The New Age and Paradigm of Television
West Wing came on the air in 1999, when many networks began making the switch to cheaper, but highly rated, reality television which was spawned from prime time game shows. This was also the year The Sopranos debuted, and the gritty cable drama wave was still a few years away. West Wing filled a large percentage of quality, intellectual television at the time.
Only a few years later, when Studio 60 debuted in 2006, the landscape of television was very different and Sorkin comments on the state of television and the low expectations of reality tv often in the show. The drama work was going to cable and premium cable in the form of The Shield and Rescue Me on FX in 2002 and 2004 or Six Feet Under on HBO in 2001.
Look at the change, not only in the winners of Best Drama*, but the nominees, and you'll see they slowly creep and crowd out the networks, both from the high quality produced on cable and the lack of initiative from the networks to bother producing such shows.
* I almost hesitate to point this out being that the award shows often do not represent the truly best in television, particularly in the comedy categories. One of the big flaws is that the awards seem to function highly on inertia.
Golden Globe nominees and winners 2000-present
Emmy nominees and winners 2000-present
The point is Studio 60 partially failed due to it using the old paradigm of 42 minute episodic, commercially interrupted, shows. Newsroom adapts to the current model and is better set up for success, especially as compared to contemporary shows. For the first time in Sorkin's television work, he's including a season long arc which is one of the major characteristics of how television is modeled today. From reading coverage, it sounds like there is a legal battle, either at the center of, or in addition to the season long arc. Sorkin is at his best when writing some version of a courtroom *drama, whether it be hearings, depositions ** or an actual courtroom.*** ****
* Or a psycho-therapy setting
** Thinking about this makes me realize The Social Network and "Bartlet for America" have a very similar story structure.
*** Another strength of Sorkin's is flashback use or in medias res. He played with the structure for Season Two so much that he went to HBO about scrapping and starting over after a few episodes had been filmed. HBO, showing their commitment to quality yet again, said yes.
**** Marcia Gay Harden is cast in a lawyer-y part, and if she brings it like she did in Season Two of Damages, we're in for a treat
Comparisons to West Wing are inevitable, and while there are some aspects of television that are timeless, it is difficult to judge shows from today fairly against shows from even just ten years ago.
I wondered how/if Sorkin would adapt do the new model of hyper serialized dramas with anti-heros or centered around conflicted or even bad guys, considering how his protagonists are not only actual protagonists, but idealized versions of such. These days, only Raylan Givens wears the white hat, and even he goes hatless sometimes.
One thing he may have in common with Justified, if we listen to comments he's made promoting Season Two, is the ability to weave a season long story line* while still producing strong self contained episodes that also support the larger arc.
* The plotting on Justified (the best there is) is the subject of an upcoming post. Or two. We'll see.
Will Macavoy is Sorkin's first shot the new version of a lead. Will is a dick, or at least starts out that way. Unlikeable. Disenchanted, aloof, checked out, difficult, rich and really just not very nice. I am searching for his redeeming qualities (newfound honesty, sincere affection developing for his crew?) The "Jay Leno" of newsreaders, which is a great description of a lowest common denominator. Except his bitterness goes to such an extreme, it comes back around to start lashing out at those around him, all regarding the basis of his bitterness in the first place.
This is the impetus for the central conflict... the anti-hero awakens to finally create a cable news (not commentary) show that will seek to raise the level of debate, addressing a dire need and a severe dearth caused by the current state of media...and that is the Sorkin-trope to focus on with this show.
West Wing came on the air in 1999, when many networks began making the switch to cheaper, but highly rated, reality television which was spawned from prime time game shows. This was also the year The Sopranos debuted, and the gritty cable drama wave was still a few years away. West Wing filled a large percentage of quality, intellectual television at the time.
Only a few years later, when Studio 60 debuted in 2006, the landscape of television was very different and Sorkin comments on the state of television and the low expectations of reality tv often in the show. The drama work was going to cable and premium cable in the form of The Shield and Rescue Me on FX in 2002 and 2004 or Six Feet Under on HBO in 2001.
Look at the change, not only in the winners of Best Drama*, but the nominees, and you'll see they slowly creep and crowd out the networks, both from the high quality produced on cable and the lack of initiative from the networks to bother producing such shows.
* I almost hesitate to point this out being that the award shows often do not represent the truly best in television, particularly in the comedy categories. One of the big flaws is that the awards seem to function highly on inertia.
Golden Globe nominees and winners 2000-present
Emmy nominees and winners 2000-present
The point is Studio 60 partially failed due to it using the old paradigm of 42 minute episodic, commercially interrupted, shows. Newsroom adapts to the current model and is better set up for success, especially as compared to contemporary shows. For the first time in Sorkin's television work, he's including a season long arc which is one of the major characteristics of how television is modeled today. From reading coverage, it sounds like there is a legal battle, either at the center of, or in addition to the season long arc. Sorkin is at his best when writing some version of a courtroom *drama, whether it be hearings, depositions ** or an actual courtroom.*** ****
* Or a psycho-therapy setting
** Thinking about this makes me realize The Social Network and "Bartlet for America" have a very similar story structure.
*** Another strength of Sorkin's is flashback use or in medias res. He played with the structure for Season Two so much that he went to HBO about scrapping and starting over after a few episodes had been filmed. HBO, showing their commitment to quality yet again, said yes.
**** Marcia Gay Harden is cast in a lawyer-y part, and if she brings it like she did in Season Two of Damages, we're in for a treat
Comparisons to West Wing are inevitable, and while there are some aspects of television that are timeless, it is difficult to judge shows from today fairly against shows from even just ten years ago.
I wondered how/if Sorkin would adapt do the new model of hyper serialized dramas with anti-heros or centered around conflicted or even bad guys, considering how his protagonists are not only actual protagonists, but idealized versions of such. These days, only Raylan Givens wears the white hat, and even he goes hatless sometimes.
One thing he may have in common with Justified, if we listen to comments he's made promoting Season Two, is the ability to weave a season long story line* while still producing strong self contained episodes that also support the larger arc.
* The plotting on Justified (the best there is) is the subject of an upcoming post. Or two. We'll see.
Will Macavoy is Sorkin's first shot the new version of a lead. Will is a dick, or at least starts out that way. Unlikeable. Disenchanted, aloof, checked out, difficult, rich and really just not very nice. I am searching for his redeeming qualities (newfound honesty, sincere affection developing for his crew?) The "Jay Leno" of newsreaders, which is a great description of a lowest common denominator. Except his bitterness goes to such an extreme, it comes back around to start lashing out at those around him, all regarding the basis of his bitterness in the first place.
This is the impetus for the central conflict... the anti-hero awakens to finally create a cable news (not commentary) show that will seek to raise the level of debate, addressing a dire need and a severe dearth caused by the current state of media...and that is the Sorkin-trope to focus on with this show.
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