If you're a Big Brother 8 fan and lucky enough to get Showtime and it's sister premium channels such as Showtime Too (two?) you can be enjoying a behind the scenes look at the houseguests and their goings on.
As I reported in TV Robot's Big Brother 8 section, the all new Big Brother After Dark runs 3 hours per night LIVE on Showtime Two.
You'll see the Big Brother 8 house as you've never seen it before as Showtime gives us 3 hours live per night 7 days a week to spy on what is really happening in the Big Brother 8 house.
The live as it happens footage is broadcast unedited.
The only thing close to editing is that they will jump through different cameras positioned in various parts of the house, so you do not see all the action - just what they choose to show live.
What I have seen is very good and revealing.
The quality is also unexpectedly high since their is no editing or sweetening of footage.
Since I have Tivo I have loaded up and have all the previous nights recorded and waiting for me.
So far I have watched 4 nights of footage (12 hours) and still have 9 episodes taped (27 hours).
Now that may seem like a lot of LIVE Big Brother to watch, but in actuality you can fast forward through a huge amount of the stuff.
In fact, if you have favorite houseguests you may only want to search for footage that includes them.
Or if you really hate someone you may want to skip footage they're in.
Me, personally I have found that I can watch a 3 hour episode in around 1 hour if I fast forward liberally.
Last night for example I watched over 6 hours of Live Big Brother After Dark footage in less than 2 hours.
Now there is a down side to having all this footage...
the activities you see "off the grid" can impact the experience you have watching the real Big Brother 8 as broadcast on CBS.
In a few cases I saw things they had not broadcasted that showed true inner feelings and mad my viewing experience different.
An example is how Carol was a complete brat and had been sulking in the house and was mad that the cameras were following her.
This was babyish behavior and really changed my opinion of her.
They did sign up to watched 24/7 so why was she such a brat? Now they would never broadcast this in the real show but since I saw iton Big Brother After Dark I had a chance to see what was really going on.
The regular show made Carol out to be quiet and well balanced.
Far from the truth.
So, is Big Brother After Dark right for you? Well, yes, if you love the show.
Just don't watch too many episodes before the action is broadcast on TV.
Me, I watch it more as a supplement to see footage from "after the fact".
That way the show won't be spoiled and I will not know about tings before they are edited and aired.
One thing to note is that Big Brother 8 on CBS is broadcast LIVE each Thursday night for the eviction ceremony.
So while most of the episodes may have things in them that have not been aired yet it should be safe to watch the Thursday night footage (9 PM to 12 AM PST) live as it happens.
The Wednesday night footage the day before may be dangerous to watch as it will most likely contain "spoilers".
If you like spoilers that's fine.
I do not.
For me I want to enjoy the action as it plays out on TV without knowing the outcomes.
For more about Big Brother 8 and Big Brother After Dark, stop by my blog TV Robot as I myself have a lot to rant and rave about as well as other contributing writers and comments from viewers and readers just like you.
It's a great Big Brother Summer so far! Come join the fun!