Recently, I was looking at IMDb’s guidelines, and I noticed that this is what they say about TV episodes:
I admit that I did not watch the show when it first aired, therefore I am not saying this from memory. I have “Genesis” downloaded with a Fox 4 logo and “Occupation/Resistance” with a Citytv (which was simulcast with Fox) logo. These episodes only have opening credits in “Genesis Part 1” and “Occupation”, not in “Genesis Part 2” and “Resistance”. As far as I can tell, in the original airing, the first and second parts were separated purely by that “cut to black” that’s used for commercial breaks, with no credits in between them.
The fact that each of these two-parters had only one set of credits makes me think that, according to IMDb’s guidelines, the episodes should be merged.
On the other hand, the credits did, to a certain extent, separate the episodes. As you can see in screencaps from “Occupation/Resistance” from Citytv, the writers and editors are listed separately for the episodes.
However, in spite of the fact that they are listed separately, they are listed at the same time. Furthermore, all the other people are listed together, without any separation (even though some of them also worked on one part only rather than both). For that reason, I am uncertain whether this counts as clear separation, and whether the episodes should therefore be listed separately as they are now.
For what it’s worth, the creators of the show have referred to it as having 13 episodes (see for instance this interview), the official DVD cover says it has 13 episodes, and the production codes separate the episodes as well. I’m not certain whether any of this is relevant, though; the guidelines make me think that the only important thing is how the show originally aired.
Some programs air two-part episodes from time to time. If the two parts are clearly separated (separate titles or a separate title card), then they should be entered as two separate episodes (with "Part 1/Part 2" on the end of the title if they don't have unique titles). If they are run together as one long episode on original airing (with one set of credits), then they should be treated as a single episode, even if they are separated in reruns, syndication, or other later airings.I am a little confused in regards to how the first two and the last two episodes of Terra Nova (TV show from Fox) should be handled. IMDb currently lists them separately, but I am not sure if that is correct according to the guidelines.
I admit that I did not watch the show when it first aired, therefore I am not saying this from memory. I have “Genesis” downloaded with a Fox 4 logo and “Occupation/Resistance” with a Citytv (which was simulcast with Fox) logo. These episodes only have opening credits in “Genesis Part 1” and “Occupation”, not in “Genesis Part 2” and “Resistance”. As far as I can tell, in the original airing, the first and second parts were separated purely by that “cut to black” that’s used for commercial breaks, with no credits in between them.
The fact that each of these two-parters had only one set of credits makes me think that, according to IMDb’s guidelines, the episodes should be merged.
On the other hand, the credits did, to a certain extent, separate the episodes. As you can see in screencaps from “Occupation/Resistance” from Citytv, the writers and editors are listed separately for the episodes.
However, in spite of the fact that they are listed separately, they are listed at the same time. Furthermore, all the other people are listed together, without any separation (even though some of them also worked on one part only rather than both). For that reason, I am uncertain whether this counts as clear separation, and whether the episodes should therefore be listed separately as they are now.
For what it’s worth, the creators of the show have referred to it as having 13 episodes (see for instance this interview), the official DVD cover says it has 13 episodes, and the production codes separate the episodes as well. I’m not certain whether any of this is relevant, though; the guidelines make me think that the only important thing is how the show originally aired.
Posted 3 months ago
Rida, Employee
Thank you for looking into this! May I ask how you determined that they did not run together as one episode on original airing? I find it unclear (different titles but only one set of credits AFAIK).
Follow-up question: how should credits be handled? I’m talking about people who didn’t work on both parts. For example, Christine Adams only appeared in Part 2 of “Genesis”, not Part 1. In the Fox version, Adams is credited in Part 1 because that’s the part that has opening credits for both episodes. However, in the Slovak broadcast (where each part has its own opening) Adams was only credited in Part 2.
On IMDb, should Christine Adams be included on the Cast and Crew page of “Genesis Part 1” (with the note of “credit only”), or should she be included only on the page of “Genesis Part 2” (since her credit in Part 1 was only put there because of Part 2)?
Follow-up question: how should credits be handled? I’m talking about people who didn’t work on both parts. For example, Christine Adams only appeared in Part 2 of “Genesis”, not Part 1. In the Fox version, Adams is credited in Part 1 because that’s the part that has opening credits for both episodes. However, in the Slovak broadcast (where each part has its own opening) Adams was only credited in Part 2.
On IMDb, should Christine Adams be included on the Cast and Crew page of “Genesis Part 1” (with the note of “credit only”), or should she be included only on the page of “Genesis Part 2” (since her credit in Part 1 was only put there because of Part 2)?
