E379R * Binge-watching: A Cultural History * Dr. H.

Wojciehowski

2nd Exam Questions

Part I:
10 IDs (characters, places, etc.) from post-Spring Break screenings (choice of 11, 1 pt. ea).

Part II:
Scripts from The Office (UK and US), Treme, and Stranger Things (choose two of four, 25 pts.
ea.). Do a close reading of the two scripts.

Part III: Essay question. What, in your view, are the three most important factors that make a
series bingeable? In your answer, please reference as many series from our course as possible,
as well as the series that you are writing about in your final paper. Please discuss at least two
chapters from Mittell, Chapters 5-10, and cite page numbers, as well (40 pts. ea.). You can
decide on what to incorporate ahead of time.
 There are many factors that make a series deemed “bingeable”, in my opinion

characters, drama, and accessibility which goes hand in hand with comprehension as said by

Mittell. First, the overall likeability of characters draw the audience in. Complex, yet likable

characters are key to creating a bingeable television show. As seen in the comparison of the UK

and US versions of The Office during this class, there is anecdotal evidence from my peers that

the US version is much more “bingeable”. Some of my classmates said this was because the UK

version of The Office was “too cringey”, but I think part of this was also due in part to the

“boss” character played by Carrell and Gervais. Carrell, and the producers decided to make

Scott’s character much more likeable in order to better appeal to the American audience. They

knew that if Carrell played the boss in the same way as Gervais, it would be unsuccessful.

American audiences are known to be more inclined to watch a show if the main character has

“redeeming qualities”. We see here with Scott in comparison with Brent, is a good person at

heart. Brent is shown to be abrasive, inappropriate, and awkward, without incorporating any

redeeming qualities. Conversely, Scott is shown more to be naïve, unknowing, and

inappropriate in a more innocent way with his intentions never being cruel. Mittell talks about

making this connection with characters in chapter 4 of his book. Saying the key to making

connections between characters and the audience lies in “recognition, alignment and

allegiance” (129). Alignment allows the audience to attach themselves to the characters, and

even an “ensemble of characters”, as would be the case in The Office. This likeability of

characters makes the audience form an attachment to them and keeps us bingeing to see

what’s going to happen next to our favorites.

 The next most important aspect to creating a bingeable show is drama, or as Mittell

would call it “serial melodrama”, this is best shown in the series we watched, Stranger Things.

Stranger Things is extremely bingeable because not only are the characters likeable, and

relatable, but we are also sucked in by this drama. As for Stranger Things, they not only

implement a sort of science fiction drama, the audience is also drawn in by what Mittell calls a

“sentimental fiction”(243). The cast of Stranger Things mostly consists of very likeable pre-teen

aged kids who are reminiscent of any group of teens in the 1980’s. This allows the audience to

feel more connected to the series through nostalgia. We see the kids playing with toys, and

reading comics that many of us read in childhood, making this fall even closer to home.

Additionally, there’s the science fiction drama which entangles us from the start. The comics,

that so many read during childhood are entangled in this branching story as it progresses

through the first season. The producers also bring in the coming of age drama into this sci-fi

drama series. The transition from childhood to teenage years, is something all of the audience

can relate to and become drawn into their stories. Mittell states that often sci-fi genres are

coded as “masculine”, and often includes analytic puzzle solving common to mysteries and

procedural explorations of systems such as science fiction technologies and mapping fictional

worlds” (247). This all comes surprisingly close to the description of Stranger Things, but Mittell

argues that while this is “culturally coded” as masculine, it does not stop women from enjoying

these things. Stranger Things does an excellent job of including these sci-fi aspects, without

edging out those who are not familiar with dungeons and dragons or comic books. The drama

in this show comes from the relationships between the characters making it “soapy” (242), but

also with the revealed government exploits, and mysteries of the upside down. Mittell states
that shows with tangential drama are often labeled as “soapy” in American television, but these

multiple melodramas help to make a series bingeable.

Finally, the last aspect that creates a bingeable series is accessibility, and

comprehension. Series which air weekly on cable television can often become less bingeable

simply because there is no way to binge the show. Television shows which are released in

episodic groups on Netflix, Hulu, HBO, etc. become increasingly bingeable because of the

physical accessibility of the content to the binge watcher. Mittell also talks about the

comprehension of the show playing an important factor in its binge worthiness. He states that

“seriality is constituted by the gaps between installments, and the gaps can be experienced or

overridden in various ways” (165). Accessibility doesn’t stop there, it also comes to the

accessibility of the show’s world outside of each episode. Mittell calls this phenomenon

“transmedia storytelling”. Television shows are becoming increasingly accessible outside the

actual episodes of the show in the form of “books to blogs, and videogames to jigsaw puzzles”

(292). Media access to a bingeable show in the form of engagement in blogs, fandoms, etc.

means greater overall engagement from the audience, and continued engagement over time.

These fans are increasingly implored to binge watch their favorite series as soon as released in

order to participate in these fan conversations in blogs, on Reddit, etc. and also to avoid

spoilers. All of these work together to “build viewers loyalty” (293), and therefore increase the

likelihood of these viewers Bingewatching the shows.