This past year of television has been filled with some real serialized treats, but there are some shows on our radar that we wish had adopted a more serialized approach in their storytelling, for a variety of reasons.
With that said, the team here at Seriable have weighed in with our top 5 shows that we wish had been more serialized in 2011 – along with reasons why. (and there might be one or two surprises.)
5. DOCTOR WHO
Doctor Who is one of two shows on our list that had a fantastic story arc in 2011 — so much so that it left us wanting more. Series 6 continued the story threads from series 5, largely exploring the Silence and the identity of River Song. But this engaging story was interrupted by too many standalone episodes like “The Curse of the Black Spot” and “Night Terrors,” which did little to develop the central storyline. We can’t help but wonder what more could have been if every episode counted.
4. FRINGE
The back-end of Fringe season three developed into one of the show’s most serialized periods as Peter faced his destiny in a bid to heal the warring universes, culminating in one of the most enigmatic and daring TV moments of 2011. The opening seven episodes of season 4 have explored the ramifications of Peter’s actions in conceptually interesting ways, but sadly haven’t tackled the central conflict with the vigour that we hoped. Too many episodes have felt like ‘cases’ reflecting the overarching story rather than moving it — or the characters — forward. It’s for this reason that Fringe makes this list — because we know what the show could be it just embraced its serialized DNA without compromise.
3. GRIMM
Grimm makes our list because out of the two fairytale-fueled debutants in 2011 (the other being ABC’s Once Upon A Time), Grimm is the one that badly needs to give us more overarching story to play with. Maybe if it developed the ongoing mythology, Grimm would turn into Grimm!
2. TERRA NOVA
Given the kid-friendly edict on Terra Nova, it might not have reached ‘greatness’ even if it had been more serialized, but the last few episodes leading up to the finale is proof that addressing the central conflict makes for a more enjoyable show. Too much time was wasted in the opening two thirds of the season with standalone ‘adventures’ that failed to develop the characters/story and carve out a convincing world. You just can’t afford to waste that sort of time, particularly given the weight of expectation that went with the show.
1. PERSON OF INTEREST
The two episodes before the midseason break (“Get Carter” and “Number Crunch”) weren’t without their obvious faults, but they did address more serial matters and the show was a lot more enjoyable and meaningful for it. With a great creative team and quality cast behind it, POI has the potential to become a distinctive landmark series like 24. But it will truly be a waste of an idea and the talents of Michael Emerson and Jim Caviezel if the show gets canceled without focusing on the overarching story, or winds up becoming a by-the-numbers procedural that can’t possibly justify its high-concept premise.
PERSON OF INTEREST Renewed For Season 2
TERRA NOVA: Season 2 Decision Delayed Until 2012
SHERLOCK: Reichenbach Fall -- Explained
ONCE UPON A TIME: The Comprehensive Character Guide
CBS Coughs Up Fall Schedule: Where Goes PERSON OF INTEREST?
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ONCE UPON A TIME OBSERVATIONS: 1.22 A Land Without Magic
FRINGE OBSERVATIONS: 4.22 Brave New World: Part 2
ONCE UPON A TIME OBSERVATIONS: 1.21 An Apple Red As Blood
FRINGE OBSERVATIONS: 4.21 Brave New World: Part 1
ONCE UPON A TIME OBSERVATIONS: 1.20 The Stranger
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Before clicking on the article, I knew PoI would be on here, and I sort of agree. I’m not completely attached to serialized shows, but the wait to find out more about Reese and Finch is agonizing.
Also the same with Terra Nova, they haven’t hit their full potential yet.
As for Fringe, that’s the reason why I stopped watching in season one. It seemed like every single episode did nothing to promote the story.
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If you stopped after Season 1 for Fringe, you missed some truly good serialized plots. I would highly recommend watching the rest of the show for these reasons if you found the mythology episodes from S1 intriguing. There were still a small handful of standalone episodes, but you’d be able to go right to the next episode instead of waiting angrily for a week.
I don’t watch all these shows, but based on things you’ve written, Roco, this appears to be a good list. Last season, Fringe would have been on the list of shows that were a good level of serialized, but it definitely deserves its spot.
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I doubt that POI will become much more serial. Keeping Carter as an antagonist for several episodes before bringing her into the fold was interesting, but I doubt CBS is interested in anything other than a standard procedural with dribs and drabs of character history stretched over years. After all, it’s a successful formula.
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