[Calvinist_Dark_Lord]

This thing has been bleeding viewers. The reason it didn't get that extra year is due to Moore's storytelling choices.

i agree that there was a substantial viewer bleed. Much of that can be attributed to SciFi management.

• Why not play episodes during hiatus? And i don't speak of BSG marathons once every three months.
• Moving to a different time and date mid-season was a nonstarter.
• Not promoting the show as fully as it could have been promoted (no products marketed?).

Still, even with declining viewership, BSG has been a big money maker for the network, in terms of both DVD sales, and I-Tunes downloads.

There is a difficulty with any programme, especially a serial such as BSG where story lines evolve across seasons. That difficulty is that at the beginning, characters and possible directions are a Tabla Rasa, but as time goes on, one 'writes him or herself into a corner', that is to say that they're limited by the choices made for the character in the past.

Yes, IMO, Moore has made some bad choices. For example, the conclusion to season 3 appears to have been written for 14 year olds, not the 18-54 demographic the show was attempting to reach. It was stupid, plain and simple. The very late season 3 dealings with Starbuck were also stupid impulses that should have been suppressed.

Rather than boring though, i thought that the show was entirely too intense, and intense without letup. They needed to give their audience a break. i'm all for reality of the situation, but there is such a thing as burning out your audience.

Incidentally, it was Moore and Eick's choice to end it after four seasons. The alternative was the uncertainty of getting a fifth season, because Bonnie Hammer is still living in the 50's with her reliance on Nielsen ratings as authoritative, and an accurate measure of a show's popularity.

The bottom line is not the Nielsen numbers, rather, the bottom line is how much money the show bring to the network. After all, it exists to make money.

[Truthsearcher]

The should have done the show in 3 seasons, maybe even 2. The amount of filler that was stuffed into the show in season 2 and 3 was why I stopped watching.

[Darkwolf377]

Rather than boring though, i thought that the show was entirely too intense, and intense without letup. They needed to give their audience a break. i'm all for reality of the situation, but there is such a thing as burning out your audience.

I didn't find it intense, but I did find it unrelentingly GRIM. Shows like The Sopranos have the advantage of being able to have humorous subplots and such without altering the flavor of the show. Not an option here, and while some would say the show has maintained its integrity, the show is made in such a way that a sameness prevails.

Incidentally, it was Moore and Eick's choice to end it after four seasons. The alternative was the uncertainty of getting a fifth season, because Bonnie Hammer is still living in the 50's with her reliance on Nielsen ratings as authoritative, and an accurate measure of a show's popularity.

I don't believe that, but neither of us was in the room. Moore seems to be spinning this situation, since when one of the actors talked about this being the last season, Moore denied it at first, then weeks or months later admitted to it and then said it was HIS idea. Of course, he was saying a shortened final season was a good thing, until the season was allowed to be a full one, then he said THAT was what he wanted. So I don't put much stock in his word on this.

Sci Fi's managment is screwy, I agree, but at the same time all the efforts to promote this show have resulted in it losing viewers. That's a simple fact, and the kiss of death. If it would be financially advantageous for them to continue, they would. That the show is making money for the makers doesn't really change the fact that it's bleeding viewers--the issue isn't the structure of the DVD and syndication reruns plans.

The bottom line is not the Nielsen numbers, rather, the bottom line is how much money the show bring to the network. After all, it exists to make money.

Sure, but the bottom line in terms of popularity, which is what I was refering to, is viewers, and this show is losing them, not growing the fan base. And I think that monotony is the number one reason for that.