The Thing About Eureka

So this past week the internet (well, the part of it that I frequent at any rate) has been all abuzz about the breaking news that Eureka was "cancelled." I put the quotation marks in there because I honestly feel that "cancelled" is not actually an accurate term for what has happened here. The actual situation is this: Syfy officially decided not to renew the series for a sixth season. Currently airing on Syfy right now? The back half of season four. Season five is currently filming and about to wrap up, but will be aired in full next year.

In my mind, a show has been cancelled when it has a season in filming and the plug is pulled in such a way that filming shuts down at that point and/or the network yanks the show from the air, declining to show the remaining episodes (or burning them off in the summer well after the show is pulled from the regular schedule). Alternatively, I would consider a series cancelled when the current season has finished being produced, but not aired, and the series is not allowed any sort of chance to resolve the story of the show. Neither of those situations is the case here.

Now this isn't to say I'm not still upset about the news. It's just a little hard for my nerdrage to get a full head of steam when I know that there is a full season (and then some) left to go before I have to actually say goodbye to these characters and this story. Also, unless Warehouse 13 is also not picked up beyond Eureka's swan song, it isn't as if we won't still have an avenue to revisit these characters. With the crossovers the two shows have been doing of late, the door is wide open for characters from the quirky little town to meander over to the warehouse from time to time.

Do you want to know what really upsets me over this whole thing? It's not that a show I truly love is going away--that happens all the time, I am sadly getting used to it, and I will have the entire series on DVD to watch again whenever I want. It's not even that just last week, Syfy had gone on the record as stating that six episodes had already been ordered for the show's sixth season (said statement having been issued in order to reassure the fans that the show hadn't been cancelled, no less). No, what bugs me is that, justified or not, I think that this is just an idiotic move on Syfy's part.

Lemme 'splain.

The reason that Syfy has given, officially, for choosing not to pick up a sixth season is that right now the cost of producing Eureka can no longer be justified by the ratings it is receiving. Okay. That makes a modicum of sense, until you actually stop to think about it. Because there is still an entire season of this show to be aired after the current season wraps up (and a holiday episode). Has Syfy all of a sudden started employing fortune tellers? Do they already know what Eureka's season five ratings will be? Somehow, I don't think so.

Look, there are a number of factors that can influence a show's ratings. Among them are things that Syfy totally has within its control, such as what time of year to air a show, what day of week, what time of day, etc. Then, there is the show itself. As of yet there is no telling how this season's finale will impact what the viewership looks like when the show returns for its fifth season. In between the fourth and fifth seasons Syfy will have plenty of time to crunch some data and decide if and where to move Eureka on their schedule to attempt maximizing viewership and determine if the series is worth a sixth season pick up or if it is not. Based on why Syfy says it declined to continue the series, this only makes sense if they aren't planning to air the fifth season. That realization makes me nervous. While it would seem a ridiculous waste of their precious money to go that route, the network's track record isn't really reassuring.

I completely one-hundred percent understand their position that right now it doesn't make financial sense to renew the series for another season. The problem with that position is that it technically already has been, they are looking at the season after that. So why does that decision have to be made right now? Granted, I am not a television producer and I have no desire to get into the business. At all. But if it were me? I would have decided to wait and see. I would have held off on ordering/beginning production on anything for season six and given the show the first half of season five to find out what was up. Then I would make my decision. From what I can tell (thanks to my trusty friend, the internet) that is, after all, still the standard procedure for scripted television these days.

My suspicion is that it has to do with the cast. For one thing, there are contracts to consider. Five is a nice round number, and for many shows the goal in order to allow syndication. I don't think syndication is really a concern of Syfy, and Eureka tends to have shorter seasons, so that's likely not a factor. But maybe the actors' contracts were all originally for only five seasons and Syfy doesn't want to undergo the process of renegotiating and renewing them, especially given that doing so would probably mean they would all get a pay bump. Then, there is the matter of availability. Surely the actors need to know if and when they will need to be available to start producing the new season so that they can take that into consideration when offered or seeking other work. This trickles down to the crew as well, I am sure. But it sounds like the internet was informed before any of the cast or crew about the show's denial of a sixth season (another trademark bonehead move on the part of Syfy). Those that I follow seem genuinely surprised and upset about the situation. I think it is more than possible many of them would have accepted that the decision on season six had been delayed as long as they had a date on when they would be told for certain yes or no so they could get on with their lives in the mean time. But I am (more or less) an eternal optimist.

