HDTV Heads-Up: September 15-21
September 6, 2012 
8 Comments
It was inevitable – two of the biggest talent quests on US TV soon will go head-to-head here in the HD hot seat.
TV2 will launch season two of The Voice with a three-hour special opposite TV3’s second weekly episode of The X Factor USA on September 21.
Something similar happened in the UK earlier this year, when the BBC’s version of The Voice and ITV’s X Factor overlapped on a Saturday night.
The key difference was both of those shows were in the moment whereas here only The X Factor USA will be.
The Simon Cowell hit will screen here within hours of its Thursday night broadcast in the US whereas The Voice went to air in the US seven months ago.
TV2 got away with screening The Voice months after the US last year, when it aired on a Saturday night post-American Idol’s run.
But unless subsequent episodes revert to 8.30 Fridays (where The Voice Australia screened), pitting season two against like-minded and more immediate competition can be described only as kamikaze scheduling.
Other HD highlights of note for the week starting September 15 include:
❑ NASCAR superstar Brian Vicker guest starring on Sunday’s Hart of Dixie (TV2, 5.30)
❑ Season finales of Hyundai Country Calendar on Saturday (TV One, 7.00), CSI: Miami on Saturday (TV3, 9.30) and Castle on Wednesday (TV One, 9.30)
❑ Re-runs of the movies The Invention of Lying on Sunday (TV3, 8.30) and X-Men Origins: Wolverine on Monday (TV3, 8.30).
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September 6, 2012 at 10:58 am
I hate TVNZ they are always doing something sneaky against TV3 … I hope NZ tell The Voice where to go with a LOUD and clear voice 🙂
Correct me if im wrong but isn’t TVNZ going to screen season three of The Voice rather than season two because the new season starts in the US the same week as The X Factor. It would be a waste of time to screen season two when the winner can already be Googled online.
Yes, that would make the most sense. Perhaps the three-hour special will be to catch us up with screenings in the US (season three starts there on Monday). But if so, TVNZ hasn’t highlighted this in its press publicity for the premiere. The broadcaster tends not to screen shows as close to the US as TV3. Case in point: the first season of The Voice ended here three months after the finale aired in the US. When TVNZ does screen shows hot off the satellite, it invariably opts for the cheaper SD feed (hence American Idol never having screened here in HD). And to my knowledge, season two of The Voice hasn’t played here, so it would be unusual for TVNZ to jump a season. I will check with the broadcaster tomorrow and hopefully stand corrected.
Further to The Voice S2 vs S3: TVNZ has confirmed it will be S2 that screens from September 21; S3 is more likely for TV2’s 2013 new season.
Thanks for letting me know what season they are going to screen. I’m rather disappointed that they have opted to screen season two rather than three. It makes no sense since we live in the Internet world. They would of been better off screening season two over summer and season three now. Oh well, that’s TVNZ for ya!!!
Why doesn’t TVNZ follow TV3’s upcoming convention of listing the series and episode number? Lazy buggers.
I’ve been hunting for news of season three screening and found lots of news, including season four. Doesn’t matter, I really enjoy this show, just want to know where and when it will screen. Any info much appreciated.
Bev: we are getting The Voice Australia on Friday and I’m not sure when TV2 will screen seasons three and four of The Voice USA. Probably later in the year, which is a shame because of the unavoidable spoilers online.