Series Burnout (And How to Avoid It)

by Gerald So

Back in July on my P.I. fiction list DetecToday, we discussed novel series versus standalones.  Thinking about  the same in TV and movies, I found I'd lost much of my enthusiasm for series.   TV series (and movie franchises to a lesser extent) have the opportunity to follow characters in more depth over a longer span of time.  However, given the structure of a TV season and the goal to keep a series going for several seasons, most of them go on too long, the characters' lives taking twists that alienate as many viewers as they draw. The longer a series runs the more likely original plans will be thrown out, leaving us to wonder, "How will the series end? When it does, will I care?"

Romance is a common arc for many series, and many rightfully avoid putting characters together too soon.  However, sexual tension can only be drawn out so long.  Watching the finale of JAG' s ten-year run, which ended with adversarial lawyers and best friends Harmon Rabb and Sarah MacKenzie agreeing to marry.  Hypothetically it was the moment we'd all waited for, but the relationship had seen so many ups and downs over the years, I didn't care.

Other series simply don't age well.  The teen private eye show Veronica Mars starred Kristen Bell as a street-smart, tart-tongued 17-year-old.  The pressures and personalities so present in  high school couldn't be duplicated when the series shifted to college in the third season.  And the proposed fourth season, which would have jumped years ahead to Veronica as an FBI trainee, didn't get the green light from network execs.

Law & Order and its spinoffs avoid the pitfalls of a series by avoiding continuity.  Each episode is self-contained, but also very similar to the rest.  The series have gone on for years with no significant character growth.

Back in July, I was ready to give up series for memorable standalone movies like The Maltese Falcon or Casablanca .  Then a new series surprised me, USA Network's Burn Notice .

Jeffrey Donovan stars as Michael Westen, a covert operative suddenly disavowed ("burned") and confined to Miami, coincidentally where he grew up.  Each of twelve episodes sees Michael help a client out of a jam, struggle with personal relationships he tried desperately to avoid, and solve a bit of the larger mystery of who burned him and why.  The two-hour season finale is edge-of-your-seat viewing at its best.

I'll be tuning in next summer.