Putting all of that aside, however, this is still a frankly stupid move on Syfy's part, the way this went down. Because this? What this says to me, and to all of the other people out there who pay attention to this kind of stuff:

"Sorry kids, we just have no faith whatsoever in Eureka season five. We think it is crap. Don't even bother watching."

That can't be the message they are trying to send, not with a whole season of the series left to air and viewers to lure to their network, can it? But that is sure as hell how it sounds. Wil Wheaton has been heavily involved in season five, however, and he seems to think it is actually going to be a pretty fun ride. As he is a gentleman of discerning taste, I think I will go with his recommendation, rather than Syfy's mixed messages. They have already (frequently) proved themselves to be of questionable judgement. At the very least, I would like for someone at the network to sit down and reexamine the way they are producing these shows. Short seasons are fine, but call them what they are, don't give us six months (or more) between halves of one season. I would be perfectly fine if you wanted to break up the year into three or four "seasons" with six to ten episodes a season and have a year between full seasons as long as that's what we are admitting is going on. The British model is fine, it actually makes for some much tighter and much more amazing story telling. But the way you are trying to do it, Syfy? You are doing it wrong. Don't produce stuff so far in advance that you have no way of knowing if the expense will be justified. These practices aren't working for you, Syfy. Just stop.

I just feel like this network is on its way out. I am incredibly saddened by this, because Syfy has been the home to many wonderful, innovative shows that I just can't imagine on any other network currently in existence. I don't know where else we can go. But even though they keep trying out new shows, they always seem to be too scared to move much past the trial period, rather than giving the shows time to actually gather some steam--unless that show is not actually science fiction. But in trying to rebrand itself, Syfy has completely lost all sense of identity that it once held. It has consistently alienated the people it orginally (as Sci Fi Channel) set out to cater to. There is something to be said for sticking by the people who have been there with you from the beginning, rather than shoving them out the back door as soon as the general public starts to take notice of you. But Syfy isn't listening any more. Not to us. It is not enough to be financially/business savvy. You also have to build a loyal customer base, and you can't do that without a quality product. But once you have that loyal base? You have to maintain it, folks. Acting like you don't really care about them any more is only going to make them turn away, and that will make it triply hard to get them back once you realize you still need them. Yes, you're a business, but even if all you want is our money? You have to make us feel like we matter to you, too, or we'll go spend our time and money elsewhere.

Sigh.

I totally didn't mean to turn that into a rant. I guess my nerdrage did managed to kick in after all. The whole point of writing about this was to point out that I don't think the ending of Eureka, as much as I love it, is worth a rant. I just think it's stupid. Once it's over will I miss the show? Yes, I think I will. It was fun and silly and interesting and entertaining. I do my best to watch it live. I voted with my wallet and bought it on DVD. Syfy didn't think that was good enough. It is their call to make. I just wish sometimes that I didn't keep getting the message--especially from a network that started its life catering to exactly my kind of crowd--that what I like isn't worth it, you know?

Getting Excited About Making Stuff

Wil Wheaton often mentions an idea he strives to practice, called "Get Excited and Make Things." I really enjoy this concept, and think it is a good one to try to implement in life, whether or not you are trying to profit from said "things." For me this really hits home in two areas of my life: writing and knitting/crocheting.

These are things I do ostensibly because I enjoy doing them, and because there is something within myself that needs to be creative. My imagination sparks and I must get that spark out of me somehow. I don't always know what to do with whatever it is I have written or made, but I almost always feel better for having transitioned it from within my head to something visible and tangible that I can touch and see.

