The new Horizons of Television Comedy in the 21st Century
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4185/10.4185/RLCS-64-2009-859-753-765Keywords:
Sitcom, new television comedy, USA, UK, Arrested Development, ExtrasAbstract
The situation comedy or sitcom has always been considered one of the most classic television genres. Its narrative structure and the way of production have not changed substantially from its origins in the decade of the 50s. When Seinfield (NBC, 1990-1998), Frasier (NBC, 1993-2004) and Friends (NBC, 1994-2004) ended up in the 90s without an immediate generational shift, many critics augured the death of the sitcom. However, that "crisis" encouraged a new kind of television comedy that has revitalized the genre at present times. The audience solidly, while not massively, supports these comedies and the critics greatly admire them. Therefore these TV series are undoubtedly the springboard that will mark the path of TV comedy in this 21st century.
This article points out the main characteristics of these new television comedies. There is an analysis of the first season of Arrested Development (FOX, 2003-2006)and Extras (BBC-HBO, 2005-2007). The characteristics include fiction-reality content, cinematic influence, documentary style, eccentric protagonist portrayal and an absurd humor.
Downloads
References
Álvarez Berciano, R. (1999): La comedia enlatada. De “Lucille Ball” a “Los Simpson”. Barcelona: Gedisa.
Brook, V. (2004): “Myth or consequences: Ideological fault lines in The Simpsons”. En Alberti, J. (Ed.), Leaving Springfield. The Simpsons and the possibility of Oppositional culture, Wayne State University Press, Detroit.
Cooke, B. (1983): Writing Comedy For Television. London: Methuen.
Creeber, G. (2001): The television genre book. London: BFI.
Chitnis, K., Thombre, A. and Rogers, E. (2006): ‘(Dis)similar readings: Indian and American Audiences’ Interpretation of Friends”. Internacional Communication Gazette, 68(2), pp. 131-145.
Curtis, B. (1982): “Aspects of sitcom”. En AA.VV., Television Sitcom. London: British Film Institute, London, pp. 10-11.
Frazer, J. and Frazer, T. (1993): “Father Knows Best and The Cosby Show: Nostalgia and the sitcom tradition”. Journal of Popular Culture, 27(3), pp. 163-172.
Jhally, S. and Lewis, J. (1992): Enlightened Racism: The Cosby Show, Audiences and The Myth of the American dream. Boulder: Westview Press.
Gordillo, I.: Narrativa y televisión. Sevilla: Editorial Mad.
Grandío, M. (2009): Audiencia, fenómeno fan y ficción televisiva. El caso de Friends. Buenos Aires: Libros en Red.
Grandío, M. (2006): “¿A qué se debe el éxito de Friends en España? Las claves de un humor que ha cruzado fronteras”. En Cascajosa, C. La caja lista: televisión norteamericana de culto. Barcelona: Laertes.
Hawkinson, J. (2004): “Breaking sitcom rules on Arrested Development”. En American Cinematographer, pp.107-108.
Horowitz, S. (1987): “Sitcom Domesticus: An endangered species”. En Television: The Critical View. New York: Oxford UP.
Holmes, D. and Jermyn, D. (2004): Understanding reality television, Abingdon-New York: Routledge.
Kelsey, G. (1990): Writing for Television. London: A and C Black publishers.
Kuipers, G. (2006): “Television and Taste Hierarchy: the Case of the Dutch Television Comedy”. En Media, Culture and Society, 28(3), pp. 359-378.
Mills, B. (2004): “Comedy Vérité: Contemporary Sitcom Form”. En Screen 2(45), pp. 63-78.
Morreale, J. (2000): “Sitcoms say goodbye: the cultural spectacle of Seinfeld´s last episode”. En Journal of Popular Film and Television, 28(3).
Morris, B. S. (1999): “Why is George so Funny? Television Comedy, Trickster Heroism, and Cultural Studies”. En English Journal 88(4), pp. 47-52.
Rannow, J. (2000): Writing Television Comedy. New York: Allworth Press.
Root, W. (1979): Writing the Script. A Practical Guide for Films and Television. New York: Henry Holt and Company, New York.
Screiber, B. (2003): What Are You Laughing at? How to Write Funny Stories, Screenplays, Stories and More. Saline: McNaughton and Gunn.
Taflinger, R. F. (2009): Sitcom: What It Is, How It Works. En: http://www.wsu.edu/~taflinge/sitcom.html. Fecha de consulta: 4 de junio de 2009.
Leverette, M., Ott, B. y Buckley, C. (2008): It’s not TV: watching HBO in the Post-Television Era. New York: Routledge.
Savorelli, A. and Comedy Verité (2009): The Observational Documentary Meets the TV Sitcom, en: https://muse.jhu.edu/article/222347/pdf
Savorelli, A. (2008) Oltre la sitcom. Indagine sulle nuove forme comiche della televisione Americana, Roma: Franco Angeli Edizioni.
Dunleavy, T. (2009): Hibridity in TV Sitcom: The Case of Comedy Verité, disponible en Flow TV: http://flowtv.org/?p=2244.
Walters, B. (2005): The Office. A critical reading of the series. Londres: British Film Institute.
