At their upfront presentation late yesterday, Syfy mapped out their programming plans for the rest of 2011 and into 2012. Network President Dave Howe introduced the largest original programming slate in the channel’s 18-year history, highlighted by 14 new original series and events comprising more than 100 hours of programming.

In July, Syfy will launch four scripted series in the same month — for the first time ever — new drama Alphas and returning series Warehouse 13, Eureka and Haven. Hopefully, this will help the network which is coming off off a year marked by disappointing ratings for Caprica and Stargate: Universe, both of which were cancelled after shorter-than-hoped-for runs. However, new series Being Human and Face Off, which have both been renewed, are doing better than expected and look to elevate the network out of its slump.

Also announced during the event was the launch of a new Syfy publishing business of genre games under the “Syfy Games” banner. Here’s all the info on Syfy’s upcoming slate of programming and projects in development:

NEW SCRIPTED SERIES

Alphas — Premiering in July — Alphas follows a team of ordinary citizens whose brain anomalies imbue them with extraordinary mental and physical abilities. Taking the law into their own hands, the unlikely team, led by Dr. Leigh Rosen (Emmy Award-winner and Oscar nominee David Strathairn) investigates cases that suggest other Alpha activity to uncover what the CIA, FBI and Pentagon have not been able, or willing, to solve. These gifted individuals must balance their quirky personalities and disparate backgrounds with their not always visible powers as they work to solve crimes, stop the ticking time bomb and catch the enemy.

Alphas also stars Malik Yoba, Warren Christie, Laura Mennell, Ryan Cartwright and Azita Ghanizada, and is a production of Universal Cable Productions and BermanBraun Television. Executive Producers are Gail Berman, Lloyd Braun and Gene Stein for BermanBraun, Zak Penn and Ira Steven Behr.

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Just in case you thought things couldn’t get more ridiculous than Sharktopus, a film about a half-shark, half-octopus that terrorizes Eric Roberts and a bunch of D-list actors, we’ve got one more for you.

In a recent interview on This Week in Horror, master of the B-movie Roger Corman announced that as a followup to his underground smash-hit Sharktopus, he’s playing monster maker once again with his newest film, Piranhaconda.

Aside from creating new species, Corman is also pitting them against one another. His recent films are also Dinocroc vs. Supergator and has expressed his plans on battling even more of his Darwin-hating concoctions.

Check out what Corman has to say about PiranhaConda after the break.

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Hard to believe it, but Syfy’s newest venture into reality TV, Face Off, is finally coming to an end. We’ve seen some drama, some annoying characters come and go, and some awesome makeup challenges, but this week it all comes down to one last competition, and one final winner.

In this last competition, the final three contestants are taking it back to fairy tales as they reimagine some classic stories. From Syfy:

In this second sneak peek clip of the Season Finale of Face Off, the final four contestants recreate their favorite fairy tales in their last attempt to prove their talent.  A werewolf, witch, and other creatures are being finalized.  There seems to be a positive overall tone among the contestants as they head down the final stretch, but it wouldn’t be the finals without something going awry.  Conor’s final creation appears to have a malfunction and his opportunity at being crowned the winner of Face Off may be over.

Check out the clip after the jump, and enjoy the Face Off season finale on Wednesday at 10pm, 9pm Central.

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Say what you will about reality TV, but SyFy has managed to find the happy medium between the world of trashy television and the geek culture with their newest competition show, Face Off.

The show takes a group of up and coming effects makeup artists trying to make it in the business and pits them against one another in difficult, and ultimately cool-looking makeup tasks. Here’s the rundown for this week’s show.

In the next all-new episode of Face Off, Gage and Sam decide to take a major risk with the task of creating old-age makeup pieces.  They both re-assure each other that based on the last challenge, you can’t play it safe.  They’re both trying to come up with two full-face renderings in just two days which other contestants practically claim the feat as an impossibility.