But, as with anything you do often, sometimes I lose sight of the first part of the idea. That bit about getting excited can get lost in the shuffle of trying to get a project finished within a specific timeframe. The "love" part of the labor of love gets lost under all of the "labor." So when I find myself getting excited about something creative again, it is truly a wonderful feeling. Lately I've found the excitement in my yarn crafting again, and it couldn't have come at a better time!

This past week Knit Picks had a big sale on all of their sock yarn and sock-related pattern books. I fought with myself a little bit before finally caving in and finding room in the budget to take advantage of the sale. I ordered several skeins of sock yarn, a book of beginner sock knitting patterns, and a few skeins of Knit Picks' new line Dishie for good measure. Hey, National Towel Day (honoring Douglas Adams and referring to his The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) is this month and I needed to get some cotton yarn anyway. Because not only do we fiber-crafters carry our towels proudly on Towel Day, we usually make those towels first. You know, because we can. After ordering the cotton, I even hunted down a pretty spiffy pattern for it, so I am pretty much set for that particular project.

My order shipped on Monday, so I have a big box full of goodies headed my way. How is that not exciting, I ask you?

But that's not all.

When my mom came to visit, she brought with her a big chunk of her own stash that needed to find a new home. My sister and I both got some very nice yarn to make fun and exciting things with. Here's a peek at what I was gifted:

I also ended up with a few pattern books and most of Mom's straight knitting needles, since she mostly only uses circular needles these days. I have no other way to put this but: SCORE. Also, thanks Mom! I have no idea what I am gonna make with this stuff, but in case you can't tell, I am, indeed, quite excited.

But Cori, I hear you asking, what of your other projects? Well, that's the thing, isn't it? I had gotten into kind of a slump with my other projects because I was so bogged down with baby blankets (and I really really don't like the yarn I am using for the baby blankets) and that Doctor Who scarf that never ends. Yes, I still have those projects, but now I am looking at them with more eager eyes than I have in weeks.

I have made some pretty decent project on the scarf (got a lot done on it this weekend). I have finally plowed well past the halfway point on the pattern charts. See:

Sucker's actually got some length to it now.

Also, I am very very close to being done with Baby Blanket  number 3, which leaves me only two to make. I got the yarn for number 4 yesterday (made sure it is a yarn I like working with), and I know which pattern I will be using (going simple on this one), so I am all good there.


That just leaves two amigurumi to make for older siblings (which I will do in between blankets 3 and 4), as well as two wedding blankets. Then I am all over socks for the foreseeable future, my friends.

It's a good time to be a creative person, let me tell you. Huzzah for finding the fire again! Sometimes all it takes is just one little push in the right direction, eh?

The Adventures of Mathman and Dragongirl Continue!

In addition to all of the wonderful artists and art to see at Emerald City Comic Con there were, of course, many panels featuring various actors, writers, artists, and geeks. My husband and I attended five panels over the weekend, one on Friday and four on Saturday. All of them were quite enjoyable, I have to say. There were several more we would like to have seen, certainly, but we tried to limit ourselves to the ones that really called to us (okay, to me), so that we could still have plenty of time for all of the other wonderful things we wanted to do!

The first panel we attended, Friday afternoon, was the Wil Wheaton Awesome Hour. As you might guess, this panel featured none other than geek superstar Wil Wheaton. He read a few excerpts from his own works and then the floor was opened up to audience questions. In person I found Wil Wheaton to be just as human and as humorous as he comes across in his blog, which is just a joy to read. As much as I love to read his thoughts on writing and gaming and his updates on whatever projects he happens to be working on, my favorite posts are always the little "slice of life" entries he puts up from time to time. He is a real person, and he is extremely adept at capturing those moments that we all have in our lives that make them worth living, and putting them down on the written (or typed) page to share with others. You can imagine that I was pleased as punch that his first reading was one of those "slice of life" stories. This one about a moment of bonding he and his son had over his comic book collection. I did manage to get it on video, but it is of truly poor quality, very long (around eight minutes), the audio starts to get choppy at the end, AND Blogger doesn't want to upload it. So. No Wil Wheaton video for you. Ha, ha, I kid. Luckily for you, there were many other people there, some of them much better at capturing video. These are a little long, but of good quality, and the two stories he told us, enjoy.

