So what I’d like to know is what the legal definition of “an original series” is. Syfy Network in the U.S. has the audacity to call shows like Merlin and Lost Girl “original series”, and we all know Syfy didn’t commission these shows to be produced in the first place.
Not to mention they don’t air on Syfy until long after the rest of the world has seen them. Reminds me of Cordelia to Harmony back in the day: “You do what everyone else does just so you can say you did it first!”
In other news: All Things Philosophical has gone black today in protest of SOPA.
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Published by Nancy E. Shaffer
NANCY E. SHAFFER has been an experimental psychologist (M.A., Cognitive Psychology, Rice University), a philosopher (Ph.D., History and Philosophy of Science, University of California, Davis), and software developer. She taught history and philosophy of science at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec and the University of Nebraska Omaha.
Her philosophical work has appeared in the journal Philosophy of Science and her pop-culture philosophy website, All Things Philosophical on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel: the Series.
Dis/inhbition is her first novel.
She currently resides in Tempe, Arizona.
View all posts by Nancy E. Shaffer
Author Nancy E. Shaffer 
Lying in advertising, gee, never heard of that before. ;o)
Well, I guess each is an original series all right. Syfy just isn’t the point of origin.
There is some multivitamin company that bothers me worse. Can’t remember (don’t really want to remember) the exact wording, but their new slogan says something like their product is where nutrition starts. It is illegal. They will be slapped down. But given how slowly the government works, they’ll get years of mileage from the nonsense before they are ordered to stop. And nobody in the government office where the slogan was no doubt trade-marked had the authority to say no in the first place.
Lying in advertising, gee, never heard of that before. ;o)
Well, I guess each is an original series all right. Syfy just isn’t the point of origin.
There is some multivitamin company that bothers me worse. Can’t remember (don’t really want to remember) the exact wording, but their new slogan says something like their product is where nutrition starts. It is illegal. They will be slapped down. But given how slowly the government works, they’ll get years of mileage from the nonsense before they are ordered to stop. And nobody in the government office where the slogan was no doubt trade-marked had the authority to say no in the first place.
It’s souring me to Syfy because any fan worth their pixels knows Syfy is limping so ridiculously behind the world at large it’s a giant “Who are you kidding?” boggle.
But I suppose most fans aren’t worth their pixels.
But the exact slogan that comes up in every promo commercial is, “A SyFy original series.”
::boggle::
It’s souring me to Syfy because any fan worth their pixels knows Syfy is limping so ridiculously behind the world at large it’s a giant “Who are you kidding?” boggle.
But I suppose most fans aren’t worth their pixels.
But the exact slogan that comes up in every promo commercial is, “A SyFy original series.”
::boggle::
Heh! If you ever really wanted to tear your hair out you should see how series like The Tudors and Camelot get to be called Canadian for tax and awards purposes.
Heh! If you ever really wanted to tear your hair out you should see how series like The Tudors and Camelot get to be called Canadian for tax and awards purposes.
Why, ’cause they’re filmed there? What isn’t?
; D
Why, ’cause they’re filmed there? What isn’t?
; D
Oh nothing so obvious. They were partially edited in Canada and the CBC and a production company were involved putting up some money – though they both still aired here a year after everywhere else. There’s an arcane system of points that is used to determine Canadian content. But still a Canadian original!
Oh nothing so obvious. They were partially edited in Canada and the CBC and a production company were involved putting up some money – though they both still aired here a year after everywhere else. There’s an arcane system of points that is used to determine Canadian content. But still a Canadian original!
Yay for ATPO!
And furthermore, I think some people wrote about Merlin in previous literature…
The whole business of “original” is very complicated.
Yay for ATPO!
And furthermore, I think some people wrote about Merlin in previous literature…
The whole business of “original” is very complicated.
No WAI! Syfy made up Merlin all by themselves! He is *their* original character and if you mention his name in some juvenile English literature paper and post it online, SyFy will have the guvment BAN YOUR ASS!
Okay, I am having trouble doing actual work today.
No WAI! Syfy made up Merlin all by themselves! He is *their* original character and if you mention his name in some juvenile English literature paper and post it online, SyFy will have the guvment BAN YOUR ASS!
Okay, I am having trouble doing actual work today.
I read an article on this a while back. It’s a contractual thing. In some cases, Syfy is allowed to say it’s a Syfy Original because they contributed some money to the production of the series, like the Neverland miniseries that was otherwise a solely British show. In the case of Merlin, as far as I know, it’s a joint production with BBC and NBC, or the company that owns NBC…And NBC owns Syfy, therefore it’s a “Syfy original series”.
What actually irritates me most of all is how they call their Being Human a “Syfy original” instead of a “poor Syfy remake of a far superior British series.”
I read an article on this a while back. It’s a contractual thing. In some cases, Syfy is allowed to say it’s a Syfy Original because they contributed some money to the production of the series, like the Neverland miniseries that was otherwise a solely British show. In the case of Merlin, as far as I know, it’s a joint production with BBC and NBC, or the company that owns NBC…And NBC owns Syfy, therefore it’s a “Syfy original series”.
What actually irritates me most of all is how they call their Being Human a “Syfy original” instead of a “poor Syfy remake of a far superior British series.”
“poor Syfy remake of a far superior British series.”
Or pointless remake? Why does everything have to be remade American? Do people from other countries and their entertainment exports have Cooties?
“poor Syfy remake of a far superior British series.”
Or pointless remake? Why does everything have to be remade American? Do people from other countries and their entertainment exports have Cooties?
now this statement is one I’ve been asking for a while. Is it so hard to understand an English accent? Can we not at all relate to London so we have to remake Being Human…
for that matter was there any need for Law and Order to be rewritten word for word for London? (I was SO disappointed when I learned that’s what Law & Order UK was…)
now this statement is one I’ve been asking for a while. Is it so hard to understand an English accent? Can we not at all relate to London so we have to remake Being Human…
for that matter was there any need for Law and Order to be rewritten word for word for London? (I was SO disappointed when I learned that’s what Law & Order UK was…)
They didn’t even change the plots?
They didn’t even change the plots?
nope. word for word in some places, literally. The only plot changes come in the form of the differences between how cops and lawyers function in the two countries and updates on the forensics since the original L&O dates back to the 90’s and the early dates of DNA typing. The first time I watched I thought ‘wow this is familiar’ by the second I realized what they were doing then found an article saying just that
nope. word for word in some places, literally. The only plot changes come in the form of the differences between how cops and lawyers function in the two countries and updates on the forensics since the original L&O dates back to the 90’s and the early dates of DNA typing. The first time I watched I thought ‘wow this is familiar’ by the second I realized what they were doing then found an article saying just that
Sheesh. I thought that kind of absurdity was just an Insular American thing.
Sheesh. I thought that kind of absurdity was just an Insular American thing.
apparently not though up until this I had thought so too
apparently not though up until this I had thought so too