disappointed that the Sci Fi channel have decided to stop airing this series.  They should finish the current run before taking the series off the air.

I am trying to deal with the idea of no more "Shadows".  A sense of mourning seems to hang in the air.  I have to at least thank Sci-fi for letting me revisit a place that is special to me.  And now at least I have seen the show in it's entirety.  It has been a place to visit and help escape for awhile from the ups and downs of daily living.  I can only hope the many tapes I have filled will last the test of time.

Birdie

Given the currently scheduled pre-emptions, can anybody guestimate on what episode number the current Sci-Fi run will end?

I am just sick, sick, sick about this!   

Based on the known pre-emptions between now and December the last episode shown on December 30 would be, I believe, episode 1225.  There were only 1245, so for the benefit of those who have not seen these episodes couldn't Sci-Fi show an extra 2 episodes a day for two weeks to finish the series out on December 30.  I know for myself I began taping the series with episode 1 of this run and so I'll be disappointed not to be able to finish the series on tape.  It will be quite a while before these last 20 episodes will be available on DVD.

As mentioned earlier in this thread Sci-Fi had to know they would be unable to finish the show by December 30 with all the pre-emptions.  If they had not pre-emted the show this month it would have been able to complete its run by December 30.  It obviously shows a complete lack of respect for us the fans of this show and I for one will no longer watch anything on Sci-Fi again.

Murph

I tried to figure this out too and came up with 1226 as the final episode on 12/30... although Murph may be right with 1225.

It does seem ridiculous that SciFi can't take the time to air 19 episodes... or twenty depending on which one of us figured it out correctly It's such a small amount of airtime to ask from their schedule, especially considering the pre-emptions of the last few weeks, but we all know SciFi's certainly not out to do us any favors.

grayson67 (Melissa)

LOL, I got 1227.  We know there's an even number of eps left, so murph's calculation (1225) could be the correct one.  I may have MB's name right now but I don't claim his degree in math.   Anyway, I typed the dates on the calendar through the end of the year so if someone sees an error in the dates and corresponding ep numbers I'd appreciate it if they'd let me know.

But we won't know SciFi's December schedule until Nov. 1, so this is all tentative anyway because we can only follow ShadowGram's reported pre-emptions.