We’ve got a brand new clip from this week’s show, in which the ancient art of “boob crafting” is practiced, and some of the contestants worry about going too far with their art. Check it out after the jump, and be sure to catch Face Off this Wednesday at 10/9pm Central on Syfy.

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As if you needed any more reason to see Sharktopus on Blu-Ray and DVD, who doesn’t love when the master of schlocky creature cinema has as much involvement as possible. Not only did both Roger and wife  Julie Corman produce the film, but Roger himself gets the illustrious part of “beach bum” in the film.

For those who were under a non-geeky rock last year when the film debuted, here’s the synopsis:

An eight-tentacled nightmare hybrid of shark and octopus, “S-11” was created by genetic scientist Nathan Sands (Eric Roberts) as the U.S. Navy’s next super-weapon. But when its control implants are damaged during a training experiment off the Mexican coast, the beast escapes to Puerto Vallarta to sample the local fare — bikini babes, jet-skiers, and spring-breakers. With the ocean terror now out of control and seemingly invincible, a ragtag group – comprised of a hotshot mercenary, an investigative reporter, and Sand’s biomechanical engineer daughter – have come together to stop the unholy beast from turning a seaside tourist resort into the ultimate human buffet.

In this clip we have for you, we get to see Corman as the forementioned beach bum, and also get a sneak listen at the commentary recorded by both Julie and Roger.

Catch Sharktopus on DVD and Blu-Ray on March 15th.

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Being Human is turning out to have a huge following in it’s new American incarnation on SyFy. Sure, the BBC series of which it’s “rebooting,” is still ongoing overseas, but the Americanized version is still picking up quite a bit of steam (and viewers) over here.

We’ve got a brand new clip from next week’s episode. Here’s a rundown:

In the next all-new episode of Being Human, Aidan and Josh discuss a break-up with Josh’s sister Emily.  Little do they know that due to the break-up, Emily is going to need a place to crash.  She claims with assumption that it’s okay with Aidan, and he says it is Josh’s sister, only to leave the decision in Josh’s hands.  When Josh asks for how long, Emily replies, “Just until I get back on my feet.”  If they do decide to let her stay, will she even stay safe until she gets on her feet while living with a vampire, werewolf, and ghost?

You’ll have to find out in our clip this week. Check it out after the jump, and see the newest Being Human on SyFy, Monday at 9pm/8pm Central.

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February is in full swing, so I’m taking a break from freezing my butt off in upstate NY and conjugating Spanish verbs to bring you this month’s TV Digest. With all the snow that’s been plaguing the US and the winter movie slump in full swing, it’s great to have some excellent tv to watch. Look no further than here, dear readers, as I’ve got everything you need to check out on the tube in February.

Top Shot (History Channel)

Those of you who read my TV Digest regularly will know I’m not too big on reality tv. But man, I LOVE Top Shot. 16 contestants, including expert sharp-shooters, award-winning rifleists, and former U.S. miliary from around the country compete for $100,000 and the coveted title of Top Shot.

The show is a blast to watch every week, between the history you get about each rifle and challenge, the skill exhibited by the competitors, and of course the usual reality tv drama. Top Shot airs on the History Channel Tuesdays at 10.

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The series premiere of Syfy’s newest show, Being Human, broke records this week, as it pulled in a total of 2 million views in it’s 9pm timeslot. It seems that fans of horror and sci-fi still wanted more of the world after The Walking Dead was unleashed on the world back in October.

Now, the network is planning on continuing that trend next Monday with it’s second episode, part two of “There Goes The Neighborhood”. From Syfy:

In the next all-new episode, Josh starts to become uneasy about having Sally’s former fiancé Danny over to the house.  Uneasy is probably a lighthearted term compared to Josh’s state of concern.  Sally begs and pleads but Josh fears Danny could potentially sell the place or turn it into an amusement if he’s able to see Sally as a ghost.  Aidan stays calm and collected as usual.  Will Danny see Sally or will he pass right by her?  You will have to watch the clip and tune in to the next episode airing Monday, January 24th at 9/8c on Syfy.

