Sye Week 9 - 10 Cult TV.

Wilcox and Lavery (2002) identify 9 defining characteristics of ‘quality TV’ – can you apply any of these to other television series that you have viewed recently? Are there any other characteristics that you could add to their list?

The 9 characteristics of 'quality TV, as defined by Wilcox and Lavery (2002) are

1. "Quality TV usually has a quality pedigree".  In the case of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS) they use the example of Joss Whedon as the creator and the cachet he brings to the project.  Another TV series that can be used as a similar example of excellent pedigree is David E. Kelly's Boston Legal, a personal favourite of mine.  Kelly had already had a number of hit series, such as The Practice and Ally McBeal, before creating Boston Legal, which established him as a creator of successful and marketable series.

2. "Quality shows must often undergo a noble struggle against profit-mongering networks and non-appreciative audiences".  the example of BtVS and it's long, strange trip to a secure home on the WB network is used by Wilcox and Lavery.  Boston Legal had a similar struggle, while it was green lit easily (primarily due to Kelly's name) it suffered problems with the network constantly shifting the time slot and air day, and issues with low ratings while still being highly regarded by critics.

3. "Quality TV tends to have a large ensemble cast".  True in BtVS  with the titular character, her 'scoobie gang', recurring villians and high school characters the show was heavy with cast numbers.  With Boston Legal the show had, over the course of 5 seasons, 19 main characters and even more recurring characters (including the incredible Betty White).

4. "Quality TV has a memory".  In BtVS characters remember their past and events that have lead to their current situations, even over the course of several seasons.  Boston Legal does the same thing with the characters referencing past cases and personal relationships.  This even went as far as a case that took place near the beginning of season 2 having consequences that stretched into the end of the following season.

5. "Quality TV creates a new genre by mixing old ones".  BtVS took the existing genres of the supernatural, high school soap and comedy and mashed them together to create a new, fresh series.  Similarly Boston Legal took the genres of legal drama, comedy, slapstick and relationship drama to create a funny, sometimes outrageous, poignant drama that could produce tears of laughter just as easily as tears of heart ache.

6. "Quality TV tends to be literary and writer-based". With BtVS the example of Whedon comparing it to his own favourite author, Charle Dickens, is used.  With Boston Legal there is a high emphasis of literary articulation and eloquence.  This is consistently and more regularly shown through the character Alan Shore's long closing arguments which are often speeches detailing the perceived injustice within the cases of the shows or a rousing political argument outlining a current societal issue in America.

7. "Quality TV is self-conscious". BtVS uses numerous pop culture references throughout the series and even breaks the forth wall at times.  With Boston Legal breaking the forth wall was so common that it has been placed among the series with the most breaks in all of television history.  A couple examples are in the second episode of season 3 when two new cast members appear, Denny Craine (a character that has been in the show from the first episode) meets the and says to them "if there were new guys they would've shown up in the series première.  Welcome to Boston Legal" followed immediately by the opening credits.  Also during the final season a cast about TV for senior citizens is being argued by a main character and he states that "the only show brave enough to have cast over the age of 50 is B.... Well I can't say, it'd break the wall" as he looks and points directly at the camera.

8. "The subject matter of quality TV tends toward the controversial".  Throughout it's run BtVS dealt with several controversial topics ranging from homosexuality to high school massacres.  Boston Legal dealt with controversial issues almost weekly.  The topics covered ranged from homosexuality, discrimination (gender, racial and sexual orientation), political controversies and euthanasia.

9. "Quality TV aspires toward realism".  BtVS has been called 'a fantasy show that rings truer than most shows on TV'.  This is due to the focus of the show not being on the supernatural elements but rather on the very real way the characters react to and deal with this world they are in.  Boston Legal has its unusual moments, generally centred around the antics of the lawyers at the centre of the show, however at its heart it is driven by the real relationships and reactions of the characters as they go about their lives.

These 9 elements as detailed by Wilcox and Lavery are all excellent pieces that add up to quality TV but personally I would add one more to the list.

10. Quality TV has well developed characters and  excellent chemistry between them".  By this I mean the acting within the show must be of a high quality.  BtVS has this in spades with Sarah Michelle Geller, Anthony Stewart Head and Alyson Hannigan all of whom bring their characters to life in a believable way and make them real people and not caricatures.  The chemistry between Geller and David Boreanaz who played Angel is so palpable that fans demanded more and more of the character.  With Boston Legal the acting was of such a high calibre that the series main actors, James Spader and William Shatner, were nominated and won several awards.  The chemistry between the two of them was also, in my opinion, the greatest chemistry between any two male characters on television ever.


References:
Lavery, D. & Wilcox, R. (2002). Fighting the forces: what's at stake in Buffy the vampire slayer. (Introduction). Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield.