Season 1

The Official Logo of the First Season

The **First Annual Running of the Television,** officially titled as **The 1st Annual Running of the Television 2023** and alternatively Season 1, is the first season of the Annual Running of the Television created and hosted by Fandom user 2023SpongeBobFan on Fandom via the Encyclopedia SpongeBobia forums. Launched on September 03, 2023 (Philippine Time), the season is currently ongoing its Elimination Rounds and will end with the Final Four on **TBD** 2024.

This season is hosted on the Encyclopedia SpongeBobia forums, although the game does occasionally appear on the TurtlePedia forums.

## Annual Running of the Television

The logo of the First season, with the category logos

### Premiered

September 03, 2023 (Philippine Time)

The game runs similarly to other elimination games hosted on Encyclopedia SpongeBobia. For each "voting door," (previously called Weeks prior to VD14) users vote for the Immunity and Elimination of their selected character. The game occurs twice a week (only once a week prior to VD14)

Unlike most elimination games, the game contains four "categories" that represent SpongeBob (Category 1), Cartoon Network (Category 2), Nickelodeon (Category 3) and Video Games (Category 4), hence users have to vote for four different characters for immunity and elimination at once.

### Plot Twists

1. **Double Elimination:** Occurs in the Elimination Round at random. Two characters are eliminated from the competition for each category, namely the top two most-voted characters for Elimination for the week.
2. **False Voting:** Occurs in the Elimination Round at random. Some weeks - likely one that follows a Double Elimination - may have a False Voting and hence have no elimination nor safety, rather all characters that were voted for Elimination or Immunity are all safe for the following week. This will only be announced the week that follows.
3. **Automatic Playoff Entry:** A character enters the Playoffs automatically and is hence Immune for the rest of the competition's run. Since there are *eight* slots into the Playoffs, only two characters per category can get the Guaranteed Playoff spot. Automatic Playoff Entries are yet to be announced.
4. **Wildcards:** This will only be relevant on the week before the Playoffs. The most popular character that had been eliminated from all categories get a chance to finally return in the competition in the Playoffs. This works similar to the Comebacks/Boney Island (Exile) from *Total Drama* or the Outcasts tribe/Redemption Island/Edge of Extinction in *Survivor.*
5. **Trickster Trouble:** This will only be relevant in the Playoffs for all categories. Via this twist, three characters - regardless of rank - cannot be eliminated and hence will eliminate the opponent.
6. **TimeOut:** Debuted in Voting Door 31, the TimeOut twist essentially works similarly to Exile Island in *Survivor* or even the Nominations in *Big Brother,* whereas instead of an automatic elimination from the game, the contestant is merely put under TimeOut and cannot win Immunity for the next week, but can only be eliminated. The TimeOut twist only appears twice in the season and was only relevant during the Permanent Elimination phase (post-VD30) but appears in later seasons as a key strategy point. In Voting Door 40, the TimeOut twist was discontinued after one final instance.

### Events

1. **Hiatus:** Host 2023SpongeBobFan had to take a hiatus due to conflicting schedules, causing the game to be put on pause between Weeks 6 to 8. The game returned immediately on Week 9, with updated graphics. It happened again prior to Voting Door 34.
2. **Genocide Events:** Every thirteen voting doors (started in Week 13) in the game, users vote to eliminate all characters in a selected faction or show at once. However, there is only one Immunity for the week as usual. Characters eliminated via the Genocide Event cannot return in the Wildcards.

## Elimination Rounds

 2
Network
 3
 4

## First Annual Running of the Television: The Wildcards!

The official logo/title card of the Wildcards round.

### Performers

Potential reentry point for previously eliminated characters

### Location

First Annual Running of the Television (Encyclopedia SpongeBobia forums)

## Wildcards

The Wildcard round of Season 1 will happen on **TBD** 2023/2024.

## Trivia

* This is the only season that will include a SpongeBob category. For Season 2, Category 3 will move to Category 1 and will be replaced by a Disney category.
* This is the only season where more than 5 Loud House and SpongeBob characters compete.
* Other the SpongeBob, Total Drama is the swiftest show-wide elimination, while The Loud House had the slowest.
* This is the first season to have a TimeOut twist that acts differently to the Hourglass advantage from *Survivor.*