Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
SciFi Diner Podcast Ep. 129 Part 1
Walking Dead Rocks; John Carter Tanks
The SciFi Diner Podcast
Please call the listener line at 1.888.508.4343,
Email us at scifidinerpodcast@gmail.com
or visit us on Twitter @scifidiner.
And check out our YouTube channel.
Tonight’s Diners: Scott & Miles
Welcome to the Diner.
If you have listened to the show for sometime, we would love to have you leave feedback on iTunes. We know not all of you use iTunes, but for those that do, it helps us become more visible. If you don’t use iTunes, your feedback is still valuable. Visit our webpage at https://scifidinerpodcast.com and leave a comment on the show notes or email us at scifidinerpodcast@gmail.com We want to know what you are thinking about what we are saying and what shows you are watching.
Music at the end of this week’s episode is the song The Final Rewind by Tyrad.
In the first course tonight:
- Trivia: The winner of the Tricia Helfer trivia contest; a new chance to win 4 JJVerse Star Trek Comics
- TV News: Ratings for Walking Dead, Walking Dead producer reveals who else he almost killed this season
- Special Interest: Japans first robot buddy cop movie, a silent film released in 1919,
- Movie News: Jon Carter movie news; Avenger movie pics
- TWIST: Life After Trek Podcast Episode 19 Geek Nation Tours Special Featuring Larry
- SciFi Five in Five: Top Five Robots
Trivia:
New Trivia:
Question: Name an actor who’s guest starred in such shows as Leverage, Dr. Who, Supernatural, Doll House, Firefly & Star Trek Voyager.
The Prize: Issues 3 – 6 of the new JJ Verse Star Trek Comics
You will have until April 16th to send us your answers. Please include the code word mentioned in the first 15 minutes of the show. Send your answer with your mailing address to scifidinerpodcast@gmail.com, call us at 18885084343, or DM us on Twitter at @scifidiner. Make sure you include your e-mail with all entries! Only one entry per person. The SciFi Diner is not responsible for any injuries occurring if you secretly decide to go all shiny and dress in a browncoat and walk into your local bar.
Promo
TV News:
‘The Walking Dead’ Season 2 Finale Shatters Its Own Record Ratings — Again
‘The Walking Dead’s’ Robert Kirkman: David Morrissey is ‘Going to Knock it Out of the Park’
The zombie drama, based on the graphic novels created by Robert Kirkman, drew 9 million total viewers, including 6 million in the advertiser-coveted adults 18-49 demo, 5.3 million in adults 25-54 and 3.2 million in 18-34; the demo numbers topped basic-cable records set by February’s Season 2 midseason premiere. That episode, which followed the show’s two-month hiatus, drew 8.1 million total viewers, 5.4 million in 18-49 and 4.4 million in 25-54.
The episode was up more than 50 percent in total viewers compared with its Season 1 finale. Including repeats at 11:30 p.m., the installment drew 10.5 million total viewers.
The February numbers topped another mark set by October’s 90-minute Season 2 premiere. That episode, which followed a nearly one-year wait after the six-episode freshman season of the drama starring Andrew Lincoln, marked a then-record for any drama in basic-cable history in the demos; it drew 4.8 million in 18-49 and 4.2 million in 25-54, shattering nearly 10-year-old marks in the demos.
In Sunday’s episode, the survivors learned the results of the Season 1 cliffhanger: what Jenner (Noah Emmerich) whispered to Rick (Lincoln) at the CDC before its dramatic explosion. In addition, the final moments introduced the location of the third season — the highly anticipated prison featured in the comics — as well as the introduction of the iconic heroine, Michonne (Danai Gurira), featured in the series.
Sunday’s finale was up drastically over the “monumental” penultimate episode, which featured the heavily hyped (and somewhat anticipated) departure of Shane (Jon Bernthal). It drew 6.9 million total viewers and 4.6 million in 18-49, with 4.1 million in the 25-54 metric.
Sunday’s record ratings come as Kirkman faces a lawsuit from childhood friend Tony Moore over financial compensation to the lucrative franchise.
AMC announced in January that the third season of the series, topped by showrunner Glen Mazzara, will expand to 16 episodes. Season 3 of The Walking Dead will begin in October.
Some ratings highlights from the series:
• Season 2 finale, 3/18/12: 9 million total viewers, 6 million in 18-49, 5.3 million in 25-54
• Season 2 midseason premiere, 2/12/12: 8.1 million total, 5.4 million* in 18-49, 4.4 million* in 25-54
• Season 2 premiere, 10/17/11: 7.3 million total, 4.8 million* in 18-49, 4.2 million* in 25-54
• Season 2 midseason finale, 11/27/11: 6.6 million total, 4.5 million in 18-49, 3.9 million in 25-54
• Season 1 finale, 12/5/10: 6 million total, 4 million in 18-49, 3.5 million in 25-54
• Season 1 premiere, 10/31/10: 5.4 million total viewers, 2.7 million in 18-49
Walking Dead producer reveals who else he almost killed this season
After a slow start to the first half of season two, AMC’s hit zombie series The Walking Dead finished with a bang this weekend—knocking off several characters in the process. But did you know that one cast member (who is still kicking) was not originally supposed to make it to season three? Spoilers ahead!
We already know that Dale (Jeffrey DeMunn), Shane (Jon Bernthal) and some lesser characters bit the dust in the final two hours of season two.
But showrunner Robert Kirkman tells Entertainment Weekly he had originally planned for even more carnage: the death of farm owner Hershel, who has grown into a strong ally for Rick as of late.
