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Enjoy watching “X-Play” and “Attack of the Show” on while you can because the cable channel G4 will cancel them by the end of 2012. “X-Play”, which began airing in April 28, 2003 and now airs on Weeknights 6:30 p.m. EST with new episodes from Monday through Wednesday, and “Attack of the Show”, which began in March 28, 2005 and is now airing live on weeknights at 7 p.m. EST, will only have original episodes until the end of this year.
Morgan Webb and Blair Herter (who replaced stalwart host Adam Sessler) currently host “X-Play” while “Attack” has boosted many famous female celebrity careers including Olivia Munn and Sara Jean Underwood. In my opinion G4 needs these shows instead of getting inundated with more episodes of “American Ninja Warrior” and “Cops” as G4 owner NBCUniversal Media looks to rebrand the channel while still keeping it male-oriented. If I was still a cable subscriber, then this unfortunate show slicing would compare to the era I experienced when MTV stopped airing music videos – the very content that defined the channel in its’ early stages.
Cancellation usually means money is the main factor (advertising, dipping viewership, costs to bring in celebrity guests, etc.), which pushes viewer loyalty (mine included) and solid quality to the wayside. You still have quality video game centered viewing choices ranging from hilarious (“Zero Punctuation“) to the extremely informative (“Electric Playground” (a.k.a. “EP Daily”), but I will miss these two shows, which are currently available on Hulu. See G4’s send-off statement below from G4 Media General Manager Adam Stotsky:
“‘Attack of the Show!’ and ‘X-Play’ have been important for G4, and we want to acknowledge the creative people who have helped inspire and showcase the phenomenon of gamer culture. With more than 3,000 episodes aired between them, we have more than enough great material to honor these innovators and their amazing contributions as we bring both shows to a close.”
