Should the pandemic be included in contemporary scripted drama?

[Willie Oleson]

Not necessarily as a topic (like they did with Trump) but included in everyday situations in order to appear as realistic as possible.
Hm?

 

[DallasFanForever]

I’d prefer it not to be but I do understand why it would be. Unfortunately it’s a part of our lives that’s not going away anytime soon.

 

[Crimson]

As a general rule, I am not a huge fan of real life in my fiction; if I wanted real life, I'd just look out the window. I handle that by leaning towards fiction of the more fantastic nature, versus mundane. All of that said, if a show is meant to be realistic and be set in the now, it couldn't plausibly avoid the pandemic.

So, yes, contemporary dramas that are meant to reflect reality should include references to Covid; incidentally, if not directly.

 

[Willie Oleson]

if a show is meant to be realistic and be set in the now, it couldn't plausibly avoid the pandemic.

Unfortunately it’s a part of our lives that’s not going away anytime soon

I feel I should agree with you but I also wonder how these stories/episodes are going to age. Let's be optimistic for a moment and pretend that the virus is completely under control in, say, 2025. How's that going to affect the re-watchability of those stories?

 

[Crimson]

How's that going to affect the re-watchability of those stories?

I think I get your point; show's that make contemporary references can feel dated on rewatch. But the pandemic isn't some minor pop culture or political bit of minutia that will be forgotten in 10 years. When people watch the show in the future, they'll simply know that it was filmed and took place during the great pandemic of the early 2020s.

Should DALLAS not have made references to the oil shortages in the late 70s?

 

[Willie Oleson]

Should DALLAS not have made references to the oil shortages in the late 70s?

But that didn't change the look of DALLAS. Like the death of JFK doesn't change the look of 60s period drama.
I feel there's a difference and maybe I'm just overly protective of art-related things. The pandemic scenery just stains everything.
On the other hand...

they'll simply know that it was filmed and took place during the great pandemic of the early 2020s.

...it also shouldn't look as "that story that ignored the pandemic".

 

[tommie]

I think I get your point; show's that make contemporary references can feel dated on rewatch. But the pandemic isn't some minor pop culture or political bit of minutia that will be forgotten in 10 years. When people watch the show in the future, they'll simply know that it was filmed and took place during the great pandemic of the early 2020s.

Should DALLAS not have made references to the oil shortages in the late 70s?

I think it's also worth remembering that at least stuff filmed early on in the pandemic got affected anyway - certain actors of age being written out, social distancing, skipping party scenes etc, so it's noticeable (even if they try) either way. I think it'll be hard in the future to watch shows that are filmed early on in the pandemic and not notice it.

 

[the-lost-son]

I've just watched an episode of "The good doctor" which dealt with a pandemic situation.
My first reaction was "not again". The episode was produced in 2018.
My viewing habits changed as well interestingly. From time to time I keep wondering (only for tiny moment) why people don't wear masks e.g. in scenes taking place in a bus, theatre, hospital etc. I guess I got used to that over the past 2 years.

Although it's a decent argument to include the pandemic in shows for a realistic image I think the majority might feel some fatigue. I personally watch TV to escape into another reality, so it's a no from me.

 

[Emelee]

No, thanks. I don't want real world events included more than needed in fiction. I don't see the need for it. I don't want characters to talk about real politics, pandemics or tragedies etc. I don't mind series creating their own politicians. Trump, Johnson, Merkel, Biden etc don't need to exist in fictional series. The pandemic doesn't need to exist. Fiction is fiction, not documentaries. I like escaping to another "reality".

 

[Willie Oleson]

I don't mind series creating their own politicians

And they can do so much more with these fictional presidents and prime ministers. Murder, conspiracy, adultery, outrageous secrets and all that juicy stuff.

 

[James from London]

Not necessarily as a topic (like they did with Trump) but included in everyday situations in order to appear as realistic as possible.

