With the writers and ...
Question: With the writers and producers expected to finally come back to the negotiating table, what is the chance that I'll see new episodes of my favorite shows again this season? Since this strike has lasted so long, it seems unlikely that shows will be able to get new episodes out before May. Please tell me I'm wrong and that I won't have to wait until September to indulge in television again.
Answer: This is still a tricky issue, and it's all a matter of timing. In the best-case scenario, if the directors' deal opens the window for the writers and producers to make more progress in their resumed negotiations and close their own deal sooner than later — say, hopefully, by mid-February — then it is conceivable that production could resume and we could get a batch of new episodes to finish out the season, in April and May, at least in time for sweeps. This would also help ensure a summer season and the possibility of a new season beginning on schedule in the fall (that is, if the actors don't strike). Yet to be addressed are such sticky issues as how many episodes each show will make to finish out the season (or possibly extend into the summer), depending on when production can resume. No one has the answer to those questions, as far as I can tell. But don't entirely lose hope yet. Saith the cockeyed optimist.