I also was pretty excited that he announced that he was able to tell us the return date for the rest of this season of Eureka, though I have already forgotten what it was, sigh. But I remember that it was quite soon, so yay! 

Saturday was our marathon day of panels. We attended four in a row. I was a bit concerned that we wouldn't be able to get in for the first one, or get good seats, or that they would kick us out between panels. I was worried that I would be stuck in that seat for four plus hours and not even be able to get up and run to the restroom. It turns out my fears were pretty much groundless, yay! This year ECCC rented out the super mega huge panel hall, capable of holding up to 3,000 people. I only saw one panel line for that room the entire time we were there, and it was for the panel after the last one we attended. (Though I think there were lines for the last few we saw, but we were already camped out). They didn't clear out the room in between panels, and there were restrooms in the back of the hall itself. My husband and I did screw ourselves over a little bit after the first panel though--we got there about forty-five minutes early and were able to snag seats in the sixth row, but after the panel, it looked as if people in front of us were getting up to leave so we thought we'd hop up and get some closer seats. Except what really happened was that everyone in row two and back was standing up milling around trying to do the exact same thing...we thought we had seats up closer and while my hubby went to secure them, I told someone else they could have our seats. But, someone beat us to the closer seats, so we actually ended up moving back a bit further after the second panel. Not too far, thankfully, we were still in the front section of seats. But, valuable lesson learned for future conventions.

Anyway, on to the panels. First up was The Guild, featuring Wil Wheaton (again), Amy Okuda, and FELICIA DAY! It was a lot of fun, let me tell you. The format for the panels was that ECCC brought in a local celebrity personality to host each panel, talking with the actors for a little bit about the show and each actor before opening up the floor to audience questions. Felicia promised that season five of The Guild is in the works and does feature a convention, but would say no more because, as she pointed out, she hasn't actually written it yet.

She and Wil talked about gaming a bit, Amy talked about gadgets (she doesn't game much in real life, but LOVES tech and gadgets). Fans asked about how they have managed to embrace their geek pride and how they deal with people who still give them crap, or how they would suggest others tackle that issue. Wil and Felicia drew naughty doodles (and gave one of them to the first question-asker). Someone asked the group in general (but Felicia specifically) about their thoughts on fan art and fan fiction. Felicia professed her love for fan art but stated she hasn't seen any of the fan fiction, and that she isn't likely to seek it out since as the writer for legal reasons it is better for her not to have seen it. Wil was in full support of this, admonishing that once seen it CANNOT BE UNSEEN. I think he has found a few stories about Wesley Crusher...

Wil Wheaton, Felicia Day, Amy Okuda, and the moderator.

Wil doodles something naughty on the table...

The next panel was the Fringe panel, featuring John Noble and Jasika Nicole. They were absolutely adorable! I had completely forgotten that Noble is a Brit, don't ask me how. His accent made me all giddy, and I just wanted to hug Jasika. They talked about all sorts of different things on the show, as well as Noble's work in The Lord of the Rings movies and Jasika's musical background. One of the fans told them that he and his friends all have a viewing party and then eat or drink whatever Walter eats and drinks on the show each week (even things like his cough syrup cocktail). I feel this is ill-advised (Noble very graciously did not call the guy a kook), but to each their own, I guess. He tried to suggest though, that Walter not eat so many Red Vines, as they were getting sick of them. But there is so much fail in that suggestion for so many reasons that I'm just gonna leave it at that. Though man, did that panel ever leave me craving Red Vines...

According to Noble, he feels that the show could just go on forever. Wouldn't that be awesome? It is clear that he loves playing this part, and Jasika also seems to really enjoy Astrid. She hinted that there is a really cool Astrid episode coming up later this season and that she hopes her character(s) gets some more front and center screen time as the series continues. One thing about the series that they weren't too enthusiastic about, however, are their scenes with Gene the cow. Apparently working with a live cow on set is not a picnic. Though let's be honest, that probably shouldn't be a surprise. I managed to capture a little bit of the panel on video, this one is much shorter than the Wil Wheaton clip (only about two minutes), and just a little sampling (of much poorer quality, but what can you do).

