What role does Hills (2004) suggest the fans play in the construction of cult TV? How is new media central to this?
Hill (2004) suggested “cult status arises, ultimately, through an audience’s passion for a TV show”, that activities and practices of the fans determines and constructs what becomes a cult TV. Ultimately, shows are meant to be watched by audiences. If there are no viewers, there will be no show and as such, only viewers can ‘create’ cult TV shows. These audiences immerse themselves in the story of their favorite show and build their own communities around the characters and the show. Hill (2004) argues that producers of the show cannot dictate the fans to give rise to a cult TV show but we can say that it is enthusiastically encouraged.
The rise of cult TV can be attributed to the fans of particular shows that have chosen for themselves to incorporate their favorite shows into their daily lives. An example of this would be Joss Whedon’s Buffy series. It was so immensely popular that it had many spin-offs and has been subjected to scholarly study.
What made the Buffy series so great was the fact that the viewers were able to relate to the themes of the show. The viewers are able to understand the alienation and hell that is called adolescence. Not only were the viewers entertained, they were also able to feel like they were part of the show as they are watching it to the point where the cult following is included in the show. Buffy often broke the 4th wall with scenes like Spike and the watchman who had told the vampire “I wrote my thesis on you”.
Another practice often done by fans is using lines from their favorite show whenever they are relevant in an event in their lives. Often, when fans of a show are having conversations with other fans and even people who are unfamiliar to their fandom, they refer to events or quote from their favorite show. An example of this would be the countless times I’ve told my mother “not my division” when being asked to do chores. The phrase is a quote from Greg Lestrade who is a character from the Sherlock drama. To me as a fan and to other fans of Sherlock, this would be taken as quite humorous and relevant to the situation.
New media plays a major role in the creation and expansion of cult TV. With the rise of social media networks, fans are now able to further propagate their fandom. Hill stated that with the internet, every fan will be engaged in some sort of fan activity. Fans can now access more information about their fandom and can create their own items based on their favorite shows such as fanfiction.
Reference:
Hills, M. (2004). Defining Cult TV; Texts, Inter-texts and Fan Audiences, The Television Studies Reader, in R. C. Allen & A. Hill. London and New York: Routledge.
I absolutely adore Sherlock. So well written. Really love that you've used that as an example to back up your point about fans using lines.
ReplyDeleteYou listed several really good points about fan enthusiasm, leading to cult status.
I know for me, that the way I get the most enthusiasm for a show is when I have to defend it, or pitch it. "Have you heard of firefly? You haven't! Oh my gosh you're missing out." etc, before high tailing off into a detailed description haha.
It's interesting how new media expands and encourages cult tv. With fanficition, and blogging, and sharing clips, and memes, like the one you have shown. It's really interesting to see people share their loves so easily
Ah! You watch Sherlock too. That show is a treasure trove of one liners you can comfortably use in real life.
DeleteI totally understand what you mean by defending and pitching. It's like fans are the lawyers and publicists of these shows. There's nothing better for a show than to have a good, solid fanbase. I often go on tangents about my favorite shows to other people and go rage mode when they belittle them.
I remember back in the early 2000's when Youtube and blogging platforms were still 'primitive'. It was so hard getting across and spreading the word about your show and your fandom and video clips and fanfics and memes were something that was very uncommon. New media really catapulted cult TV to a new level.
Hi :) You've done good writing. It's great thing that fans show their love for the show by using new media these days; sharing their ideas, writing fan fiction and so on.
ReplyDeleteHello :D Yeah I think new media is amazing and I don't know what I would do if they weren't introduced. Now, all the fans are able to almost instantaneously share information, images, clips and other things that weren't possible before.
DeleteHi Julie,
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything you said, fan definitely make the shows with their support. I too enjoy the new-media side of show as well, and reading other people fan-fiction is quite interesting I find, just all the different stories people have come up with just from a show