By Jennifer Larson

It may be an agonizingly slow end to BATTLESTAR GALACTICA. There were reports coming from Atlanta’s DragonCon, which claimed that the hit Sci Fi drama was going to split the final season into two 10-episode halves, which were confirmed thanks to some digging by SyFy Portal. Apparently some loose-lipped cast members let it slip that the first half will air February 2008, and fans will have to wait an excruciating year to see the final 10, which will not air until February 2009!

Now I ask you, is that playing fair? I think not. While cable television has given us TV junkies amazing programming to choose from, I’ve begun to feel like a hostage to their bizarre timing of these shows. I mean we sometimes have to wait a year and a half for a new season of one of these shows to begin, and now Sci Fi wants to split the finale of a hugely popular series? I understand they want to spread the wealth and ensure high ratings during certain times of the year, but taking advantage of loyal viewers may end up backfiring.

However, there may be a glimmer of hope. While Sci Fi did confirm they are splitting the final season, they haven’t yet said when they final 10 episodes will air. One can only hope they get fan input into how this type of manipulation turns viewers away. It’s so frustrating, in fact, that it could even send us back to network television. Not to mention the fact that the longer you make us wait for these shows, the more chance there is that we forget all about them. Because cable TV has seen such an upsurge in ratings, the major networks have had to work harder to keep us. Judging by what I see coming for the Fall season on the major networks, cable will have to step it up, and making hungry fans wait a whole year for a finally just isn’t going to cut it.

That’s the good news in all of this, competition breeds excellence, so I say let them all duke it out for our attention. And hopefully, Sci Fi will get a clue and realize, “we’re mad as hell and not gonna take it anymore!