Mark blogged at length last month about ITV deciding not to schedule the second episode of Pushing Daisies to ensure that a nine-episode season would fit into the eight weeks available.
ITV have now decided to run the ‘missing’ episode, Dummy online via itv.com’s “catch up” web service.
And whoever wrote the copy promoting the episode, which will be available from 10pm Saturday after the last episode in the series has aired, has made a fine attempt to present this content as a personal favour to its viewers, rather than a cop-out.
We’re told on the preview page that this is a ‘bonus episode’. There’s even a little countdown clock so that you can all rush to the computer at the same time on Saturday evening to watch it.
That’s right, just when you thought you’d had your last fix of Ned and Chuck, we’ve gone and found a brand-spanking, one-off new episode for you.
“We looked really hard! We did! Imagine our surprise when it turned up on our shelf, nestling surreptitiously between episode 1 and 3! Who would have thought to look there? Aren’t we good to you?”
All this talk of being a “magic episode”, a “bonus” and “brand-spanking new” is disingenuous to say the least. If it was that good, ITV would have found a way to show it in sequence on air, rather than waiting for the seven episodes that follow it to have played out.
If an episode is sufficiently irrelevant to the series’ main storyline that it can be dropped from a broadcast run, just how special can it be?
(Hat tip to UnrealityTV via Twitter)
I AM ANGRY!! Stupid, rubbish ITV don't let Apple users watch their online service! Selfish ******!!!
Actually, they do now. You have to download an additional plugin called Silverlight (Microsoft's equivalent to Flash), but itv.com videos can now be viewed on Mac OSX in both Safari and Firefox.
Hope this helps.
Um, yeah, maybe ITV need to get a clue and discover who their customers are.
Disingenuous is a generous way of describing this under the circumstances, Scott.
It seems to me be to typical of ITV's disregard (or should that be contempt) for its viewers and a thoroughly shabby way in which to treat the most striking and original show they've aired in yonks.
I've read elsewhere that they have first refusal on the second series. Frankly, as a fan of the show, I'd sooner they passed and let somebody else pick up the rights.