Decoding The Formula!

Ask any University student from India who watches a lot of TV shows in his/her laptop as to which is their favorite show of all time. The student will appear confused, maybe count with fingers, do some arrangement and then say X, Y and Z (say) are equally good shows.

Why so, you may ask? The answer is simple. The typical Indian student is a good observer, a sharp critic and most importantly, a major contributor to the hype and hoopla of the television industry. Be it Hollywood or South India's most active Kollywood, every evolving teenager takes away a lot from the screen. This post, probably my most serious one, is an attempt to reveal the various dynamics that makes a TV series successful.


Aimlessly clicking my screen, I blinked for a second, stunned. My hard disk had 32 shows inside the folder 'TV Series', out of which I had completely watched 22 of them. So, I considered myself qualified to write this article!

I have always thought of myself as a people person. So naturally, after 22 shows encompassing almost all genres a human mind could possibly think of, I feel I have explored and understood a lot, if not everything, about how many things work - minds, relationships, situations, decisions and whatnot, not to mention pure entertainment. But what then struck me was the fact that these shows kept me glued, catching me unawares of the time that had passed - close to about 3 college semesters. Which got me thinking: Come to think of it, what ARE the primary factors that mold and contribute to the success of modern day TV series?

 

1. THE NETWORK

In TV lingo, the primetime is said to be the most important and critical period in the evening, when folks of the house sit down to watch something on the telly. Naturally, what is aired at that time has an impact on the monthly numbers reported, which makes a cable network successful. Now, it can be said that a popular cable network can always ensure a successful show, but this common belief is quite wrong. On the contrary, hit shows enhance the credentials of a network even more. For example:

CBS - How I  Met Your Mother (Eight seasons and running), Two and a Half Men,
           The Big Bang Theory.
AMC - Mad Men, Breaking Bad.
HBO - Entourage, Game of Thrones, The Newsroom.
NBC - The Blacklist (recently released, of James Spader fame).

Depending on the success of every season of any show and the numbers generated, the network decides whether to renew the series for another season. Many shows have faced the brunt of this logic in a severe manner. One such show was Lie To Me. Owing to the fact that despite the huge audience during the re-runs, the show did not generate the expected revenue at its original airing time (possibly due to a very thin storyline), hence cancelling the show after 3 seasons. Many hardcore fans went to the extent of creating "Save Lie To Me" pages and requests to the show runners and cable owners, but to no avail.


2. THE CAST

Sometimes, an ensemble cast (featuring a loaded cast of popular celebrities) does the trick for the show, with each of them flaunting their own persona to the delight of their hardcore fans. A good example for this is 'The Newsroom' which boasts names like Dev Patel (Slumdog Millionaire), Olivia Munn and Emily Mortimer(The Pink Panther).

In many shows like 'White Collar', 'Suits', 'Castle' and 'Franklin and Bash', the show is primarily fuelled by the chemistry/bromance of the lead duo. Such a casting often helps a script writer when it comes to scripting humor, witty one-liners and in some cases, a prolonged romantic atmosphere rattling the otherwise comfortable man-woman duo, as in the case of 'Castle', 'Royal Pains' and (of late), 'The Mentalist.'

 

However, the above need not be true all the time. Not many people around the globe knew Bryan Cranston prior to the all time classic 'Breaking Bad'. Jon Hamm was virtually unknown before playing Don Draper in the five-time Golden Globe nominated 'Mad Men'. (Seen in first pic)

But unless the plot presents twists and continues to promise, dazzle and entertain viewers in a very fascinating way, shows may tend to lean too much on the celeb power and on-screen bromances.


3. THE GENRE.

TV shows are usually of various genres, the most popular these days being situational comedies (sitcoms), procedural drama and police procedural. For example, 'The Mentalist' (Simon Baker, Robin Tunney, Tim Kang) is a police procedural that usually airs one episode a week following a "Case of the Week' formula to entertain its viewers on the various crimes that takes place in the city of Sacremento, California. On the other hand, 'Boardwalk Empire' (starring Steve Buscemi, Kelly MacDonald) is a crime and period drama that follows a prstory arc based on the real life story of Enoch L. Johnson, a political mobster who promoted illegal bootlegging in the state of Atlanta, to ensure its position as an entertainment hub for tourists.

