The rarest of rare is happening on South African television starting tonight on M-Net - and like Haley's Comet which only passes by once in a generation every 76 years, the pure coincidental luck (and statistical odds of it happening utterly unplanned) is truly ... astronomical - a crossover between Hawaii Five-0 and NCIS: Los Angeles on the same TV channel (with just one very small "mistake").
In South African's 37 year TV history it's never happened before, never will again and never before came this close - since there's so many completely random and uncontrollable factors playing a role to make it a statistical impossibility. Yet, viewers who tune in to M-Net tonight will start to see something ... amazing.
M-Net came close with Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice in the past (both ABC shows; both on M-Net, but shown out of alignment) who also did crossover episodes. But that never worked out on M-Net as intended and how those episodes were shown in America. However now M-Net also has the new second season of Hawaii Five-0 and the new third season of NCIS: Los Angeles.
The first rare secret ingredient to the formulae to make this work: Both TV shows which are on one TV channel in America need to be on one TV channel elsewhere in the world. Very difficult, but not impossible. Both NCIS: Los Angeles and Hawaii Five-0 are on CBS in America. Luckily M-Net picked up both shows from the same distributor and placed them both on the M-Net (DStv 101) channel.
The second rare ingredient to the formulae to make this work: Both relevant seasons of both shows needs to be on at roughly the same time on the same TV channel. This is supremely difficult to schedule and make happen. By sheer coincidence both relevant new seasons did start at roughly the same time on M-Net.
What's more: Hawaii Five-0 II is on M-Net on Thursday nights at 20:30
NCIS: Los Angeles is on M-Net on Thursday nights at 20:30.
(And Hawaii Five-0 is repeated at 17:00 on Fridays on M-Net (placing both shows in a weirdly wonderful way even on the same day on M-Net in South Africa).
Now the little M-Net miracle: In tonight's episode of Hawaii Five-0 on M-Net at 20:30 viewers will see agent Kensi Blaye from NCIS: Los Angeles pop up.
In next Friday's episode of NCIS: Los Angeles on M-Net at 20:30 viewers will see detectives Danny and Chin Ho from Hawaii Five-0 pop up in that show's episode. And in November on Hawaii Five-0 viewers will see even more NCIS: Los Angeles faces in their show.
Now the caveat (and the only "mistake" M-Net made - which shows that nobody at the pay-TV broadcaster actually knew about this or planned this): The episode of Hawaii Five-0 coming in November - the 21st episode of the 2nd season - is actually the first part of the crossover story, to fit with the continuation and part two of the story carrying on in the NCIS: Los Angeles episode.
Australia's Ten Network actually knew about it and got it perfectly right, showing the two relevant correct episodes right after each other on the same night.
So basically in South Africa on M-Net viewers are going to see the second half and conclusion of the (Dracul(a) evil doctor!) story first on NCIS: Los Angeles, and then in November the first part of the crossover two part story on Hawaii Five-0. Of course NCIS: Los Angeles also appears tonight in Hawaii Five-0. All in all not bad.
It's the closest a local broadcaster in South Africa has ever come to getting this right and making it align. If M-Net started Hawaii Five-0 14 weeks earlier so that its 21st episode went out in the same week as the 21st episode of NCIS: Los Angeles it would have been perfect. But maybe one day in another 76 years.
