Complex narrative, creating complex television.

Television today is confusing. One of my favorite shows, Game of Thrones, has many characters which required me to search a map. Well, here it is:

 

 

  This map doesn't even cover the amount of characters introduced. Each character has their own back story, their own relationships. There are twists and turns in every episode, keeping viewers constantly on their toes. This show doesn't follow the mold of those before it. Full House didn't have me cringing, gasping, or crying. I wasn't hoping that DJ would find her dragons or that Danny would emerge victorious in his revolt against the Lanisters. What contemporary television does is it keeps you engaged, keeps you thinking. It's not the mindless shows that run on Saturday afternoons. Each episode ends in a cliffhanger, causing you to wonder where on earth the writers are going next episode. Game of Thrones isn't the only show taunting its views.

 

  Lost, the immensely popular adventure drama, makes its viewers nuts with smoke monsters, flash backs and ominous talk of 'the others'. I've just completed season one and I can say that it ties as one of my favorite shows with Thrones. I never know what's coming next, where the story is headed. This isn't your average castaway story, there is something strange about this island these unlucky flighters found themselves on. Season one wraps up without voices or sounds, just instrumental music tuning it all out. The viewers see the castaways boarding the plane, ending with the beginning, showing those who are still alive, struggling and deserted, and those who have perished, casualties of the island. The dramatic end, with its music and flashback, served to me as an in memoriam, mourning those who died and the lives all the castaways once lived. It drew an emotional response from me and I am sure I'm not alone.

 

 

That's contemporary television. Those shows that reach the viewers within, making them think, making them angry, upset, anxious, making them feel as though they knew these characters. Television is no longer a one sided activity, it requires, DEMANDS, the attention of its viewers, creating a never before seen experience.