Yet Another Stupid Network Decision

I guess offering professional wrestling and z-grade made-for-TV "horror movie" schlock wasn't enough for Sci Fi (formerly the Sci Fi Channel). They still aren't getting the "non-geeks" to watch.

So a name change is in order.

In the next few months, Sci Fi will be rebranding itself as "SyFy". I know; it's a big jump. How ever will we pronounce this new non-word?

I, honestly, don't think their troubles (if you can call having the highest ratings in your history last year "troubles") don't have much to do with being a science fiction-based channel. The problem is they've gotten too far away from what made this a great channel once.

I think maybe having shows like Battlestar Galactica will get your channel noticed. Sure, there will be some people who won't watch just because of the name, but the "geeks" of the world will get the word out about good stuff. It's not as if Battlestar was a secret to anyone as it got plenty of press.

While I watched the BSG finale last night, I caught some of the previews for new shows on the network, and not one could be mistaken as a science fiction-based show (not even the BSG "origin" show Caprica). Sure, there were a few "genre" elements, but those looked more like quirks than anything.

I like all types of shows, and I think it's a shame that this network thinks it needs to distance itself from what got it to where it is. It's a bigger shame when it's obvious that the network will try to distance itself from what it started out as. Would they give Battlestar a chance now? How about the even more science-fictiony Farscape (which was just lots of very serious fun)? Would Doctor Who get picked up?

To many networks are moving to the center (to use a political term). Bravo and A&E were two channels I used to respect until they moved into degrading reality-show garbage. Even the Cartoon Network shows live-action movies and a series here and there. AMC removed the "American Movie Classics" tag years ago and started showing very recent-- and usually bad-- movies.

Hey network heads: it's okay to be different. Ratings are down for everyone, so it's not as if making your network like everyone else's is going to the cure to your ills.

I'll just make you like everyone else.

Having standout shows is what will set you apart from the rest. There are a few science fiction shows in history that could be considered great, and there are many that you could easily compare to well-loved shows in any other genres.

Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe this name-change will just be a name change, and the content will still stay the same. But I doubt it. When the network says they need to let people know it's not just for geeks, then you know what they're saying: the fans that got them there aren't good enough anymore.

Boo Sci Fi or SyFy or whatever the Hell you want to call yourself.