There are exceptions of course, as in the case of USA's 'Suits' (starring Gabriel Macht, Patrick J. Adams) which followed a case of the week pattern followed by a 16 episode story arc second season. The third season is not yet complete. Even more interesting is the way the series '24' presents its story: A situation that lasts for 24 hours is captured with each hour accounting for every episode for a total of 24 episode for every season. Unique indeed!


4. THE CREW AND OTHERS.

A closer observation (read that as following the developments of a TV series fanatically) reveals the hidden-yet-obvious fact that creating, producing and successfully running a TV show is as good a teamwork as any sport or art can demand.

I briefly followed the writers of 'The Mentalist' on Twitter. I don't know exactly the number of writers who were involved but they certainly worked together as a team, around a table, a perfect example of brainstorming. Before every season, they occasionally put up pictures about how each episode is hinged on one key word which develops into a main plot with the sub plot and case of the week woven into the series, complete with humor and character outlines.

Bruno Heller, the creator, also serves as an EP (Executive Producer), thereby helping provide valuable inputs that enhances the series' originality. Sometimes, Simon Baker himself directs a few episodes, discuss scenes with the producers, along with adding charms and expressions of his own, making him a very amicable person and a household name in the US.


5.  THE CHARACTERS

All the above factors and other factors (like costumes, props, setting, location, etc) contribute significantly to the success of any TV series.  But I strongly feel that it is truly the CHARACTERS developed by the script that adds to the entertainment quotient to tip the numbers in your favor, should you be the producer of your very own TV series. Why is this so? Let's take a walk down inside ourselves.

Every one of us have our own desires and ambitions in life - to reach a certain level, to come to the level of Mr. X , to ooze style like Mr. Y , to be successful to the likes of .....well, there you have it. That's the answer. Yearning!

Every writer, producer and director cashes in on these yearnings and desires of the general masses with different aspirations living in different parts of the world and strives to create a show where the common man can associate himself with the character on screen. The genius of this gimmick is that the character is also given a dash of the fictitious, a touch of the fantastic and a partial feel of the unreal, which makes us (the consumers and avid entertainment seekers) DESIRE them, awakening in us a wild romantic, a master mind-reader or perhaps even the criminal within!!! What's the evidence?

a. The appearance of actress Christina Hendricks as office manager Joan in 'Mad Men' is said to have sparked a renewed interest in a voluptuous look for women, and to be partly responsible for, among other things, a 10% increase in breast implant surgery in Britain in 2010.

b. A recently discovered sea-slug is named after the beautiful Khaleesi (Daenerys Targaryen) from Game of Thrones. It's called Tritonia Khaleesi. Researchers noted the similarities between the pale, effervescent sea slug and its fair-haired nomenclature

 

 

 

c. A lot of facts (like the fact that most of the cast of Breaking Bad were comedians, including Cranston, like the fact that Warren Buffet felt Walter White was a very good businessman, like the fact that people are actually getting jailed trying to emulate cooking methamphetamine, taking inspiration from the show) are often unknown to the general public. But that's just about a tenth of the stuff you don't know if you are a fan of this classic.

    The last episode was rated 9.9 on 10 by IMDB and the name Felina for the final episode was a combination of 3 elements, Fe- indicating blood (Iron present in haemoglobin), Li- the main constituent in meth, Na- Sodium, present in tears!!

 

 

You could easily obtain these facts on the net, but that's the sort of excitement and fanaticism generated by the fans in following brilliant TV shows like the ones I mentioned above: they LIVE their shows and they want more. What more could the EPs ask for? They are glad to oblige!

 

I haven't mentioned a whole lot of other shows like Sherlock, Mind Your Language, Everybody Loves Raymond, Downton Abbey, Person of Interest, House M.D, Dexter, Friends, Fringe, Hotel Babylon, Homeland, Boston Legal.......Now, I'm just reading all this from my hard disk because that's how vast the universe of television shows really are. Literally, that's just about the size of it :)



God, Im so sorry

I am not a fan of Sachin Tendulkar.

