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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2024 8:06:01 GMT -5
On the opposite side of the spectrum, Are You Being Served ran for 10 series and a movie from 1972 (with the pilot) to 1985, with an average of 7 episode per season, over 10 years, from the same writing pair. That is a pretty good run and it is pretty consistent, from series to series, though it does suffer in later seasons, with cast changes. Fawlty Towers had 12 episodes of perfection. The British system allowed actors to do other things and come back for a new run of episodes and let the writers have a break to come up with new scripts. They were better able to keep casts together, over a long run and have more character-driven material. It's a good contrasting point, and those two are definitely some of my favorite comedies of all time. But I always felt like we did get short-changed a bit nonetheless, we only got a total of 33 episodes over 5 seasons with Mr. Grainger before he passed away (plus the pilot and movie). Now those episodes to your point are pretty consistent, probably some of the funniest material I've ever seen (and for the series overall up until Mr. Lucas left, I think that was really the beginning of the decline). Selfishly I wouldn't have minded more (in other words, I feel like I fly through those DVD's all too quickly!), though I'm aware of why the British system is what it is. And Fawlty Towers skipped an entire 4 years between the 2 seasons it ran! You're right on perfection though, talk about "quality over quantity". Where I perhaps appreciated the British system more was in the early 90's with the high production standards of shows like Poirot and Jeeves and Wooster. They were practically movie quality and represent to me a high point when "classy" storytelling could still be done in a more classic sense but with the benefits of more modern production. |
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Post by Calidore on Mar 7, 2024 8:43:37 GMT -5
Early Doctor Who was quite busy, with the first six seasons running 42, 39, 45, 43, 40, and 44 episodes.
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Post by tartanphantom on Mar 7, 2024 8:56:39 GMT -5
On the opposite side of the spectrum, Are You Being Served ran for 10 series and a movie from 1972 (with the pilot) to 1985, with an average of 7 episode per season, over 10 years, from the same writing pair. That is a pretty good run and it is pretty consistent, from series to series, though it does suffer in later seasons, with cast changes. Fawlty Towers had 12 episodes of perfection. The British system allowed actors to do other things and come back for a new run of episodes and let the writers have a break to come up with new scripts. They were better able to keep casts together, over a long run and have more character-driven material. It's a good contrasting point, and those two are definitely some of my favorite comedies of all time. But I always felt like we did get short-changed a bit nonetheless, we only got a total of 33 episodes over 5 seasons with Mr. Grainger before he passed away (plus the pilot and movie). Now those episodes to your point are pretty consistent, probably some of the funniest material I've ever seen (and for the series overall up until Mr. Lucas left, I think that was really the beginning of the decline). Selfishly I wouldn't have minded more (in other words, I feel like I fly through those DVD's all too quickly!), though I'm aware of why the British system is what it is. And Fawlty Towers skipped an entire 4 years between the 2 seasons it ran! You're right on perfection though, talk about "quality over quantity". Where I perhaps appreciated the British system more was in the early 90's with the high production standards of shows like Poirot and Jeeves and Wooster. They were practically movie quality and represent to me a high point when "classy" storytelling could still be done in a more classic sense but with the benefits of more modern production.
AYBS? is probably one of my all-time favorite sitcoms. Throughout the years, the cast retained a special chemistry, despite the occasional changes.
