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Serialised or standalone shows, which do you prefer/why?

  • 07-02-2011 08:11PM
    #1
    Richard Dower
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 21,634 ✭✭✭✭


    Personally i'm more of a seralised show person, i like tuning in each weak and get a piece of the puzzle. Some shows, like Chuck, try do both....standalone ep. but contained within are plot points to an overall arc.

    I like those kinda shows as well, i'm not a huge fan of CSI type standalone eps., not much to get invested in.


Comments

  • #2
    Tags
    Closed Accounts Posts: 90 ✭✭Tags


    It's hard to say.

    Stand alone is grand when you want a nice quick fix.

    Serialised tends to be more fun to follow. Looking at the big picture. Tis a bitch if you miss an episode though lol :(


  • #3
    Conor108
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,871 ✭✭✭Conor108


    Depends on the show usually but as a whole I'd say serialised. When there done right (Battlestar Galactica, Spooks, Lost, Mad Men, True Blood) there excellent. Season long story arcs add a lot more depth to a show than a generic police procedural. Loving Hawaii 5-0 though and that seems to have a season long arc
    McGarett's dad investigating his wifes homicide independantly of HPD

    Suppose theres elements of both in most shows though.


  • #4
    ixoy
    Moderators, Entertainment Moderators Posts: 18,013 Mod ✭✭✭✭ixoy


    Serialised, without a doubt. I love when shows can build up characters, plot arcs, adding depth to their world. Two of my favourite ever shows - "Babylon 5" and "The Wire" - are, by no co-incidence, some of the most heavily serialised shows of the last few decades.

    I tire quickly of most procedurals where there's no connecting storyline, or only the occasional nod (CSI, The Mentalist, etc). Some can get by on a few other elements - the acting in 'House' - but they never grip me the same way as a serialised show would. It's the same formula every week and there's little sense of growth. As somebody who doesn't just dip into a show, but has an "all or nothing" sensibility, this doesn't work well for me overall.

    Some shows do straddle a happy medium - 'Chuck' as above or say the Stargate franchise and that can be a good compromise. Overall though I just love world building done well.


  • #5
    Sad Professor
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Arts Moderators, Entertainment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 22,699 CMod ✭✭✭✭Sad Professor


    Yeah, standalone episodes grow tiresome after a while. With Fringe I found it refreshing at first, but now I just wish they'd get on with it.

    Serialisation is very hard to do well though. Lost did it brilliantly, as did Babylon 5. Where as 24 and Heroes tended to blow their load mid-season and coast to the finale. And while Lost had mid-season dips, it always managed to recover and deliver a spectacular season finale. The Wire benefited enormously from having much shorter seasons.

    Imo BSG and DS9 were closer to standalone shows that had an overall arc rather than outright serialisation. Although both of them became more serialised toward the end.


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