Franchises are not new to shows. Many major franchises have found success and potential in a show-based format. With the inclusion of streaming services, that offers more room. But channels and steaming services do see the potential of these iconic properties and pour money in making the quality higher. The lore that is eventually adapted receives big benefits as do the fans of those stories. However, where there is good, there is also bad. It may sound perfect on paper to get one these franchises brought to the smaller screen, but it also opens up a list of problems. While these companies are eager to find a treasure through these popular and beloved franchises, it may lead to small scale disasters. There is always good and bad that looms over a series based on lore that people love.
One of the bad things about adapting a franchise into a series is that it may go on for too long. That is an issue when it comes to American audiences. There’s a demand for quality as well quantity. But the longer a show goes on, the higher chance quality or quantity may take a hit. That long stretch may come from a run that last several, overstayed seasons. Or long period of time between such seasons. Regardless how that stretch of time is treated, it plays a factor in quality dipping. It allows focus to be lost in some form. It also disgruntles fans. The longer something takes to come out, fans will assume the quality will match the time it took to get the episodes out. The anticipation rises with each tick of time to the point when it does come out audiences expect the content to be spectacular. Only for it to fall under expectation. Which puts a huge dent in the image and legacy of the show. It works differently when the show lasts too long. The show may be around and comes out consistently but with many seasons and many episodes in those seasons, quantity will take over quality. That doesn’t always guarantee success. The talent behind those shows could be overwhelmed to get stories out quickly to the point corners may be cut. A perfect show or episode or season will be overlooked by a completed show, episode or season. It also opens the door for the dreaded filler episodes. For shows that live off of 15, 18, 20 episodes, they include episodes that do very little, if nothing at all, for the overarching story that is being told. It does little for character development as well. They do so little it’s a question to why are they even incorporated.
What could also rear its head is a slip in focus. When an established franchise is adapted, it’s a chance for the fanbase to see these worlds in different lights. That could mean exploring something in depth that had a minor role in the larger story, set it up in an intriguing context, or a chance to push the narrative. But somewhere along the way, that focus goes to somewhere else that is less interesting that the promos or assumptions may suggest. It leads to a bait-n-switch situation. Audiences may go into a show believing they’re going to see more monsters but instead watch a family drama. Audiences may go into another show hoping to see extraterrestrials on a planet they’ve never been before but it turns out to be a coming-of-age story instead. There’s a chance for these franchises to be explored in interesting, captivating, furthering, and honing ways but the narrative is shifted in a direction that does very little. It often focuses on aspects that have to do very little with what came before, what’s happening now, and what will eventually come. At times, feels like too many liberties are being taken. Or these franchises just become personal platforms to get out a story that may be too personal.
Now, all the good that could be done with shows could be found when proper execution is done on the opposite side of this spectrum. A show can be a way to explore a character that was minor in the larger story but there could be a lot of fan demand behind that character. While the large story may hint or set up some background and key details, a show revolving around them could magnify those traits. And have room to include even more details about them. A show could really flesh a character that may seem one dimensional or shallow when they are in the wider story. This goes for locations or organizations in a universe as well. A show could bring more character to the location, bring more dimensions and layers to it. And of course, history. That too helps flesh out details which will help the universe feel more authentic, and perhaps even more connected.
There’s a lot of room and time a show could give a character, location or organization to grow. A movie, or even a trilogy, can so far when it comes to time. A show opens up more time for details to be set up, be explored, go more in depth and even be given more time to breathe. A show allows an audience to stay with a particular story element a little longer than a movie can offer. All that adds up to richening the material. Make it feel more natural and give it more spark. Shows based on video games have capitalized on this pretty well because there’s more room to explore a game that has twenty plus hours of content in it. These elements could be a few or many, but regardless, a show offers a lot more opportunity for aspects to live out the moment little more. Since a movie is short on time, being with those aspects in the movie may seem rushed.
Shows have been used by productions to scratch a curious itch as well. Shows are used as platforms to tell a story about a character that may or may not warrant a big screen treatment. Maybe productions that want to bring a certain character or idea to life may not see the value in a film adaptation. Perhaps there’s an assumption it won’t land well, perhaps the content may be too graphic for film, or the idea or character may just be little too obscure for films. But that’s where shows could come in. It may be viewed as a safer bet. There has been great content that has been new, expanded, incorporated and adapted due to shows having a better way to get them across because of its layout. There’s a little bit more freedom, a little bit more tolerance when it comes to shows. That creates a tempting avenue to be used to tell a story.
There has been a drastic increase of shows the last several years that give franchises more life. Give more depth, more room to enjoy the lore, give fresh material, or simply expand the brand. Some of these series have done a good job in doing so. These shows help franchises obtain much more staying power and extend over generations. At the same time though, they offer too much room where mistakes can happen. Where lack of sharp, concise focus on the main lore could stray easily into problems. That has also been a problem of late and a rather consistent problem. The same can be said for films, but since shows have been the trend to go toward to tell stories, they are also suffering or benefiting from the same fate. But using shows, as a means to share a story is a trend that is part of the storytelling arsenal, no matter if the execution is great or poor.
