Introduction to TV drama

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

A TV show containing certain dramatic signifiers that make it both tense and a mix of emotions for the viewers.
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?

Doctor Who, Hill Street Blues, Dallas, Knots and Landing. These changed the shape of TV drama as they introduced series and episodes, which is now a standard feature of TV dramas.

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.

Deutschland 83 - costume drama
Call the midwife - period drama
science fiction - Doctor Who
Family - Suite life on deck


4) Why is setting so important for TV drama?

It establishes a sense of identity for the series and we are usually known to associate the time period and the background of the identity of the main characters.
5) How do TV dramas typically use character? What audience pleasures can be linked to character in TV drama? (Hint: Uses & Gratifications theory!)

They use characters to provide personal identity and relationships, this theory, from Blumler and Katz, lets us know if we are supposed to make a positive or negative connection with the characters.
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 a media text where there are smaller individual narratives within the drama itself, an example of this is The Wire, where we get an insight to a lot of peoples experiences.
7) What is a cold opening?

A cold opening is when the film starts playing before the credits are shown - around two minutes into the film. This is very popular in TV drama.
8) How can Todorov's theory of equilibrium be applied to TV drama serials?

At the start, it could be a disequilibrium or a equilibrium and then a problem would occur or would be solved so that it could restore to a new equilibrium at the end of the series or episode.
9) What is the typical form for TV dramas and how are the programmes typically distributed to an audience?

They are usually in one hour episodes and they are distributed in weekly or daily allotments.
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?

They make it less accessible for a wider majority of viewers to see a big range of shows, leaving specialised channels in a position to make more money as they get more exclusive deals and opportunities.

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.

Deutschland 83

Setting- 
As this is set in a fictionalised version of 1980s East and West Berlin - this is extremely vital to the plot and context of the drama.

Characters - 
The characters are in the form of a costume drama style. They all wear time specific clothing and the non-digetic songs are of that period. They also speak the language of that country.
Narrative
This, I think, has a multi-strand narrative as there are two or more stories that are going on at the same time. This is also and example of an arc narrative - where the last episodes ties all the last 7 episodes. Episodic narratives are a small part that makes up this arc.

Form

This film was distributed in 2015 where it didn't take off in Germany as expected. This, however, was an absolute hit in the UK and US. It took off in 2016 and 2017 where it was premiered on the PSB Channel 4 and was then available on Amazon Prime in 2018.

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

I think there will continue to be more and more sub-genres. We can apply Schatz's genre theory to this as there will be a time where some dramas are parodied and then reconstructed to start again or to make another genre. This will happen in around 30-40 years time.