First? As a PR fan, I'm not not having PR conversations well in Natter. I'm having them just fine. And the PR whitefont tends to amuse. I skip it when I haven't watched my Tivo'd copy, I scroll back to it when I have, I highlight, I laff, and laff. It's fine, and I skip a bunch of Natter, too.

Second? I definitely am in favor of ita's bright line. Movies should stay movies, because their release mechanisms, duration of discussion, and finite narrative structure differentiate them from television, even mini-series type television. This thread, should it come up, should have some clearly definable (even to Buffistas) boundary for what discussion should occur there.

Thirdly, I agree with Nutty about the general reason for bringing up a new thread; that it overwhelms Natter by volume. While I sympathize with Corwood for his problem in Natter overwhelming his particular discussion, I am not convinced that adding a thread is the right decision. Could we look at other possible solutions? I was going to suggest some sort of tagging system, but I don't think that will solve any problems that the search function doesn't already.

And lastly, I hesitate to bring this up, because it may not be an issue for anyone. But I'd rather voice it and have everyone say, "What?" than ignore it.

Is there a privilege issue with branding a thread specifically for premium channel movies? Some people (myself included) will not likely be able to afford premium channels, and this thread will explicitly exclude them. It won't intentionally be an economic barrier, but it will functionally be. Is this an issue for us? Is this something we care about? Does it affect the way we want to structure our boards?

eta: In some ways, I suppose the boards themselves are economically self-selecting, because I have to be able to afford the internet, television, and leisure time to even be here. So maybe it doesn't matter that much more?

this thread will explicitly exclude them

I don't have premium channels, but I'm watching Deadwood via DVD. I don't think it is more exclusive than the movie thread--I don't know if anyone can't afford to see movies here, but it's certainly possible.

I don't think we can sensibly be bound by making sure every thread is financially inviting for every (or even any) Buffista.

Some people (myself included) will not likely be able to afford premium channels, and this thread will explicitly exclude them

I don't think it's any more exclusionary than threads about shows not everyone likes or watches.

ETA: As ita points out, Movies is the same thing (I don't go so I can afford the crazy megaTV package) and so are comics and books.

I would just like to be able to find intelligent viewpoints about shows I am actually watching. Today. Not back in the day.

There are threads for two current shows, Veronica Mars and Lost. In addition, we talk about SG-1, Stargate Atlantis, Eureka, Battlestar Galactica and other current genre shows in Boxed Set. I'm not quite sure what else you're looking for, Gus.

I'd be reluctant to vote for the proposed new thread without a better definition of what it would include. If the definition is just "shows we want to talk about," I could throw in my odd fondness for the Law & Orders and HGTV.

I posted a list upthread of the shows that are airing on HBO & Showtime, which is what this thread would cover, unless Allyson has changed her proposal, which I don't think she has.

I do not find those threads, Ginger, because "Boxed Set" is all about yesterday, for me. It is the words "Boxed Set". I want to hear about now and the future.

After that, though, people started mentioning things like The Shield and Rescue Me.

Gus, it's just the name. They're current shows.

I just double checked with Allyson. Her proposal has not changed. It's still HBO/Showtime shows.

I dont know where Rescue Me and the like came from. I'm specifically talking about HBO/Showtime. That is all the proposal covers and I'm not expanding on that at all. If this were to pass, someone would have to propose to add to it.

I propose it because I think that the shows they offer are worthy of meaty discussion. This does not make Rescue Me or PR unworthy of being in a "All Basic Cable, All the Time" thread. But it's not what I'm proposing.