TV Shows in Syndication: Order of Episodes (X-Files)

Factual Questions
1

Ok, this may be a stupid question that there is no answer to, but here goes:

TNT (Turner Network Television) has been airing the X-Files reruns on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, 4 or 5 episodes in a row. We’ve been recording them to watch later on in the week as we have time.

I was looking at the order the episodes are aired as I was setting the VCR just now and they’re not in the correct order. (Episode Guide )

Over the next 2 nights, they’re airing season 6 episodes in the order 14, 15, 13, 16, 17, 18, 20, 19, 21 and then Season 7 Episode 1, skipping the final cliffhanger episode from Season 6.

For anyone who doesn’t know, X-Files is a serial type show where things that happen in one show have bearing on what happens in the next show…not quite as much so as a soap opera, but pretty close. On top of that, there are 2-parter episodes that they’ve aired out of order over the past few weeks, which really causes confusion.

Anyway, my question is, what logic do they use in airing these episodes out of order? Is there any legal reason they have to do it like this? Are the people setting the programming order just not looking at the episode numbers when they set 'em up to air?

Also, if I had TIVO, I know I could watch them in the correct order pretty easily, but since TIVO seems to have some way of knowing the episode numbers (to avoid recording duplicates) would the TIVO be able to put them into the correct order automatically?

2

They could be showing them in production order. Someone asked the same question about Star Trek: TNG. The production order is not always the broadcast order for whatever reason.

Look here. The numbers in the middle column are the production order codes.

3

Okay, you’re 100% wrong, but you answered my question. :slight_smile:

They’re airing them in order of Episode number, not Production number. The episode guide I was looking at had them ordered by production number, which I assumed was the chronologically correct order. I’m still not 100% sure about that because there were some continuity errors in the order that they’re airing them (such as 2-parters being aired with a couple of other episodes in between). But this is the first time I actually looked to see if they were in order, and I don’t have the older TV listings.

Anyway, I now see the logic in the way they’re ordered. Thanks!

4

Well, I did say could.

:dubious:

5

You were on the right page so you get full credit for that one anyway.

I use epguides.com all the time when I see old Saturday Night Live episodes, trying to figure out what year they were from. I never paid much attention to the different numbers for the episodes.

Thanks again.

6

Syndie packages sometimes show eps in production order, sometimes number order, and sometimes air-date order. Typically, you want to watch in air-date order if you can, because that’s the order the people who made the show wanted you to see episodes in, even if they made them in a different order (for instance to accomodate guest stars, special sets, etc.). THere are exceptions, though; Firefly, for instance, had the eps. aired in a cocked-up order due to network interference.

–Cliffy

7

while this duzn’t answer your Q… I would suggest buying the X-Files DVD collections, available from Fox Home Video ($79.95) http://www2.foxstore.com/. I have seasons 1 - 3 (the only ones worth buying in my opinion) and they come in order of air date and are obviously in much higher quality than VHS. Not to mention no commercials.

I’m sure you can find them used on Ebay at a significantly lower price, or maybe on the bargain rack of your local retailer/pawn shop.