After Fringe came Jonathan Frakes and Brent Spiner (of Star Trek The Next Generation). I am not a huge Star Trek fan, just for lack of exposure more than anything else. I have been slowly getting into it, and my husband of course grew up watching The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine. This was the panel that he was really excited to see, and kind of my carrot  for him sitting through the first two panels with me (he doesn't watch The Guild or Fringe, not because he doesn't like them, just because he has never had the time to get into them). I quite honestly expected most of this panel to go over my head, being full of Star Trek references I did not get. I was pleasantly surprised, however, that it instead was funny as hell. As my husband said, these guys have been doing this for so long that they just came out there and started making stuff up.

Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, and moderator.

Goofing around.

I have to admit, there were a few things that my husband had to explain to me, but for the most part I laughed my ass off the whole time these guys were on stage. Also, they talked about Wil Wheaton a surprisingly lot. That amused me. I felt a little bad for the fan who asked Spiner to sing the "Lifeforms" song that Data had performed in one of the movies, because he couldn't remember it at all. But, as he rightly pointed out, probably everyone in the audience knew it better than he did, because he had only seen the movie once or twice and once he had recorded the scene hadn't really thought about it any more. I found it an interesting commentary on the fan/actor relationship, actually. As fans, we will read or watch something over and over, possibly memorizing part (if not all) of it during the course of events. Certain lines or scenes will stick with us forever, speaking to us on a direct level, and it is a common assumption that something that so profoundly influenced our own world must of course have done the same for the writer or actor who brought that to us. But really, no, it was just a job for them. There may be certain bits they enjoyed more than others, but it is very rare for the actor or writer to get anywhere near as deeply immersed in these universes they create as we the fans do.

Anyhoo, it was a lovely panel nonetheless. It was like swimming in a rainbow with thousands of beautiful naked babies, really.

And finally, we come to one of the big ones for me. It is a toss-up to say which panel I was more excited for, The Guild, or Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The Guild probably won out, but just because Felicia Day and Wil Wheaton are right now two of my personal heroes. But still, Buffy! With Nicholas Brendon AND James Marsters? I mean, come on, how awesome is that? Clare Kramer was there as well, and even though she was only in one season, the guys treated her like one of the family, and it didn't seem like she was too left out of the panel.

This was a fun one, to be sure. I love that Nicholas Brendon is looking so deliciously geeky as he ages. To the girls who were sitting next to us Friday night during the Wil Wheaton panel griping about the fact that Nicholas Brendon now has grey hair even though he's about ten years younger than James Marsters (who dyes his hair and works out religiously because he likes to play ACTION roles), well, all I have to say to them is phttbt.  I like me a geeky looking man who can accept that part of life is growing older (and wiser), and who is okay with a little bit of grey. This should come as no surprise to anyone who knows my husband.

Anyhoo, the panel was a lot of fun. In contrast to Wil Wheaton, Brendon and Marsters openly embraced the glut of fan fiction out there for Buffy, even the stuff that pairs up their own characters romantically. Brendon honestly seemed a bit more perturbed about the turn that the comic books have taken in pairing (SPOILER) Xander and Dawn together than about the existence of Spike/Xander slash fic. Marsters, on the other hand, who had just said he actually hasn't been following the comic books and didn't know what was going on, was quite surprised to learn about that particular turn of events. I actually managed to catch that question on video. It was awesome. Even with the camera shaking (because I was laughing so damn hard) you can still see Marters' reaction in this one. I think most of the fans were on the same page, man. Seriously.

True story: Yesterday morning in the airport we were browsing the magazine stand and we saw the Michelle Trachtenberg Maxim issue. I think the store clerk thought I was a little bit nuts because I was giggling so much at it. You know what, it was a bit racy, Marsters, I agree.