You heard them, you WILL have to tune in next week to find out exactly what happens to Sally and the gang, but in the meantime you can check out a sneak peek of the episode after the jump.

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We live in a fast-paced world where nobody has any time for anything anymore. Even a 30-minute comedy takes up too much time and DVR’s are blowing through most of them. With that in mind, Syfy has broken down the crux of Being Human season one into two solid minutes.

Much like the network has done in the past for such shows as Battlestar Galactica or even sister shows like V or Lost, this is a race through everything you need to know about the upcoming series, breaking it down to literally the lowest common denominator.

Based on the BBC series of the same name, Being Human follows three friends that live together. The only difference here is that one is a vampire, one’s a werewolf, and one is the spirit of the girl who was killed in the apartment.

A little bit Twilight. a little bit Friends. Just the right combination to pull in a crowd from every demographic. Check out the two minute summary after the jump, and catch the premiere on Monday, January 17th at 9/8 central only on Syfy.

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Last year, the UK got a taste of what it would be like if a werewolf, a vampire, and a ghost all lived together in an apartment. Some of the smart folks at Syfy got wind of this and have decided to adapt the original series for us here in the states, bringing some Being Human for the very first time.

For those who don’t know, the series follows the lives of Aidan, a 200 year old vampire, Sally, a ghost who’s trapped in the house she was killed in, and Josh, a young man who was turned into a werewolf nearly 2 years ago. The three befriend each other and live together in a house hoping to move past their supernatural afflictions and cling to what little humanity they have left.

Aside from the new cast, one major element changed from the BBC series is the addition of the character Bishop, played by Mark Pellegrino, who most know as the mysterious Jacob from ABC’s Lost. Bishop’s role is explained, as well as the rest of the series, in the sneak peek after the jump.

Catch Syfy’s Being Human on Monday, January 17th at 9/8c.

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Back in the old days we had three TV networks and they scheduled new shows to premiere in the Fall and reruns all Summer. That scheduling model is now a distant memory as new shows premiere pretty much any time of the year these days.

One of the biggest times for networks to bring out new shows is during what is known as midseason. This midseason is no exception with many new shows hitting the air for the first time or previous ones coming back after the holiday break. So, to help you get your DVRs ready, here is a list of the major premiere dates on broadcast and cable compiled by the extremely helpful folks over at Deadline.

It includes season/series premieres and many return dates for series with split seasons. Now to find that DVR remote and get to programming.

Jan. 3
The Bachelor, ABC, season premiere
Pretty Little Liars, ABC Family, winter season premiere
Greek, ABC Family, season premiere

Jan. 4
V, ABC, season premiere
Live to Dance, CBS, series premiere
The Biggest Loser: Couples, NBC, season premiere
Southland, TNT, season premiere
Chopped, Food Network, season premiere
Caprica, Syfy, final 5 episodes

Jan.5
Ghost Hunters International, Syfy, season premiere
Are We There Yet?, TBS, season premiere
Flying Wild Alaska, Discovery, series premiere

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Just when you thought the mashups of fictional carnivores couldn’t get any more ridiculous, think again. The Asylum, a dvd studio company that prides itself of taking marketable ideas like Pirates of the Carribbean and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, only to churn out knock off films like Pirates of Treasure Island and Transmorphers: Fall of Man has now decided to set it’s sights a bit lower.

How low? How about last year’s cult SyFy TV movie, Mega Shark Vs. Giant Octopus.

In this film, you can expect to see tons of plot holes, poor CGI, and bad acting, but the best part? The cast is rounded out by Star Trek: Voyager’s Robert Picardo and Family Matters star Jaleel Whilte. That’s right: Urkel.

The plot is almost too laughable to mention, so we’ll just let you experience the trailer for yourself after the jump. Thankfully, Megashark Vs. Crocosaurus will be available on DVD and Instant Netflix just in time for Christmas on December 21st. Joy!

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