With Netflix having chopped a plethora of its shows such as Sense8 , GirlBoss and Marco Polo , there’s been a wake up call for producers across the telly-verse to keep the consistency to amaze alive. Perhaps that’s where the expression, “losing the plot” originated; the scope for certain shows to develop in terms of scripts have often reached a point of no return— causing a timely death. But one culture of shows have mostly managed to evade this curse: anthologies.
Topical shifts
The 1950s and 60s, also called the Golden Age of Television, brought about the fanciful anthologies we continue to revisit. The horror genre, specifically, has thrived in this subculture for the reminiscent feelings of childhood sleepovers filled with scary storytelling.
Producer and critic Taylor Hess explains how theme plays a prominent role in anthologies’ internal landscapes, adding, “I recently heard a scientist say that we’re not living through ‘The End’ right now, but it definitely seems like a solid dress rehearsal. The environment, the political climate and its leaders — the world feels like an endless stream of dystopia fantasies playing out in real time, on the news.” In this sense, looking toward art to satiate our craving for knowledge, understanding, meaning, insight makes sense, and perhaps anthology is one of the useful formats to engage audiences.
Now we have the likes of Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story which switches up the subject matter from season to season, unlike The Twilight Zone ’s episodic variety. The anticipation of season theme reveals invite a flurry of excitement on social media. So far, themes have included ‘Asylum’, ‘Freak Show’ and ‘Hotel’, and the newly-launched season, ‘Cult’ which is a take on the catastrophic social horrors following the election of Donald Trump.
To top it off, social forums such as Creepypasta have transitioned into television anthologies too, proving just how powerful audiences are to this universe. Twitter and Tumblr imploded when Syfy network aired Channel Zero , where each season is dedicated to each fan-created story.
The neighbour theme of crime has also inspired the anthology universe; True Detective and Fargo continue to intrigue watchers with the various horrors of the delinquent psyche. Each season presents a baffling and fragmented case which draws in the audience in refreshed cycles. While True Detective has had mixed reviews for their unsatisfying climaxes, true crime shows such as Ryan Murphy’s American Crime Story have been more popular; namely ‘OJ vs The People’ and the upcoming ‘Assassination Of Gianni Versace.’
Science-fiction has been nesting ground for some episodes of The Twilight Zone as well as BBC’s tech-oriented Black Mirror .
Taylor explains such genres are magnets for success as they provide metaphorical context to relevant social and political moments. Through exaggeration and imagination, stories help to demonstrate, reflecting our humanity in all its true colors and forms, shapes and sizes. She comments, “I’m not sure whether the anthology universe should encapsulate more genres or whether it’s limited to just horror, crime, and sci-fi, but I do personally, find these genres to be apt and popular, and for a good reason. In many ways, these genres may help us to document or understand different historical moments even better than documentary might!”
Keeping the script snappy
Writers and producers need to keep audience’s attention spans on deck; shows that have this much potential should be able to evolve in terms of plot without seeming like they’re grasping at straws to stay on the air.
Ryan Murphy, the executive producer/writer/director of "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story," takes part in a panel discussion on the FX series during the 2017 Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour at 20th Century Fox Studios on Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2017, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
It’s natural for many to synonymise Ryan Murphy with television anthologies these days, almost like a modern-day Rod Serling. Serling, the father of anthologies and mastermind of The Twilight Zone is a favourite to critic Ken Miyamoto. He takes Rod Serling’s lessons seriously including tips such as “Being like everybody is like being nobody,” and “Imagination; its limits are only those of the mind itself.”
Certain people’s perspectives when creating an anthology is integral in drawing in audiences according to Taylor, who sums it up, “I think it’s interesting when anthologies combine different works together to illustrate something new that I hadn’t previously considered. Combining a director from one culture or era with one from a completely different background or artistic perspective can actually help to highlight what is unique and special about each. I think this compare/contrast model is interesting. I also think it’s interesting when there is distance, some time to have reflected, to look back in hindsight and consider what some director or group of films at any given time once represented.”