In another moment of musical letdown, someone asked Marsters if he would sing a little bit of one of his songs from the musical episode of Buffy (which there had been a screening of the night before). He was game, but couldn't actually remember the words. After a valiant effort he exclaimed that he didn't do covers and that was that. Still, props to him for trying. He also was asked if we'll see him on Torchwood any more, and while he said he hasn't been asked back, he did declare that he would say yes in an instant if he was. This made me very happy.

The Buffy panel actually got cut a bit short--ending right on time even though it started late due to other panels running over. The last panel of the day was Shatner and he apparently had to start exactly right on time. Hubby and I debated staying for that panel, but neither of us was really gung-ho about it and we had had enough of sitting around by that point, so we decided to head out and stretch our legs by walking the floor a little.

All in all, I really enjoyed the panels, and I am so glad we got to see as many as we did. It was good times.

I will have more convention review goodness for you tomorrow, but for now I am gonna scoot. I've got to take my daughter to her Little Gym class and then go pick up a certain video game that comes out today...and sadly, we don't live far enough into the future yet that the laundry is gonna do itself. Which is a bummer really. Can someone get on making that happen soon? Free cookies for anyone that does!

Alrighty then. Ciao!

Oh, Plans Are A-Whirring

I don't know if I've said here or not, but my husband and I are officially celebrating our anniversary (number six) in Seattle this year. We're going to Emerald City Comic Con, tickets are purchased and the hotel and flights are booked. My super awesome mother-in-law is staying with Baby Girl and her fuzzy brothers while we're away so it can be a nice just-us trip as well.

I am so super excited about this! It is our very first convention (well, Hubby has been to a music convention or two), so I am also trying to make sure I do this right. That means planning on packing comfortable (and geekily appropriate) clothing, as well as figuring out ahead of time who and what we want to see while we are there.

It looks like we are going to just plan to spend all day in hall/room 4A on Saturday for the various panels they have lined up. We'll probably duck out after Shatner's panel though, we are both of like minds that we will be much more approving of the Browncoats movie if we don't actually watch it. It is something that I fear is much more awesome in theory than in reality.

Gah, and the guest list is crazy. I think I have narrowed it down that I definitely want to try to do the photo op/autograph signing with Wil Wheaton and Felicia Day. Thankfully they are actually doing that together (along with Amy Okuda, also of The Guild) on Friday and Saturday, which means half of the standing in lines, yay! Boy howdy are those photo ops pricey though. Still...probably totally worth it.

I made a list of all of the web comics I read and noted which artists I know will be there (between what I could find on the con's website and what the artists themselves have said). I know which booths four of the five that I *have* to meet will be at, so that's a plus. Hubby has an artist or two he wants to try to meet as well. I am this close to printing up a map of the convention site and breaking out the highlighters and going to town with them.

So, it is looking to be a pretty full weekend. Thankfully the con doesn't run that late, and we aren't leaving until Monday morning to head home. This means we'll have Friday and Saturday evening, and most of Sunday free to relax and enjoy one another's company, as well as Seattle itself. I have never been, so I am just as excited about getting to see a new city as about the con.

The big key, I think, is trying to have a plan in place that leaves us plenty of time to just wander about as well, and to also be flexible if we see something interesting that we hadn't planned on, or if we miss out on something we did. It's a little overwhelming, but also quite exciting.

Now I just have to hope I don't go all fangirl and become incapable of relevant and/or coherent speech when we get there and start meeting people...

Romeo and Juliet, Tristan and Isolde, Anakin and Padme...

Can I just say how happy I am that Chuck is back?  Back and nerdier than ever, from the looks of things.  I am loving it.

Anyhoo, I will close out this Monday with links to a few awesome things I stumbled across today.  Enjoy.
 
The U.N.  doesn't seem to think alien contact is likely any time soon.  (Which is a shame, I'd have to say.)

Irrefutable proof that Wil Wheaton is awesome.   (As if we needed any more.)

And that is all folks.  Onward toward Tuesday!