Last night I watched the season finale of True Blood that has been on FX, this same show premiere's on Channel 4 later this week. A great show; excellently written and acted and with movie quality production. This seems to be true of an increasing number of TV shows.
Initially it was 24 that set this tone for blockbuster event TV. A 1hr episode contributing to a much broader storyline, multiple characters interwoven into the plot and none of them indispensable (except for the hero of the show Jack Bauer). Unlike the Star Trek of old where when they beamed down to a planet the unknown character was the one who would not make it back in these modern shows any of them could be dispensed with. This makes watching them more tense, realistic and sometimes even shocking when a central character is removed.
Since 24 the list of these types of show has grown, Lost, Fringe, Saving Grace, The Riches, Lie to Me, Spooks, Dexter, CSI, Bones, The X-Files and the latest kid on the block, Flash Forward. And those are just the ones I watch.
Their forerunners were shows like Airwolf, the A-Team, Knight Rider, Auto-man, Kung-Fu. These were Saturday evening shows – mini-movie's of the time. I would suggest that the evolution of these modern shows has taken place in line with improving digital capability. When you can buy a home movie recorder that records in HD for less than £500 what can the professionals buy and use. Similarly digital editing and effects are much more sophisticated and also cheaper – you don't actually have to blow up the car!
The hour format could also be an evolution in line with available time. We live in a cash rich/time poor society. Who can sit more than once a week and watch a movie? Oh to have 90mins plus to spare. But the hour format (more like 45-50mins with Sky+ and ffwd on ads) can be managed into a busy schedule. So the themes get grander and the production more sophisticated and the audiences, presumably, grow.
The writing in these shows is excellent and not overshadowed by the visuals. The budget has not just been spent on a digital editing suite. I think that this might owe a debt to shows like Cheers, Frasier and Friends. These shows had long runs and yet always remained consistently very funny and are replayed endlessly on a multitude of digital channels. Having a team of writers working on the show all contributing and generating new ideas clearly maintains the quality and freshness of the programmes.
What are your favourite shows and why?
