It seems that when looking at older sitcoms like Full House, Family Matters, and The Cosby Show, they seem to follow a more episodic structure. That is, they usually have a lesson that is learned by the end of the episode, there is familiar and predictable plot development, and each episode is likely to raise and answer central question. I believe that this similar structure is attributed to the time period in which family sitcoms were very popular, and much of the plot revolved around the children learning lessons.
http://www.carseywerner.net/cosbyshow_eng.htm
However, modern shows seems to be shaking up the norms in sitcoms. Shows like The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Pushing Daisies, seem to have more of a serial structure. This means that generally they advance long-term plots, plot patterns aren't as predictable, there may or may not be a central question raised, the show isn't as lesson-centered. The shows we see today are very different than those we have seen in earlier decades. They present different situations, and don't always center around the family. Because of the deviation from the focus of family, I believe that modern sitcoms have been allowed to create much more dynamic situations, and have in turn taken more serial structures.
http://www.jellostapler.com/the-office-downloads.html
In whole, modern shows seem to have taken a more serial structure while older sitcoms utilized a more episodic structure.
No comments:
Post a Comment