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Post by Prince Hal on Mar 7, 2024 9:27:53 GMT -5
A sit-com's season often ran 39 episodes in the old days, eventually dropping to 26. Reruns or summer replacement shows filled the schedule in the summer. Even the hour-long shows ran about 32 shows a season back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Bonanza ran 430 episodes over 14 seasons; Leave It to Beaver had a six-season run and broadcast 236 shows; Dick Van Dyke lasted five seasons and there were 158 episodes. Yeah, but with only three networks and local UHF stations. You can't sustain the kind of viewership that would require that quantity of episodes. Plus, the networks were a bit less risk-averse, as were the studios. Once accountants and marketing people were running everything, you end up with homogenized pap, with a few pockets of quality, spread over a wide field. Plus, you didn't have home video alternatives, other than the few people who had home projectors to watch 8 mm loops and such. I grew up with that kind of thing, too; but, you don't have production companies like MTM, churning out quality shows, in large numbers, anymore. Or Mark VII, or Quinn Martin, or Desilu. HBO is probably the closest. Fully aware of all of that, as are many others here. Just mentioning to an earlier poster that there were days (long ago) when there were even more than 10 or even 20 episodes a year. Was there something in my tone that suggested I was looking for a fight, longing for the old days, woefully uninformed, in need of a lesson on 1950s-60s TV? If so, apologies. If not, this should be helpful to whoever it was who first mentioned it and sent to him/her/them. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2024 9:44:37 GMT -5
Just mentioning to an earlier poster that there were days (long ago) when there were even more than 10 or even 20 episodes a year. I appreciated that reminder, as I think of my even earlier classic TV DVD's, I also binge plenty of Andy Griffith (Barney years), Gilligan's Island, Beverly Hillbillies, etc., and while those 30+ episodes a season might have had some varying quality in terms of episodes, overall the "good years" of most of those types of shows I think we're pretty consistent as well. Sure, you have those "breakout" episodes that are most memorable, but even a more "pedestrian" episode tended to be ok. I think it was the strength of those casts, they could take good writing and execute a home run, or they could take a perhaps less than stellar script and still you loved seeing those characters. Likewise I know times have changed, tastes, business models etc. I just think those were magic times when you could have 20 (to 30 plus!) episodes in a season and largely they were very enjoyable (at least during the prime seasons). |
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Post by codystarbuck on Mar 7, 2024 11:39:06 GMT -5
Yeah, but with only three networks and local UHF stations. You can't sustain the kind of viewership that would require that quantity of episodes. Plus, the networks were a bit less risk-averse, as were the studios. Once accountants and marketing people were running everything, you end up with homogenized pap, with a few pockets of quality, spread over a wide field. Plus, you didn't have home video alternatives, other than the few people who had home projectors to watch 8 mm loops and such. I grew up with that kind of thing, too; but, you don't have production companies like MTM, churning out quality shows, in large numbers, anymore. Or Mark VII, or Quinn Martin, or Desilu. HBO is probably the closest. Fully aware of all of that, as are many others here. Just mentioning to an earlier poster that there were days (long ago) when there were even more than 10 or even 20 episodes a year. Was there something in my tone that suggested I was looking for a fight, longing for the old days, woefully uninformed, in need of a lesson on 1950s-60s TV? If so, apologies. If not, this should be helpful to whoever it was who first mentioned it and sent to him/her/them. No, just kind expanding on why that kind of went away, over time. Sorry if it sounded like I was jumping on you. |
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Post by Prince Hal on Mar 7, 2024 12:17:33 GMT -5
Fully aware of all of that, as are many others here. Just mentioning to an earlier poster that there were days (long ago) when there were even more than 10 or even 20 episodes a year. Was there something in my tone that suggested I was looking for a fight, longing for the old days, woefully uninformed, in need of a lesson on 1950s-60s TV? If so, apologies. If not, this should be helpful to whoever it was who first mentioned it and sent to him/her/them. No, just kind expanding on why that kind of went away, over time. Sorry if it sounded like I was jumping on you. No harm, no foul. I guess I just felt that the poster was asking the time and I didn't want to build him a grandfather clock.  |
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Post by codystarbuck on Mar 7, 2024 14:13:25 GMT -5
No, just kind expanding on why that kind of went away, over time. Sorry if it sounded like I was jumping on you. No harm, no foul. I guess I just felt that the poster was asking the time and I didn't want to build him a grandfather clock. You can't tell time until you fully understand time. We begin with Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time...... ...settle in, this takes some explaining............ |
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Post by Prince Hal on Mar 7, 2024 14:15:04 GMT -5
No harm, no foul. I guess I just felt that the poster was asking the time and I didn't want to build him a grandfather clock. You can't tell time until you fully understand time. We begin with Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time...... ...settle in, this takes some explaining............ I'm always up for a stemwinder. Nicely done... That title always kills me. |
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Post by MRPs_Missives on Mar 8, 2024 14:43:29 GMT -5
Been under the weather since Wednesday this week with some kind of stomach bug, so haven't been around much (been sleeping most of the day away). Slightly better today but still wiped out, so likely won't be around much through the weekend either Supposed to go to a local comic con on Sunday but I am not sure I will be up for it. so we'll see how I feel come Sunday morning.
-M
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 9, 2024 9:42:46 GMT -5
Feel better mrp
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Post by wickedmountain on Mar 10, 2024 9:19:06 GMT -5
Feel better MRP
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Post by wickedmountain on Mar 10, 2024 9:19:53 GMT -5
I remembered the time change yesterday but then forgot today lol.
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 10, 2024 9:37:44 GMT -5
I remembered the time change yesterday but then forgot today lol. Digital devices take care of it for us. This is how Terminator started. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Mar 10, 2024 9:47:49 GMT -5
I remembered the time change yesterday but then forgot today lol. Digital devices take care of it for us. This is how Terminator started. When urinals started flushing themselves, I knew we were doomed. |
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