Cartoon Network...just what are they thinking?
 

http://www.zap2it.com/tv/news/zap-sa...,5917086.story

Adult Swim 'Saved by the Bell'
Sitcom getting trial run on late-night cartoon block
April 17 2006


It's not some late April Fool's joke, nor, as far as we can tell, is it some diabolical plot to take a cult TV phenomenon and make it all bland and mainstream.

But it is true: For the next two weeks, "Saved by the Bell" will be part of Adult Swim. The Cartoon Network's late-night alter ego has been teasing the addition of the show for the past week or so, and starting at midnight Monday, Zack, Slater and Screech will take their place beside Harvey Birdman, Frylock and Moral Orel in the Adult Swim pantheon.

A Cartoon Network spokesperson stresses that the show, which originally ran from 1989-93 and has been a syndication staple (including on Cartoon's sister network TBS) ever since, is only getting a two-week trial. That hasn't assuaged Adult Swim fans, who have been leaving voluminous "What the hell?" posts on the channel's message boards.

"If this isn't a joke, then we shall declare outright war against [AS], take over their offices, and torture them ... CARTOONS FOREVER SBTB NEVER!" reads one, which is pretty representative of the general feeling among posters.

A sizable number of fans also wonder if the scheduling of "Saved by the Bell" -- the first completely live-action show to air in the late-night block -- is a sign of corporate meddling in the typically unencumbered Adult Swim universe, with more content previously seen on TBS or TNT making its way to Cartoon Network.

The network spokesperson, though, says that the sitcom's inclusion is nothing more than the byproduct of the affection some Adult Swim programmers have for the show.

:lol: How stupid.

Meanwhile, Aqua Teen Hunger Force has been on hiatus for almost two years (except for those couple of episodes back in Decemeber). But thank Xenu we've got Saved By the Bell!! :rolleyes:

Exactly. Give me the Adult Swim shows I want. If I want to see Saved by the Bell, which I never will, I can watch TBS.

I watched it. I love Saved by the Bell.

I don't understand why they are airing it either.

It's a show that was fine when you were like...10, but as an adult you can see alot of its not so redeeming aspects.

I knew when as I was clicking on this thread that SBtB was what it was about. Then again, Cartoon Network is really sucking nowadays.

Kept meaning to start a thread on this.

About three weeks ago, they showed Dumb and Dumber on a Friday night in prime-time. Since that time, they've shown Roger Rabbit and a few other non-animated feature films, and they've advertised a bunch more.

I just don't get it. Do they not bother to read the bug they have in the corner? They've got no problem understanding the "Network" part; it's the "Cartoon" part they're a bit lost on......

Another reason we weren't sad to let expanded basic cable go....

First Justice League, now this....

Well, MTV doesn't do music videos, why should Cartoon network show cartoons?

:rolleyes:

And what's with the repeated airings of dumb and dumber?

Yeah, this is another MTV-like case.
I can somewhat see Roger Rabbit; it's partially cartoon, and it's "focus" is cartoons/Toontown. At least thematically it's relevant. I think they've shown Space Jam, with is half and half, and I would love to see them show Twice Upon a Time.
But SBTB? Apart from the fact that I don't think it's a very good show, it has absolutely nothing to do with cartoons.

I thought it was a gag at first, then maybe it's some sort of nostalgia/kitsch/"see, we're so uncool, we're cool" thing AS was doing. Or maybe it's just them being stupid. I'm growing more and more disillusioned with CN.

When did Bonnie Hammer start running Cartoon Network?

I love the clips before and after the commercial breaks where the audio and video is all messed up. Hilarious.

The target audience for Cartoon Network is kids 6-11. If there's anyone here outside of that age demo, then your criticisms are falling on deaf ears.

Everything is cyclical and live-action is what a lot of kids are gravitating to now. The network needs to expand its audience, like any business does, and they feel that live-action shows can help with that. So far, its been successful, and kids don't really care that they're showing live-action as long as they're entertained.

As for 'SbtB' on Adult Swim. I think its a mistake. Not because its live-action, but precisely for the reason given: Adult Swim programmers like the show. There's really no other explanation. They thought it would be ironically cool to air it for a few weeks, so they are. Looking at the first night's ratings, I'm sure they'll soon realize what a mistake it was as well.

I don't dislike "Saved by the Bell" - it's an amusing trifle that can be "enjoyed ironically" (as Ned Flanders might say, albeit disapprovingly, about Dollywood). But it's not the absurdist, non sequitur driven humor of the typical Adult Swim fare that I've come to know and crave.

I find after one attempt that I don't get into that show at the midnight hour. Whether due to conditioning or temperament, at that point in my day I want some totally irrational humor, satirically prepared and served with extra snark. I'm just not in the mood to mine unintentional humor from the earnest sitcom schtick of "Saved".

I'll just say that this scheduling experiment probably sounds funnier on paper than in reality where one actually has to watch said earnest sitcom schtick. I'll tune back in once this has run its course.

:lol:

I didn't realize the name that CN gave for the block of time that sbtb is airing on was called "Grade School Swim"...

You do realize adultswim target age is not 6-11.

Maybe for daytime scheduling, but their PM, Adult Swim, and early-morning demo is at least teens/college kids, if not adults. Maybe their big moneymakers are kids toy commercials, so that's where they spend a lot of energy/time, and the after-hours is more of an after-thought.

i don't necessarily disagree about the cyclical nature of entertainment, but I don't know if I do agree about live-action being a big draw. Plus, I don't know, "cartoon network" should be all things cartoon, in my mind. There's so many styles of animation, they could even pick up some live-action-like animation.

Expanding business, sure, they're in business to make money, I don't deny that. If they branch out to focusing on live-action, I will be very disappointed, especially given the crap they've decided to show in the live-action realm.
But how will running a not-very-good high school sitcom at midnight make them any money? Either they personally like it [which explains some of the programming decisions recently], they're trying to be cool, or they got it reaaaaaallly cheap/free, so it's a free half-hour.

If SBTB is on, then I may actually watch the channel for the first time. :)



You guys know channel names are meaningless, right? After a while, they're generic brand names. Ever realize that MTVshows reality shows and Country Music television shows Dukes of Hazzard reruns? What about the Sci-Fi channel showing more ghost/psychic/horror stuff than outer space?

That's just wrong CN :down:

Are there going to be more episodes of Boondocks? I just started tivoing this show, and I really think it's funny.

Ironically, Saved by the Bell is the show that almost killed the Saturday Morning Cartoon concept. It's success led to networks showing mostly live action kids shows for awhile, and eventually stuff like Today and the Early Show. Fox and WB have picked up the slack a little and somewhat revived the idea, but it's not really the same.