Battlestar Galactica - Fleet News Service#3: Where Jerry keeps us updated on all things BSG! - Page 15

**Cryostar** · 08-25-2008, 04:36 AM

Maybe you'll be lucky enough to have Grace Park take her place.

**Talkative One** · 08-25-2008, 06:43 AM

So whats the actual line-up for this panel

dukesmom · 08-25-2008, 03:56 PM

'Battlestar Galactica' franchise steams ahead - Yahoo! News
A little spoilery regarding Caprica, otherwise it's pretty general talk about ratings and upcoming releases.

**Cryostar** · 08-26-2008, 04:54 AM

Thx for the news dukesmom.

Panel info can be found here:
The Chief's Deck - DragonCon 2008 - BSG Guest Panels

All of the BSG guest panels are in the Atrium Ballroom @The Marriott Hotel.

The BSG guests are: James Callis, Jamie Bamber (cancelled), Richard Hatch, Aaron Douglas, Tahmoh Penikett, Katee Sackhoff (cancelled), Edward James Olmos and Michael Hogan.

**Talkative One** · 08-26-2008, 06:01 AM

Some big names

***Strider*** · 08-26-2008, 12:07 PM

All dudes

Just Damn

(Yes I can be that "shallow")

**crazy_diamond** · 08-26-2008, 12:18 PM

, I definately wouldn't mind going to see that panel

**Talkative One** · 08-26-2008, 10:08 PM

It would be amazing to meet Eddie and Richard

Two big name actors, come on Richard was the original Lee (Apollo). I'm interested to see more of him as Tom

Tahmoh

After season one, I adore Helo

***Strider*** · 08-27-2008, 07:52 PM

I'll try and get some memorabilia from everyone, wheather it's an autographed pic, or pose with for a photo, or just meet them and shake their hand and say "thank you for BSG!"

***globe2912*** · 08-28-2008, 03:55 AM

Looking forward to your report, Alex - I'm sure you'll have a blast, even with Jamie and Katee canceling

And with EJO, Michael Hogan etc at the panel it should be interesting nonetheless.

**Cryostar** · 08-28-2008, 04:42 AM

*smacks Alex*

That was for good luck...or something. Have fun @ dragon*con.

**crazy_diamond** · 08-28-2008, 05:14 AM

Have a great time Alex

**Talkative One** · 08-28-2008, 05:45 AM

Have fun Alex

Can't wait to hear of your experience

***-Andie-*** · 08-28-2008, 09:07 AM

Quote:

'Caprica' Trailer Now Online
Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Esai Morales, Eric StoltzAs a recent Associated Press article pointed out, Battlestar Galactica is not considered a ratings success by normal standards. The series averaged about 2.8 million viewers during its first season, and by the mid-season finale of season 4 that number had fallen to 1.8 million. Despite the falling ratings, the Sci Fi Channel had enough faith in the loyal fan base to green light both an upcoming BSG TV movie and a spin-off entitled Caprica. Both will likely air within the next year, and their very existence proves that Nielsen ratings aren't the only way to gauge a show's success.

Though it's not set to air until 2009, a trailer for Caprica has already hit the web. Can the show live up to the expectations of rabid Battlestar Galactica fans?

Caprica is set 51 years before the start of Battlestar Galactica, and follows the lives of the Graystone family and the Adama family. When Daniel Graystone's daughter is martyred in a violent act of religious fanaticism, he decides to create a robotic replica of her. Though he successfully creates the first Cylon, Graystone's experiment forces him to clash with friend Joseph Adama, who questions the moral implications of replicating human beings.

The trailer for Caprica gives us a glimpse at a series that looks a lot different than Battlestar Galactica. The show seems to have just as much heavy drama and powerful acting as its predecessor, not to mention plenty of creepy sci-fi elements, but there are no spaceships or Centurions in sight. Of course, the thing that really makes BSG great is the way it explores what makes us human, and Caprica looks to be no different. As Joseph Adama points out in the clip, "It's still a machine. You can't copy a soul." This is definitely a show that's going to wrestle with some deep, complicated issues.

