What formats will we use for dramatic web serials? TV series has three basic formats we can borrow and adapt: Anthology, Closed and Serial.
We don’t see anthology series often on television anymore,. They’re like mini-movies; each one stands alone. Every episode tells a complete story about a group of characters. Next week it’s a new story about new characters. Usually all the episodes are based on the same theme. For this summer’s Fear Itself, all the episodes are horror stories. Another example of an anthology series is Twilight Zone.
Serials are like Lost, 24 or Heroes in which there is a long story that is told or arced out over many episodes. This category also includes soap opera like the Young and the Restless so you may hear a serialized show referred to as a soapy. Or someone might call it arced, meaning that story “arcs” or plays out over many episodes. Most of the webseries I’ve seen fall into this category; Young American Bodies, Quarterlife, Take Me Back. This format has advantages and disadvantages. On the advantage side, you have room to develop long and interesting stories—which is a plus especially on the web where our episode lengths tend to be so short. On the disadvantage side, the series can be heard for new viewers to “break into.” I had a lot of trouble figuring out what was going on on Young American Bodies despite watching many episodes. The serialized components were so strong, I couldn’t follow the story without going back and watching many many of the previous episodes. Not quite the way to build an audience of new viewers, but serialization does reward loyal viewers and offers the ability to tell long rich multi-layered stories.
One of the important features of television serials is the cliffhanger. Episodes are written in such a way that they leave the viewer hanging, on the edge of their seat, wanting to know what happens next. Young American Bodies didn’t do that for me, but Take Me Back does it in spades.
The final format is series with closure. They have continuing main casts (unlike anthologies) and each episode tells a story that begins and ends in that episode. Most sitcoms follow this form; Friends, Seinfeld, Arrested Development. A web example of closed series is Wainy Days.
I think the best format for web series is to combine closed stories with longer serialized stories. I think a completed hit of story with a beginning, middle and end gives a viewer a kind of satisfaction that they are craving from an entertainment experience. The arced elements or longer narrative serve to keep bringing them back to watch the next episode.
You Suck at Photoshop does this. There’s a discreet and completed story every episode and in season one a story thread that held it all together was the dissolution of Donnie’s marriage. That was a lightly arced season.
Clark and Michael also combined closed and serial to tell the story of two young writers trying to break in in Hollywood.
What variations on TV's three basic formats have you seen?