“Hershel was originally going to be murdered by Randall in episode 12,” he said. “So we were going to lose Hershel, Randall and Shane all in one episode, which I felt was really cool.”
So what changed his mind?
“At the end of the day we had so much story to tell with Hershel, and he had such a central role in the ensemble, and Scott Wilson is such a phenomenal actor that we felt like it was overkill,” he said. “So [he] got a reprieve.”
What do you think? Did the writers make the right call keeping Hershel around a while longer?
Special Interest:
Japans first robot buddy cop mov
ie, a silent film released in 1919, was shown only once, to an assembly of wealthy land owners in Tokyo. When the film ended, the audience demand for affordable giant robots to work their fields and control the peasants was so insistent, emperor Hirohito had the only copy of the film impounded and destroyed to prevent the idea from capturing the public’s imagination. Today, this photo is all that remains of the film’s existence. Even the title of the movie has been lost to history.
Today, this photo is all that remains of the film’s existence. Even the title of the movie has been lost to history.
Japan’s first robot buddy cop movie, a silent film released in 1919, was shown only once, to an assembly of wealthy land owners in Tokyo. When the film ended, the audience demand for affordable giant robots to work their fields and control the peasants was so insistent, emperor Hirohito had the only copy of the film impounded and destroyed to prevent the idea from capturing the public’s imagination.
Movie News:
You could have made 13 Chronicles for the bucks John Carter lost
Disney has officially announced how much money it will lose on John Carter, and the final figure isn’t pretty.
Following a lousy second weekend at the box office for the film, which opened soft with a little over $30 million upon its arrival and plummeted to just $13 million this past weekend, the studio issued this remarkable statement (bolding by Blastr):
In light of the theatrical performance of John Carter ($184 million global box office), we expect the film to generate an operating loss of approximately $200 million during our second fiscal quarter ending March 31. As a result, our current expectation is that the Studio segment will have an operating loss of between $80 and $120 million for the second quarter. As we look forward to the second half of the year, we are excited about the upcoming releases of The Avengers and Brave, which we believe have tremendous potential to drive value for the Studio and the rest of the company.
Wow. $200 million. That’s even worse than the $150 million figure first thrown around when it looked like the movie—which cost $250 million to make and another $100 million to market—was not going to become the blockbuster it needed to be to even have a chance of recouping the studio’s investment (Disney needed to make at least $600 million on the picture worldwide to break even after theater owners took their cut).
Or to put it another way: Remember Chronicle, the found-footage film about three teens who accidentally gain superpowers, which opened in February to critical acclaim and solid box office? That cost $15 million to make, which means you could produce 13 films of that size and still have $5 million left over with the money that John Carter is bleeding (Chronicle made $116 million worldwide, easily recouping its costs and turning a nice profit).
Even if you compare something like the original Star Wars, the loss is still staggering. George Lucas’ movie cost $11 million to make in 1977, which comes out to $43.5 million in 2012 dollars. If he made A New Hope the exact same way he made it back then, Lucas could still make almost five of them for the amount that Disney is writing off this quarter.
We think it’s safe to say that you won’t be seeing John Carter: The Gods of Mars coming to a multiplex near you anytime in the next few decades.12
12 Avengers pics get us inside S.H.I.E.L.D.’s awesome helicarrier
The Avengers are assembling once more for some brand-new, amazing HD stills. And not only do we get some cool new pics of some of our favorite Marvel superheroes evah; but we also get more sneak peeks inside S.H.I.E.L.D.’s super awesome helicarrier!
Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Nick Fury (Sam Jackson), Captain America (Chris Evans), and Iron Man’s awesome suit (yes, only his suit of armor, but then again, Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark could actually be hiding in there) make up the roster of Marvel badassery.
The best of all? Some of our Mighty Avengers are aboard S.H.I.E.L.D.’s helicarrier, allowing us to take a look at some of its amazing rooms.
But we gotta say … Sam Jackson’s Nick Fury trumps them all by still looking to be the king of badass in these pics. Don’t you agree?
What do you think of those pics? Are you getting more excited for The Avengers?
Earth’s mightiest heroes, The Avengers, are set to assemble in theaters on May 4, 2012.
This Week in Star Trek:
Nemecek & Teras Cassiday
By Captain Pyke
Life After Trek Podcast Episode 19 Geek Nation Tour Special Featuring Larry Nemecek & Teras Cassiday
We’re pleased to announce episode 19 of our “Life After Trek” podcast, the Geek Nation Tours Special, featuring Larry Nemecek & Teras Cassiday. Larry & Teras sit down with us to talk about their upcoming Geek Nation Tours project “Exploring Trek Sites: Hollywood To Vegas With Larry Nemecek”. Born from a meeting at Vegas Khhaaan! 2011, Larry & Teras have partnered to offer a tour just prior to, and including, Vegas. In this tour Larry will guide the group around tons of Star Trek related sites located in Southern California. Some of the sites they will be visiting are the gardens used as Starfleet Academy, Paramount Studios, the site of the Kirk vs. Gorn battle (with a visit from the “Gorn himself”, Bobby Clark), and many many more. Check out the Geek Nation Tours website for more info.
Not only do we discuss the new tour in-depth, but we also got the chance to talk about early fandom experiences for Larry & Teras, upcoming convention appearances, Con of Wrath, and as always, general Trek geekery. We had a great time visiting with both of these awesome guys in this episode and think that you’ll enjoy it too.
SciFi Five in Five:
Our five top Robots
1. Terminator
2. Data
3. RdD2
4. Cylons
5. Transformers