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LockedCrimson Locks wrote:
I don't know, I'm not too inclined to believe that Hasbro shortened a season of what has become one of their most popular shows of what is probably their most important franchise right now just to make a cheap movie that is only playing in select theaters.
I actually heard a theory from Digibrony a while back that it's possible that Hasbro wanted to have FiM syndicated so that it could be shown on other networks (such as Cartoon Network) and a show needs to have at least 65 episodes in order to be syndicated. Adding 13 more episodes onto the 52 they already had puts the show in a neat little package of 65 episodes. I can imagine Hasbro has been trying to sell their show to other networks since the finale of season 3, but then again I haven't heard any news that they have. Meanwhile, Hasbro has their writers of the show make a little side movie to tide over the viewers after such a short season and giving such a long hiatus between season 3 and 4.
Yeah, that's not so much a 'theory' as 'all-but-irrefutable fact.'
That's precisely how TV works.
Even shows that have a good following at their first airtime really make the bulk of their money in syndication because syndication has the potential to happen multiple times and go on for years, with royalties being paid all the time.
(And just to note, Cartoon Network is pretty unlikely to syndicate MLP because they are big enough to make their own shows and they have a huge catalog of old shows that they already own. They have little reason to buy something from another company.)
Syndication is primarily aimed at much smaller TV stations, usually local channels that don't have the budget for original programming.
They just buy a contract to air another network's popular but older shows.
The little channel can gain some more viewers by being able to air a popular show and the networks get money from the contracts that continues to flow for as long as people want to watch it.
For example, Seinfeld finished its original production run decades ago, but it was and remains popular enough that dozens of smaller stations syndicate it for reruns all across the country.
They've made more money after the show was cancelled than they ever did while it was filming.
One of the requirements for syndication, though, is a minimum number of episodes, typically 65 for children's shows.
Basically, if Hasbro is going to bother putting out the amount of money a new show requires (Lots 'o money!), cutting it off before they reach the minimum required episodes for potentially infinite profits would be silly in all but the most extreme cases.
I can pretty much guarantee that all of Hasbro's shows were originally contracted to make 65 episodes from the very beginning.
Even if they ended up being only mildly popular, those shows could still turn a profit in syndication.
The fact that MLP has been renewed beyond the minimum is basically confirmation that it has been successful enough to warrant doing more.
Yay!
Equestria Girls came about after they saw that MLP really was popular combined with Hasbro noticing that another show (Monster High) was becoming popular with MLP's target demographic.
Hasbro had no properties in Monster High's genre so they decided to take an already-proven franchise and modify it to get into that market.
From a pure, soulless business standpoint, it makes a certain amount of sense despite how ridiculous it seems from the creative end.
This has been your daily dose of business.
@Iamslow
Yep, ComicCon is getting a super sparkly Vinyl Scratch this year!
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Look at them glitter-hooves!
@Kitties
All shall bow before ScootaCat!
Happy Fourth my fellow compatriots! I was almost killed for having a US flag on my car though.