Caprica stars Eric Stoltz, Esai Morales and Polly Walker. It'll kick off with a two-hour movie, and then the Sci Fi Channel will decide whether to turn it into an ongoing series. Even if the ratings aren't through the roof, I'll be crossing my fingers that Caprica gets picked up for a full season.

Source

***globe2912*** · 08-28-2008, 10:00 AM

Oh cool, off to check out the trailer

Quote:

'Battlestar Galactica' Fans Never Depended On Ratings
By MICHAEL HINMAN
Source: Associated Press
Aug-27-2008

Ratings have been on a slow decline for "Battlestar Galactica" since it premiered as a full-fledged series on the SciFi Channel in 2004.

That's not exactly news to many people, since "Battlestar" is an intricately planned serialized drama, the type of show that rarely wins new viewers to replace those who have eroded because they would've had to been fans from the beginning to really know what was going on.

But ratings aren't all that, according to Associated Press reporter Chris Talbott, who said NBC Universal -- which owns the rights to "Battlestar" -- are moving ahead with a number of projects that aren't exactly indicative of bad ratings. That includes a new telemovie to be directed by series star Edward James Olmos as well as a possible new spinoff series in the form of "Caprica."

In fact, the less popular the show seems to get in the Nielsen ratings, the more popular it becomes with fans. At least in the view of actor Jamie Bamber, who plays Lee Adama in the series.

"When the numbers were high, I would get stopped in the street maybe once a week," he said. "Now that the viewing figures are lower on the TV, everywhere I go someone will come up to me and say what a huge fan they are. That just tells me that people watch the show in a more modern way and that has reached its sort of critical mass."

From the very beginning of "Battlestar," fans have turned to the Web to see the show. NBCU struck a deal with Sky One in the United Kingdom to help fund the first season of the show, and as part of that agreement, the satellite company had a chance to show episodes ahead of SciFi Channel across the pond. That opened an entire world of online piracy to American viewers who didn't want to wait to see the episodes -- something that wasn't very common to them before as it was in Europe and other places that had to wait months and sometimes years to get American shows on their television providers.

Executive producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick immediately spoke out against the piracy, warning it could affect ratings for the show when it premiered on SciFi Channel -- ratings that would be important on whether or not the show would be renewed for a second season. SyFy Portal at the time, however, argued that while such activity was illegal, the number of people downloading episodes -- estimated to be at no more than 70,000 at the time -- would barely make a blip on the Nielsen radar anyway, even if they didn't still tune in to watch the episodes when SciFi Channel aired. In fact, SyFy suggested that such activity was creating a word-of-mouth buzz that helped promote the show through the most effective form of marketing: friends telling friends to watch, and that Moore and Eick should consider this small cadre of downloaders to be more like those who saw a free sneak preview ahead of a movie's release than someone who could have negative, adverse effects on the show.

NBCU did answer for the online demand of "Battlestar" with the inclusion of early episodes on iTunes and later through its own online service, Hulu. On top of that, writers David Weddle and Bradley Thompson were commissioned to write a series of shorts leading into the show's third season that would be featured exclusively on the Web free of charge.

"Battlestar's" actual numbers, according to Nielsen Media Research, is down to 1.8 million viewers compared to the 2.8 million average viewers that tuned in for Season 1. But many people who watch the show are simply not being counted because they aren't watching in the more traditional ways, said Michael Angeli, who recently was nominated for an Emmy for his work on "Battlestar Galactica."

TiVo had just sort of taken off," he said. "This was four or five seasons ago, and because we were on Friday nights, most people ... most fans don't watch it [on the first run]. They TiVo it and watch it a zillion times."

Not only are fans downloading episodes through legal and illegal means, but they also are buying DVD sets of the show, and sharing them with friends.

"Battlestar Galactica" premieres with its final episodes in January on SciFi Channel. "Caprica" is expected to launch either as a standalone telemovie or a full-fledged series following the end of "Battlestar's" run.

Source