TV: Introduction to TV Drama

Media Factsheet #164 on Television Serial Drama.

1) What is serial television drama? Write your own definition.

A television drama series that has a set amount of episodes and a complete narrative resolution at the end of serialisation, so excluding one-off dramas.

2) List five of the TV dramas discussed in the history of the genre on page 1 of the factsheet. How has the genre evolved over time?

Most of these early studio dramas were filmed almost live in TV studios, with actors coming from theatre companies and performed after a week of rehearsals. Doctor Who started to implement more film sequences. Independent television drama companies were the first to record their dramas exclusively on film, which, while more expensive, were better quality and could be sold to foreign markets such as America:
ABC’s The Avengers (1961-1969)
Danger Man (1962-1968)

Most US TV dramas, until the early 1980s, used the story of the week formula, delivering narrative
resolution at the end of the episode:
Starsky and Hutch (1975-1979)
The A-Team (1983-1987)

Stephen Bochco’s US police drama Hill Street Blues (1981-1987) changed the formula, focusing on an ensemble cast of characters, not just a single protagonist.

3) List the sub-genres of TV drama featured in the factsheet. Come up with your own example of an existing TV dramas to fit each category.

Police Procedural (crime): Luther

Medical: Casualty 

Period (costume): Belle (2013)

Science-fiction/fantasy: Game of Thones

Family: Six Feet Under, (2001)

Teen: Skins

4) Why is setting so important for TV drama?

Having a central setting allows the story to focus on a communal location instead of one or two leading characters, meaning that you can replace characters without the show becoming convoluted or stale.

5) How do TV dramas typically use character? What audience pleasures can be linked to character in TV drama? (Hint: Uses & Gratifications theory!)

There are a large cast of characters in TV dramas and they usually function as archetypes; for example in the crime drama subgenre producers often deploy a maverick cop character. Minority characters are also starting to have a more frequent presence in order to reflect modern audiences. We can apply Blumler and Katz's uses and gratification's theory here, as it suggests audiences will seek out media that reflect their personal identity.

Characters go through arcs that develop their character in order to show growth and keep their character interesting. Blumler and Katz's uses and gratification's theory also suggests that audiences seek out personal relationships in media to find emotional interaction with characters. Having characters grow as the narrative develops, the audience will sympathise and relate to the character more.

6) What is a multi-strand narrative? Give an example of a TV drama that features a multi-strand narrative.

A multi-strand narrative is where a series has multiple smaller narratives that intertwine, showing multiple character's own storylines. An example of this is The Wire.

7) What is a cold opening?

A teaser at the beginning of a series that generates enigma or intrigue to hook an audience, usually before the title sequence or break.

8) How can Todorov's theory of equilibrium be applied to TV drama serials?

There is a narrative conflict that creates disequilibrium that aims to be resolved and restore equilibrium at the end of the episode or series. 

9) What is the typical form for TV dramas and how are the programmes typically distributed to an audience?

In the UK, many serial dramas fill one-hour or a ‘commercial hour’ (about 50 minutes) and are presented on subscription cable channels.

10) How have subscription channels (such as HBO) and streaming services (such as Netflix and Amazon Prime) changed the form and content of TV dramas?

As audiences consume content in different ways, serial dramas become more diverse and targeted toward niche groups. Online programme makers are starting to create more shorter form content, so the 60 minute time slot seems is also beginning to diminish. 

11) Choose a TV drama and do your own analysis of it using the SETTING / CHARACTERS / NARRATIVE / FORM headings as featured on page 3 of the factsheet.

SKINS (2007)

SETTING: A High school in Bristol
CHARACTERS: Focuses on the lives of a cast of 16/17 year olds. The main character is Tony Stonem, and other characters with a large focus are Sid, Michelle and Cassie.
NARRATIVE: Each episode usually focuses on one of the main cast's own conflicts, but the narrative is continuous and serialised as the character's arcs normally continue into other episodes.
FORM: Channel 4, 45 minutes

12) How might the TV drama genre evolve in future?

The fact sheet states that there is pressure on the BBC to create more distinctive shows from what commercial channels have to offer, and so it's speculated that the BBC will be forced to produce shorter dramas and less crime shows. I believe that TV drama's will become shorter in length due to the online programmers using shorter forms to tell their stories. I also believe that different sub-genres will be explored to a greater extent in order to keep the genre from being stale to audiences.

A/A* extension task: TV Drama v Film

Building on question 12 above, read this fascinating extended article comparing TV drama to film. It will also help to bridge the gap between our work on the film industry and our new topic of TV drama. Where do you stand on the debate? Is TV drama the key medium of storytelling or will cinema always be king?

In my opinion, the biggest difference between TV drama and films are the length of the two and, by extension, how much you can convey in your story. Films are contained stories that (usually) go through the stages of equilibrium and disequilibrium in a couple of hours, whereas TV dramas can draw out their narrative arcs and force the audience for wait until the end of a season, or even the end of a series, in order for a resolution.

The elitist mentality that cinema is above TV is silly to me, as it all comes down to your own individual preference for how you want to experience a story. The article talks about how cinema has a unique experience similar to a music composition due to the time limits of film, which I agree with, however audiences may simply prefer a grander story that spans longer.