What about the plot “bleeding” effect? Where is the line drawn between a tv series and a tv serial, and when and why do they bleed into each other? Can we define shows like Friends or Scrubs as “series” television when they have obvious subplots that are “serial”? My thoughts are… yes, we can define them as series TV. After all, just like with obvious series TV like Family Guy, we can watch the first, middle, and last episodes (or any one in between) and still know exactly what’s going on. Completely serial episodes in this “bleeding” category are so rare that we can hardly group them with more obvious serial television like Lost, Weeds, or The West Wing.
Serial television originally came from the soap opera. Think about how crucial it is to watch the episodes of a soap opera in order. With every twist, turn, affair, and coma, you’d never know what’s what if you jumped in and out of the show like you can with shows in the bleeding category.
A lot of this bleeding occurs in comedies, and I think that has a lot to do with the category change. Shows like Everybody Love Raymond and Seinfeld rely on comedy to tell their stories, so the serial subplot is a lot less necessary to pay attention to because the subplot is generally more serious and about the “real lives” of the characters. We wouldn’t enjoy or get lost in shows like these as much if the serial subplot was made as important as the comedy. Like I said before, these are simply different ways of storytelling.
Drama reigns in the serial show because we are following the dramatic lives of the characters through “realistic” turns and challenges in their lives. In Sex and the City, we find that we need to see the characters succeed in their love lives. In Heroes, we want to see our characters overcome and prevail even through their differences and sacrifices. We want to be reassured of Sydney Bristow’s strength through her never-ending trials in Alias. No matter how unrealistic the plot or storyline is, every obstacle, twist, and fall is real for the characters of the show, and therefore real for us.
This transference of realism is known as “suspension of disbelief.” When we watch, see, read, or hear a story (tv show, movie, play, book, song, etc) we pause our own skepticism and tag alongside the plot and the characters as if they are just as real as we are.
Serials tend to rely on dark comedy as much as drama for this same reason. Irony and sarcasm are real to us, so the creators and writers of our shows are keen to add these elements of real life to the fiction. The serial generally shies away from the unrealistic (but effective in its element) slapstick of the series. Though lines may be blurry at times, I don’t necessarily think definition is as important as understanding.
What about the shows that seem to reset every episode as if nothing really changes? Kenny always dies and comes back to life in South Park, The Simpsons never grow up, and Jerri Blank from Strangers With Candy is somehow back in high school at age 46. These shows are simply sketch comedy at its finest. They defy definition and we are happy to let them because they keep us laughing.
Realism, drama, comedy, and fiction are not the only factors for us to consider when thinking of our favorite shows. Next time, I want to talk about the importance of plot, story, genre, and theme. So please keep reading and most of all, as always, keeping watching TV!
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