Showtime makes bold move, will air ‘House of Lies,’ ‘Shameless’ vs. Super Bowl

Given that Showtime has always prided itself somewhat on being a risky network, can you really be that surprised that they are taking a pretty risk now when it comes to their programming? You really shouldn’t be.

Showtime has decided that rather than running from the monster that is the Super bowl with its tail between its legs, it is going to go ahead and be so bold as to actually air new episodes of all of its shows. Therefore, you are bound to find some good stuff on the network February 2 provided that you are a fan of “Shameless,” “House of Lies,” or “Episodes.”

As for whether or not this will help ratings, we doubt it. But then again, it probably will not hurt that much, either. Most non-football viewers will likely check them out since there aren’t many other choices, and most actual football fans who have Showtime are also probably rich enough to own a DVR. They’ll just record the episodes and then watch them at a later date.

Showtime has been extremely successful with counter-programming in the past, at least in that this is not the first time that they have chosen to take this sort of risk. These same programs aired this past Sunday against the NFC Championship Game and its huge ratings, and still managed to draw some great numbers.

At the moment, the only other refuge for you if you are not a football fan is to probably catch new episodes of “Downton Abbey” and “Sherlock” on PBS … though by “new,” we mean episodes that are new to America but have already aired in Britain.

What do you think about the move that Showtime is making? Let us know below.