Series
A series is a collection of episodes in a season that is aired on TV over the period of a year. Series can be released over time or sometimes they are released all at once. Conventional shows that air once a week usually have around 22 episodes in each season and air during non holiday seasons. Some shows have around 10 episodes and are released once a year on streaming platforms such as Netflix, Hulu, Youtube and Amazon.
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Different film industries in different countries have different perceptions and views on what series’s are supposed to be like. For example, in the UK. Each season is typically 6-10 episodes long. In the United States, each season can be anywhere from 10 episodes to 22 episodes depending on the production house, type of show and duration of each episode. Some shows have 22 episodes that run for around 22 minutes where as some that run for 45 minutes. There are also shows that are 10 episodes long and run for an hour long. Episodes are usually aired weekly during prime season for airing content which is usually from October to June.
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For example, Game of Thrones is a highly successful series tv show that first aired in 2011, it is a fantasy and drama show that has 10 episodes in each season that run for an hour long.
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In contrast to this, How I Met Your Mother is a highly successful tv show that first aired in 2005, it is a comedy American sitcom that has 22 episodes in each season that run for 22 minutes long.
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To put it into context, different genres and types of storyline shows have different structures of broadcasting as since the genres are different, this denotes vastly different storylines and plots between the different series. Game of Thrones is a very strongly narrative based show where a lot of plots and intense moments are a norm and it wouldn't be possible to fit everything they needed into 22 minutes as the tv show has a slow pace due to its nature. How I Met Your Mother is a comedy where they have a sub plot in every new episode but has a linear narrative running that continues over the course of the season. Therefore the length and broadcasting of each series depends on the type of show, genre and plot/narrative.
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On the right is as series of images from the two different shows, it is immediately seen that there is a vast differentiation between the two series dramas as Game of Thrones has a dark tone and is set in olden times, the clothing they wear and colour palette is much darker that of compared to How I Met Your Mother which is a comedy show and has an uplifting and comedic tone which is directly represented by its bright use of colour and setting as in the image we can see friends having a good time together having a drink, this directly reflects the ideal standings of a typical sitcom.
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In my own opinion, the use of different camera techniques and broadcast timing for different shows depends on the producer, the directors vision, the plot and narrative of the show, the genre and is severely impacted by the tone and setting of the series.
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Single Drama
A single drama is similar to a TV Series in respect but however is broadcasted only once, it provides an accurate presentation of real life scenarios and situations. It is often based on topics or issues that are more appropriate for television than in contrast to cinema based. In contrast to conventional TV Series, a single drama is where the plot will be resolved at the end of the episode, a series drama will run for a while to allow the plot to develop and take its time to resolve the key plot.
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A good example of a single drama is My Murder; this is based on true events. The single drama was released in Tuesday 17th April 2012; it was aired for 1 hour. The main character of my murder was Shakilus Townsend.
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Another example of another single drama show is See No Evil, this is about a Housewife, 49, Prime Suspect, The Road to Guantanamo and Death of a President. This single drama was watched by 6.2 million on ITV1. The estimated starting date of See No Evil was 26 September 2007. The genres of See No Evil are slasher, thriller and horror. Some of the main characters in See No Evil are Kira, Christine, Jacob Goodnight and many more.
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After vast amounts of research and analysation I conclude in my opinion that the decision of producing a single drama or series is dependant on the narrative and genre, a thriller, crime drama can be a perfect candidate for a single drama as a delicate and intricate story can be conjuncted into an hour of television that can follow "Todoruv's four act structure". The theory is about how narratives are divided into four different acts that are essential to develop a good intriguing story. The four acts include; The equilibrium (where everything is normal and balanced), The depression (the turning point in a story), The restoration (the character or characters attempt to restore and solve the problem), and lastly, The new equilibrium (this is the new balanced point of the story after the restoration and gives a conclusion to the story).
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Serials and Genres
A serial is a show that has a story-line it is often described as a serialisation from a book or a specific event. A serial is only broadcasted once and it does not end at each hour, it evolves around instalments and it generally reflects real life and has between 1 and 10 episodes. Normally they consists of 3 or more episodes. In a serial the Same characters and locations are going to be used and at the end of each of the episodes it finishes with a cliffhanger to follow through to the next episode.
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An example of a serial is Pride and Prejudice, which is set in Netherfield Estate in Hertfordshire; it is a romance set in the early 1800's. The serial consists of six hours - long episodes, which are adapted from the Jane Austen Novel of the same title. The serial consists of the following main characters: Mr& Mrs Bennet and their five children Elizabeth, Kitty, Lydia and Mary. It also includes Mr Darcy and Charles Bingley.
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Another example of a serial is Sherlock. Sherlock is a serial that has a story line taken from a series of novels written by Arthur Conan Doyle. The show airs once every 2 years and produces around 3 episodes every season, this is considered a serial as it is short and each story is a one off story that doesn't have a continuous narrative spanning over a season or multiple seasons as a normal conventional TV Show would have.
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In my opinion, it is a very grey area for some serial dramas and series dramas as for example, Sherlock which some would perceive as a TV Show, some would perceive it as a serial drama due to its short amount of episodes and a very spread out broadcast schedule.