There. Would that be enough to get your attention? Well, it has always been the truth. He used to play aggressively they say. Then he changed and adjusted his innings as best suited his aging body which was plagued by the injuries, famous of them all - the Tennis Elbow.

I was arrogant enough to say I didn't give a damn where and how he batted. All what concerned me was that he scored runs as a Team India player and that was enough and that was all there was to it. At least to my blinded eyes. India weren't exactly a superpower in cricket then. Oh, save the tomatoes and spoilt eggs. I'm no fool to incur the wrath of a nation by a single blogpost which speaks ill about The Greatest Cricketer The World Will Ever Know. (Is this title longer than He Who Must Not Be Named? You bet.) This is what happened.




Yesterday - 14th November, 2013  18:00 hours
The attendance shortage was alarming. This was my first in my seven semesters of university life. Life had to go on. Something had to be done. But why in this world was everyone harping about Tendulkar? Cmon people, give him a break, he's also a human being as far his physical form goes.

Every turn, every corner, you could hear people buzzing about his achievements, stats, numbers, figures....aargh! It just went on. I mean, 200 is just a number. And I had a lab exam coming up. Was I too selfish?


Years Ago
I remembered my dad cheering and constantly praising Sachin. And I nodded, not wanting to disagree with my own dad. Deep down inside, I didn't feel any different about Tendulkar than any other Indian player. Maybe, and this is really a maybe, I was a Dravid fan and I felt hurt when he was often overshadowed by Tendulkar's knocks which came almost in the same matches in which Dravid scored.


Yesterday - 14th November 2013  01:00 am
And then, all of a sudden, there was no way out of the attendance problem. And my preparations for the laboratory exam went awry. After much discussions and walking and talking, people slowly retired to their rooms. My watch read 01:36 am.

Bored, I took my phone and switched it on. What IS the nation saying? Twitteratti were all gaga over #ThankYouSachin #SRT200. More than 7 articles in the last 3 days were about Tendulkar in Cricinfo - his life, his first test century, his brief Yorkshire stint and excerpts from legends all over the world about his glittering career.

Helpless

As usual, straight from my experiences. Only this time, I had 2 of them in 3 days. And here it goes.

 

 

 

The gifts lay untouched, the wishes remained unconveyed, stale.

The mind numb with shocked silence
Unable to comprehend and come to terms

With the sudden malignant growth

Of that ice block so hard
That even Time with his iron grip
Squeezed and melted only a droplet or two
Of that burdensome block of sorrow.
Such was the ice, so thick so harsh
That made the winters of Hell look realistically bearable.

 

The efforts went unnoticed, the heartfelt emotions stagnant.
The soul bereft of happy wavelengths
Searching in vain and find out
What wrong he had committed
In births of his distant past
To suffer a fate so disdainful
Where there was Hate returned in double measure

For the exchange of his earnest Love for all beings alike

From his tiny heart which once swelled with magnanimity
Now deflated with confusion and punctured with hurt.

 
If only his heart was ripped apart
And displayed for the cruel, unassuming world to see
They would witness aghast, with regret so deep
A love shaped purity kept alive, pumped by Universal Love
Flowing in his veins that pulsed innocence to the truly understanding.
Innocence that screamed helplessly
For the world to be forgiving, mutual and deep-rooted
In openness, sharing and selflessness, all but now extinct.
But alas, they played and plucked and toyed and clawed
At his heart, eroded excruciatingly by Pain immeasurable

 

He did wince once, a weak smile or two
When a voice of yore echoed the prophetic truth
That stood the test of Time:
“Who shall be blamed except your own self
For raising expectations? For, once the thread is broken,
There shall never be
A second time, let alone the intensity or the feeling”
He nodded humbly, embracing his own wisdom.
The preacher became the preached as the drops of sorrow
Dripped from that block of ice, Time’s iron clasp
Finally cleansing, trickle by trickle, the soul of his sins.

The Eternal Optimist Unplugged - Version 1.0

"Mirror, mirror, mirror on my shelf
Am I doing well for myself?"

I mentally echoed this question off my mirror and I saw the reflection of a tired teenager with sunken eyes without the glow of continuous energy he once had.

