The Value of Brevity in Television Series or: Hurry Up And Finish Already

For quite a long while, good television shows were a novelty, with most of the decent programs being of the sitcom variety. Then, in the early part of the 2000s, dramatic television got really good, and with cable making up the bulk of it, there was a lot to choose from. If a show is successful both critically and commercially, there is a desire to keep it going as long as possible. While a lot of shows can do that effectively, with revolving cast members and standalone stories, some get tired and pass out of the sphere of relevance. The reason for this phenomenon is these shows fail to realize the one element that is paramount to good storytelling: The End.

LOST, has become a show I both love and despise. I've lost count of the number of times I've gotten so frustrated with its twisty, turny narrative and "What the fuck just happened?" cliffhangers that I'd thought about never watching it again. But the creators of LOST did a smart thing, and that was to announce a few years ago that the sixth season, of which we are four episodes in, would be the program's last. With a show like this, the concept of "The End" is possibly more important that the entire sum of the episodes that have come before. How will the mysteries be explained? What will be the big revelation? What happened to Walt? The finale probably won't answer all of these questions, but at least we'll go away knowing there isn't any more to know. And six seasons is a pretty good span of time for a show like this. The X-Files tried to stretch it to nine and suffered greatly for it. There's only so long people can put up with a premise.

With the advent of dvd box sets and sites like Hulu, it's become all too easy to catch up with shows you like. One summer, I plowed through four seasons of 24 in probably a three week span, watching the first ten episodes in one day. Binge-watching has become a way of life and one of its many advantages is that it allows the viewer to see the season as a single entity instead of 24 weekly jaunts. As such, it's much more difficult for writers to get away with unexplored threads and throwaway references. Shows like 24 seem like they were made for the binge-watching crowd to the point where watching the episodes once a week like everyone did just ten years ago diminishes the effect. Now in its 8th season, 24 may be looking at its finale as well. Even with dvd, the concept of a single day being depicted in "real time" can only be done so many times before it loses its edge. 24 could have ended after its phenomenal fifth season and gone down as one of the best shows ever, instead it might fade away as a cliche of the decade.

The Office is another good example of a show that might be losing some of its effectiveness as time goes on. Sure, the jokes are still funny, but how long can an audience buy that these people are being filmed by a documentary crew? In the current season, Dunder-Mifflin, the show's fictional paper company which serves as the titular building, is in huge financial trouble and has just recently been bought by a larger corporation. Surely, if this were indeed a true "documentary," the television network would have paid for access to the building and staff, and if it has been popular enough to be on into its sixth season, surely there would have been some talk about giving the office workers endorsement deals or movie contracts. The original UK version of The Office lasted just 14 episodes and one Christmas special, the length an actual camera crew might realistically follow these people around. Just food for thought.

Speaking of the good ol' Brits, they do things with television much differently than we Americans. Here in The States, a successful network show might run 5-7 seasons of between 22 and 26 episodes and a cable series might run 3-5 seasons of 13 episodes. This is common practice based on commercial revenue. England's television is largely government funded and they only have about four channels. Each season (called "series" across the pond) is 6 or 13 episodes, usually the former, with rare occasions of a 7 or 8 episode series. Usually these series are intended only to last their allotted episodes and no more meaning they have exactly six episodes to tell an entire story from beginning to end. If the show ends up being very popular, a year or more down the road they might commission a second or third series and tell another complete story. Good examples of this are Life on Mars, Spaced, and Coupling. The downside of this way of approaching television, from an American perspective anyway, is that if a viewer likes a program, they only have six episodes to watch and it may never return. The upside is that both the viewer and production team can have closure. They won't generally have to worry about being cancelled prematurely and never being able to finish telling their story.

So many shows here get cancelled before they can hit their stride. Firefly only got twelve episodes and didn't get a proper finale (until the movie Serenity which was pretty sweet). What would have happened if Firefly were made in England and their twelve episodes were a complete tale? This is a show I discovered because of dvd and would have liked a few more episodes to round out the narrative. It might behoove us to follow the English mentality simply for practicality sake. Even shows I like now, I secretly hope will end so I can be free of the commitment to them. I want closure. CSI is in its 10 season, SVU in its 11th, and the original Law & Order is in year 20. These shows aren't bad, but doesn't it seem to be too much? The Sopranos lasted six seasons, Battlestar Galactica four seasons, and Deadwood only three (a real shame) yet I don't count them any less a triumph than shows that have been on since the first Bush was president. Quality not quantity here folks.

So with LOST and (potentially) 24 drawing to a close in the coming months, think about how you want your favorite shows to be remembered. Like finishing a good book, watching a season of good tv can be a triumph. The triumph can be lessened when you know there's just another long struggle for the characters you love close on its heels. You want these characters to have peace and happiness, or at least contentment and closure. You need, as much for yourself as for them, it to be The End.

You're welcome.
-Kanderson