DTF955
05-08-2008, 08:25 AM
this is a followup to a few other polls I've done. I'm curious about how people view sitcoms, and TV in general. (This would have made a great Independent Study Thesis topic for me at the College of Wooster - stil would for anyone else, in fact.)
So, since I've asked about inconsistencies and about how you view the passage of time, I have another question, based off of something someone said recently, when highlighting errors. They said that an error was that an episode which aired in january (probably because of postponements for some reason) should not have mentioned where a couple should go for Christmas. I have also heard people say that an error occurred - here in "Cheers, IIRC - because an implied span of a year or so wasn't explicitly stated.
So, I'm wondering, how closely do you expect shows to follow the calendar? In a way, yes, it's nice when thye do, but in another...you know, one can get too strict very easily. If you expect a show to take place when it's aired, where do you draw the line; a show that's on on Thursdays can't very well have every episode take place on a Thursday. Nor can they jump around in the week depending on when the episode takes place. :crazy:
Personally, I think it's nice to stay in season and not try to jump too far ahead - then you have the question of when a series really began, etc.. However, I'm okay with episodes being a bit out of order in-season. I view a sitcom as being like a pen pal writing letters, telling what happened. And, you're not always going to tell every story in a straight linear fashion; but you'll group things together. So, for instance, it makes perfect sense to think of the "Full House" earthquake episode as coming before a few other episodes, because it's like a friend saying, "Oh, say, I didn't tell you about the 4earthquake, did I?" after they've told you a few other things that have happened. but, it doesn't make much sense to have them interrupt with something that happened 2 years earlier. :-)
So, since I've asked about inconsistencies and about how you view the passage of time, I have another question, based off of something someone said recently, when highlighting errors. They said that an error was that an episode which aired in january (probably because of postponements for some reason) should not have mentioned where a couple should go for Christmas. I have also heard people say that an error occurred - here in "Cheers, IIRC - because an implied span of a year or so wasn't explicitly stated.
So, I'm wondering, how closely do you expect shows to follow the calendar? In a way, yes, it's nice when thye do, but in another...you know, one can get too strict very easily. If you expect a show to take place when it's aired, where do you draw the line; a show that's on on Thursdays can't very well have every episode take place on a Thursday. Nor can they jump around in the week depending on when the episode takes place. :crazy:
Personally, I think it's nice to stay in season and not try to jump too far ahead - then you have the question of when a series really began, etc.. However, I'm okay with episodes being a bit out of order in-season. I view a sitcom as being like a pen pal writing letters, telling what happened. And, you're not always going to tell every story in a straight linear fashion; but you'll group things together. So, for instance, it makes perfect sense to think of the "Full House" earthquake episode as coming before a few other episodes, because it's like a friend saying, "Oh, say, I didn't tell you about the 4earthquake, did I?" after they've told you a few other things that have happened. but, it doesn't make much sense to have them interrupt with something that happened 2 years earlier. :-)