I'm here with this post to make a....ah, what's that phrase? 'a clean breast of everything' to the best possible extent. And this might not be just about me. You may be in the same boat as me in the same lake, or perhaps in a cruise in the ocean ways with no visible captain steering that unstable ship of your life. So, you might be able to do yourself a favor by reading on.

THE Autodriver - Hidden truths about Chennai

Let me skip the part where I say this happened when I was doing my internship and I chose to meet up with my almost-always-awfully-late but an awesome project partner in the evenings at Express Avenue - Chennai's best and most celebrated mall in the recent times. Simply put, the atmosphere was condusive there. Well, there was this fashion show that took place with gorgeuos models with glowing skin and rich dresses which I shall....Ahem ahem...conveniently skip (Now now, no groaning) to discuss matters of greater significance.

Note: All conversations are in English, for readers' convenience.





"Express Avenue", I said firmly to an auto I just managed to catch in a road that literally boasted CARS loudly.

"Evalo aavum (How much is the fare)", I asked promptly before setting my right foot inside the vehicle.

"Nooru ruva."

I set my right foot firmly inside the auto, carefully stowed my laptop bag to the side and started the trip, satisfied with his character. Little did I know that my next sentence would be the basis for this very post you are now reading.

The Scare - 1

Saying "I was busy" is no excuse. Calling myself a passionate blogger without a single entry for four months is of not something I can be proud of. But after months of hectic last moment-work completion-due-to-initial-laziness routine, I finally fought through my holidays to do an internship when I encountered this particular and a true incident where I finally thought, "Hey, this would make a good story to tell." So folks, welcome back to my blog and Happy reading!

Note to readers:
1.Short stories are not (yet) my forte. Proceed at your own reading risk!
2. Places not revealed for personal reasons.





Headache. Upset stomach. Where is the damn train?

I looked at my watch. 3:55 pm. Krishnan was busy jabbing away on his phone. Was it a girlfriend? None of my business, I chided myself.

Krishnan who? Well, It was my second week into my internship at Z. Krishnan was one of my project mates. We had a swell first week and a not so-swell second week. Reasons for that were my health, our randomness and our realization of "Woah, this a vast subject", all in that order. My stomach took a turn for the worse and here I was whispering prayers to all the gods I knew to take me home safely before my body betrayed me!

The station at Z was where we always stood to take our local train. Krishnan got down at A and a few stops later, it was my station B. Today, we arrived earlier at the station, quite earlier than our usual 5:15 train. I guess that's enough introduction.

"I am going to kill myself if its the same dingy train that came yesterday. Dude, tell those samosa hawkers not to get into this one. Absolutely no place man", I said, keeping a straight face with a contantly twisting stomach, trying to sound cool.

Krishnan looked up and threw his typically distracted I-type-yet-I-hear-you-without-distraction smile. Many people I knew,always asked Krishnan whether he was trying to be a military man with that tight posture, restricted lip movements and a sound physique. He appreciated humor of any kind with open arms, but was generally a silent person. No point distracting him.

Long honking cushioned with Doppler Effect. Phew! The train arrived. Not dingy. Double phew!

Empty with seats!!! Triple phew! Triple Yay in fact. After jumping compartments like two excited school kids, we settled down in a first class compartment which was empty, barring two people.

"Who's bag is this?" , Krishnan asked and plonked himself next to the window seat.

"Bag? What bag?", I asked.

This is where, my dear kind readers, the story finally begins.

It was a harmless looking red shoulder bag with black sling. With the letters TNROA printed on it.

I had this habit of trying to answer people's questions without giving a no. So, I switched to Sherlock Holmes mode. Half guessed the fact that he was a tall man judging by the length of the sling. Quite a careful and an economical fella when it came to matters of money. Well, the fact that it appeared worn but well used was really a giveaway. TNROA? I didnt have Holmes' brain.

"Tamil Nadu Revenue Officials Association", I exclaimed after a minute. I could tell you I was superhuman. Nah. Il be honest. Krishnan saw me googling it.

"So, he's a revenue officer? Hope he wont check our tickets.", I thought.

"What dya reckon? A bomb inside that?", asked Krishnan. Damn you man. You had this knack of hyping petty things up and sizing huge things down.

