Every season there’s a show that hits it big. Said show proceeds to spawn clones of the hit formula and then subsequently creates a sub genre of television based around said formula. The most current example of this is the new “we’ve-run-out-of-original-ideas” concept of the “Procedural” spawned by the success of CBS’s “C.S.I.” program and its cardboard cut-out spin-offs.
The point is, that there is a constant argument regarding nothing being good on television anymore. I agree with that statement wholeheartedly, but also mention that everything is open to debate about the quality of entertainment versus one’s tastes and guilty pleasures {see previous post re: the “O.C.”}.
Consistently, though, there have been voices on television that seem to capture an audience and create a following akin to cult-like status. These creators don’t get copy-cat programs because rarely do the shows they voice become break-out hits which can be copied and recast to have similar successes. The three voices that I single out as a trinity of modern television are Joss Whedon, Aaron Sorkin, and Bill Lawrence.
Now, we’ll start with the lesser known of these this trifecta: Bill Lawrence of “Scrubs.” He represents the sitcom aspect the trinity. For those who’ve never seen the show, “Scrubs” follows three medical interns as they face the challenges and trials that await them as full-fledged doctors. The show is told from the perspective of the main character, J.D., who provides a voice-over and sets the tone for many of the comedic and dramatic scenes of the show. Throughout the show, J.D.’s daydreams about the situation are intercut with the scenes. There’s no laugh track and no live audience. There are no cardboard sets and 3/4 open stage shots. The whole show is filmed in a decommissioned hospital and filmed with the one camera method allowing for maximum mobility of point-of-view. Lawrence infuses his characters with equal parts physical comedy and warmth of character. Each episode can be about something tragic or hilarious, and be tempered with enough levity or drama to make it resonate for the simple twenty minutes of programming that it delivers to its audience.
While Lawrence has cornered the market for a unique voice in sitcoms, Aaron Sorkin has brought a new voice to the drama. While one of his most well known works has been the highly successful political series, the “West Wing,” his previous work on the dramedy, “Sports Night” set a tone for what he and his team of writers and directors can bring to a show. Many would characterize “Sports Night” as a sitcom, but the fact is, its lack of laughtrack, studio audience and situational comedy in general, move it into the same realm as the “West Wing”: a dramatic show with a great sense of humor. This seems to be Sorkin’s gift and is definitely carried over from his playwriting career. The back-and-forth banter, harsh emotional struggles, and ability to walk the tightrope between heart-wrenching monologue and ear-piercing melodrama are all skills learned on the stage and Sorkin manages to carry them with a professional demeanor and stride. While he may have broken new ground with the West Wing’s immaculate writing, he has since dropped out of the spotlight after being fired from the show he helped create. Without a doubt, whatever his next project, whenever it will be, Sorkin will continue to a talented and ground-breaking voice in television.
Finally, and I say finally because getting to this point takes a great deal of steeling myself for inevitable backlash, we have Joss Whedon. While widely known as the man who gave Sarah Michelle Gellar a career, Joss Whedon has been a writer in the television and media scene for the majority of his adult life. From staff-writing gigs on Roseanne to script-doctoring such movies as Speed and X-Men, Whedon’s trademark quips and dialogue can be found peppered throughout the industry. When the WB wanted something different for their fledgling network, Joss dug up his original ideas for what became the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” feature film (don’t be weirded out if you don’t remember it. It starred Luke Perry) and spun a franchise that included merchandise, a spin-off show (“Angel” starring Buffy’s vampire ex-boyfriend) and even comics. A tour-de-force in sci-fi, Whedon even tried to create an unrelated show for Fox, the cult-favorite “Firefly” and its feature film “Serenity,” but his fame will always lie with the little girl with a destiny. In essence, besides Whedon’s brand for catchy banter and wisecracks (and even in some cases, musical numbers), all of his shows are about heroes and what it truly takes to be one in whatever fictional landscape he constructs. The most intriguing part of said landscape has always been his thinly-veiled metaphors for what they represent. In “Buffy,” we learned that high school can be Hell, literally. “Angel” showed us how our finding the path to being an adult and our place in this world can be torture. “Firefly” was his crowning opus that illustrated that just surviving every day in this world takes grit and heart. The following are lines from each of Whedon’s three series that can illustrate how just a few sentences are able to show the emotive core of what makes good television: “Buffy” – “The hardest thing in this world is to live in it.” “Angel” – “Heroes don’t accept the world the way it is. They fight it. “Firefly” – “We have done the impossible and that makes us mighty.”
Three voices of television that have, whether subtly or drastically, changed the standards of what makes good, well done entertainment. Thee voices whose names will always be synonymous with quality and inspiration. Three voices that a little glowing box will always need, despite what TV Guide may tell you.
