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As evidenced by the recent proliferation of fan conventions, television show boxed sets, and collectible character figurines, cult TV shows have arguably become the most vital and interesting programming on television. The once-marginal genre manifests itself in a remarkable variety of programs, from the suburban mob drama The Sopranos to the beloved occult fantasy Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The Cult TV Book is a guide to this phenomenon, complete with lively and diverse analyses of the work that goes into conceiving and marketing a cult series, as well as numerous investigations that explore the unique cult appeal of individual programs. Leading scholars, journalists, and writers consider the many aspects of a show — both script-based and visual — that attract the kind of uncompromisingly loyal fan bases that we know as “Trekkies,” for example, or, more recently, “Losties.” The Cult TV Book sheds light on the heretofore under-examined science of addictive TV programming, pinpointing the complex arcs and intentionally inadequate explanations that keep viewers coming back for more. The contributors cover every corner of the cult map, all the while trying to define the elusive genre, to understand the cult TV obsession from the outside in.
A television series is tagged with the label "cult" by the media, advertisers, and network executives when it is considered edgy or offbeat, when it appeals to nostalgia, or when it is considered emblematic of a particular subculture. By these criteria, almost any series could be described as cult. Yet certain programs exert an uncanny power over their fans, encouraging them to immerse themselves within a fictional world. In Cult Television leading scholars examine such shows as The X-Files; The Avengers; Doctor Who, Babylon Five; Star Trek; Xena, Warrior Princess; and Buffy the Vampire Slayer to determine the defining characteristics of cult television and map the contours of this phenomenon within the larger scope of popular culture. Contributors: Karen Backstein; David A. Black, Seton Hall U; Mary Hammond, Open U; Nathan Hunt, U of Nottingham; Mark Jancovich; Petra Kuppers, Bryant College; Philippe Le Guern, U of Angers, France; Alan McKee; Toby Miller, New York U; Jeffrey Sconce, Northwestern U; Eva Vieth Sara Gwenllian-Jones is a lecturer in television and digital media at Cardiff University and co-editor of Intensities: The Journal of Cult Media. Roberta E. Pearson is a reader in media and cultural studies at Cardiff University. She is the author of the forthcoming book Small Screen, Big Universe: Star Trek and Television.
The Essential Cult TV Reader is a collection of insightful essays that examine television shows that amass engaged, active fan bases by employing an imaginative approach to programming. Once defined by limited viewership, cult TV has developed its own identity, with some shows gaining large, mainstream audiences. By exploring the defining characteristics of cult TV, The Essential Cult TV Reader traces the development of this once obscure form and explains how cult TV achieved its current status as legitimate television. The essays explore a wide range of cult programs, from early shows such as Star Trek, The Avengers, Dark Shadows, and The Twilight Zone to popular contemporary shows such as Lost, Dexter, and 24, addressing the cultural context that allowed the development of the phenomenon. The contributors investigate the obligations of cult series to their fans, the relationship of camp and cult, the effects of DVD releases and the Internet, and the globalization of cult TV. The Essential Cult TV Reader answers many of the questions surrounding the form while revealing emerging debates on its future.
Why are some contemporary television shows so compelling? The Sopranos, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Friends and ER are examples among many of a new era of the 'must-see' programme. These shows and others like The X-Files and Ally McBeal, have a compulsiveness, a depth of characterisation and 'back-story' that puts most of cinema to shame. Quality Popular Television looks at this new category of 'cult' television (mostly US-produced) and the reasons for its emergence. Looking at shows as diverse as Ally McBeal, Martial Law, Buffy, Lois and Clark, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Ellen the book examines the particular qualities necessary for success and how they relate to issues such as the economics of network scheduling, the growth of the internet and contemporary debates about television audiences. This important new book provides an invaluable window on transformations in contemporary television culture.
Reaching back to the beginnings of television, The Greatest Cult Television Shows offers readers a fun and accessible look at the 100 most significant cult television series of all time, compiled in a single resource that includes valuable information on the shows and their creators. While they generally lack mainstream appeal, cult television shows develop devout followings over time and exert some sort of impact on a given community, society, culture, or even media industry. Cult television shows have been around since at least the 1960s, with Star Trek perhaps the most famous of that era. However, the rise of cable contributed to the rise of cult television throughout the 1980s and 1990s, and now, with the plethora of streaming options available, more shows can be added to this categorization Reaching back to the beginnings of television, the book includes such groundbreaking series as The Twilight Zone and The Prisoner alongside more contemporary examples like Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Hannibal. The authors provide production history for each series and discuss their relevance to global pop culture. To provide a more global approach to the topic, the authors also consider several non-American cult TV series, including British, Canadian, and Japanese shows. Thus, Monty Python’s Flying Circus appears alongside Sailor Moon and Degrassi Junior High. Additionally, to move beyond the conception of “cult” as a primarily white, heteronormative, fanboy obsession, the book contains shows that speak to a variety of cult audiences and experiences, such as Queer as Folk and Charmed. With detailed arguments for why these shows deserve to be considered the greatest of all time, Olson and Reinhard provide ideas for discussion and debate on cult television. Each entry in this book demonstrates the importance of the 100 shows chosen for inclusion and highlights how they offer insight into the period and the cults that formed around them.
A discussion of a truly international range of television programs, this title covers alternative modes of television such as digital and satellite.
Following the same pocket format as The Rough Guide to Cult Movies, The Rough Guide to Cult TV is organised by genre, covering everything from sci-fi to comedy, sixties soaps to Czech animation, Alan Whicker to Alan Bleasdale and Zed Cars to Zoo Time. Meet the real life characters behind the sitcoms, read about the ones that got away and the ones they couldn't kill. Put on your pac-a-mac and paddle in a timeless tide of tosh, tension and titillation.
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As seen in HBO's "True Blood", vampires have never been more edgy, gory or sexy. Since its arrival on screen in 2008, Alan Ball's adaptation of "The Southern Vampire Mysteries" by Charlaine Harris has exploited the creative freedoms of the HBO brand and captured a cult audience with its passionate, blood-drenched visuals and stories. From viral webisodes depicting vampires announcing themselves on TV to the steamy title sequence and the show's uninhibited use of language, sex and gore, "True Blood" has quickly gained status as cult TV with bite. "True Blood" posed the question of what would happen if vampires 'came out of the coffin' and this book considers the representations of sexuality, race and class in a series that engages directly with prejudice and civil rights. It also considers "True Blood's" generic roots in television horror, paranormal romance and Southern Gothic, the wider contexts of fairy tales and religion, the marketing of the series and the activities of its fans. Written for students, scholars and fans, "True Blood: Investigating Vampires and Southern Gothic" explores the hidden depths of "True Blood's" vampire bars, small town communities and haunted bayous.