"Dont be silly man! Bomb? In a local train? Gimme a break.", I said fending off his loudly spoken thought.

"There's no one in this compartment. Somebody left it here, didnt they? Looks like it was on purpose.", persisted my partner.

For the first time in my life, I regretted reading crime novels and action thrillers.

"Dai dai, dont give me the creeps. My stomach i already weak."

By this time, our train crossed 2 stations and was chugging along to a halt on the platform of D. Here was where the nearby college's "hot chicks" and other college boys would get in. Three of those "other" boys got in.

Now, Im going to give them names. They played such a vital part in this one. Let me see...
Im calling them Ipod, Racer and Foodie. Ipod cos this guy was hooked on to it after the bag incident, Racer as he started playing that bike game and Foodie because he was pleasantly round, chubby and....you get it, dont you? Hey, dont blame me. In my defense, he WAS carrying a Food Management course book or something!

"Excuse me, but can you keep your bag on your lap?", asked Racer.

Oh dear! This was going to be one long train journey!

Who owned this bag? Why was it left here? Was that actually a bomb?
Well, it wasnt a bomb, cause I'm alive typing this. I'll conclude this part with one no-brainer of a clue as to what you can expect. 'The Scare' turned out to be ironic.



To be continued.







 

Fighting tooth and nail for a Q5

The title is an exaggeration. Not exactly tooth and nail. But I did as he told. 'He' meaning my dad.


"So, 10 on 10. Will you get it this semester?"

No way. Was he asking for the unreachable? All this for an Audi?


Well, Audi is and must be gifted for special reasons and occasions. So no excuses there. The brand is for people who reach out and 'ready to die trying' people. Like me. So yeah, i wanted to give it my best shot for the next semester exams. Continuous evaluation in college made life hell with all sorts of record writing, etc. But I wanted to try. I tried protesting.

"You know, dad, that my highest score is nowhere near that!"

Dad was a stickler. An ethics guy. But a cool guy. He was willing to buy even 2 Audis for me. His love for Audi started way back when he worked for different automotive companies. He always prided on brand value and Audi was no exception.

"In 2012, Audi kept leaders BMW and Merc worried about their lead in the Indian markets. Audi grew the fastest at 79% a quarter ago and I stake my bets on Audi. Cmon son, they are doing their best to break more than even and stay at no 1, why the hell can't you put the same effort??''

There. I stared incredulously. My own dad compared me with a car! There you go, that's the kind of love we are talking about. Intensely fierce competition runs down in our blood and that spices things up. Audi is no different.

"But dad, I want the Q5 So badly! The SUV for a new generation.Just like me dad, "Convincing without being persuasive." Its sportive without being unreasonable giving efficient driving pleasure.", I reeled off these words as exactly given in the description of the Q5 at Audi.in, straight from my mind!!

My dad, however, didnt miss the trick. "Those were from the site, wasnt it??"

I grinned sheepishly, hands scratching my head. He started walking away with a smile.

I was a single guy all life long. I could depend on Audi to pick up the right chick for me. Hell yeah, only best friends know the right kind of girl for you. Well, I love the Audi more than my girlfriends anyway, if i ever get one. I could silently drive through the night and my Audi would keep company for my thoughts. Steering was the least worrisome affair. A friend of mine once told me he would'nt trade his Audi even for his right lung! Yeah, he was a smoker alright.

"Just imagine the class I would proudly show, Dad! You know I've worked hard! give it another thought na??"

He stopped in his tracks and turned. I half expected him to dangle those brand new Q5 keys from his hands.

"Son, let me give you a piece of advice. With Audi, there are no second thoughts. Likewise, for you, there are no second chances. You want an Audi, go and put your damn effort. Now run. Atta Boy!", said my dad and walked away with a final flourish.

Guess what I'm gonna do next? Get that elusive baby. That one of a kind beauty. Who wants a gal when Audi is that mistress who lets you indulge in her? I wasnt satisfied with my new Audi scale model. I want the real thing. All of it. Im going after her.

Now, if anyone asks my readers what my first love was, they'd tell you, in glowing terms, that I was a nutjob who loved Audi like no-one ever did. So much for love. So much for Audi.