It's hard to realistically reflect what's going on with the pandemic as what's going on keeps changing (or at least it did). After EastEnders returned from lockdown, it did this weird thing where the pandemic had existed, but now was sort of over which meant the characters were able to travel even though the viewers couldn't, while the actors playing the characters couldn't stand anywhere near each other even if they were supposed to be living in the same house or sleeping in the same bed, even though the viewers could. I'm really looking forward to re-watching those episodes to see if it makes any sense from a future perspective.

I feel I should agree with you but I also wonder how these stories/episodes are going to age. Let's be optimistic for a moment and pretend that the virus is completely under control in, say, 2025. How's that going to affect the re-watchability of those stories?

It's not fiction, but I'm listening to year-old podcast episodes of Election Profit Makers, which is all about living through the last American election during lockdown. It was originally made and released as those events was happening, but hearing it now as an un intentional piece of recent history is just fascinating.

Should DALLAS not have made references to the oil shortages in the late 70s?

"The OLM’s not gonna sanction a production boost now. It’s not 1978, you know." I love all those little references, even more so now than at the time.

Trump, Johnson, Merkel, Biden etc don't need to exist in fictional series.

One of the very few things I liked about New DYNASTY is in the opening episode where Fallon makes reference to Blake voting for Trump even though she can't bear to say his name. And I really liked the bit in the second episode of EMPIRE where a drunken Hakeem is caught on video urinating in the middle of a restaurant while declaring, “All you white people that voted for the first Black president to make you feel good about not being racist — the joke’s on y’all cos Barack Obama ain’t nothing but a sellout!” followed by a scene of his father grovelling to the White House over the phone (“Mr President, I am so, so sorry … We all love you … Come on Barack, you know you don’t have to use that kind of language with me!”) before the line goes dead. Conversely, I liked how sealed off from the rest of the world DALLAS mostly was -- no Christmas, just barbecues.

 

[Angela Channing]

Yes, especially if they are using social distancing while filming. I was watching an episode of Doctors the other day and all the actors were a few metres apart which looked odd because no one made any reference to Covid or social distancing so without that context it looked unrealistic that they were so far from each other.

 

[Toni]

Only for hospital shows in short arcs. "The Good Fight" tried to do that this season (actually, they DID do it), and it came across as manipulative, painful to watch and unimaginative. At least in a first watch, who knows in the future...

 

[Willie Oleson]

so without that context it looked unrealistic that they were so far from each other.

I'm not sure I would enjoy it more with context.
Nevertheless I'm still feeling torn on the issue. I don't want to come across as that hysterical person who can't handle reality, but maybe it's the reality in fiction that makes it so terribly confronting.
I think I've been handling the pandemic pretty well, all things considered - but have I, really? The very idea of watching the cast of, say, LINE OF DUTY with face masks on almost makes me burst into tears.
Perhaps there's something deeper going on here.

But at the same time I think I should reconsider the idea of "aging". If a time capsule isn't only about pretty/quirky things then this is going to be a super-time capsule.
And correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't it 9/11 that inspired people to make movies and TV series about terrorism?

"The Good Fight" tried to do that this season

That show is so blatantly opinionated. I stopped after season 2 and apparently it's getting even worse after that.

 

[Seaviewer]

From time to time I keep wondering (only for tiny moment) why people don't wear masks e.g. in scenes taking place in a bus, theatre, hospital etc. I guess I got used to that over the past 2 years.

What I find weird is in The Connors and This Is Us (for example) they make a point of wearing their masks, but as soon as they get in the door and have to speak their line they whip it off - even with strangers. If anything, they should put it on when entering a shop and take it off outside.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Ricky Gervais has decided not to do it.

 

[Angela Channing]

I'm increasingly fascinated watching TV series which have been filmed during Covid restrictions and marvelling at how they deal social distancing while filming.

I was watching Call The Midwife yesterday and a nurse went to the cot to pick up a baby, they cut to a close up and another pair of hands (presumably the baby's real mother) lifted the child before they cut back to the nurse who completed the lifting motion, this time with what I'm sure was a dummy child. Lots of scenes are filmed in close up, rather than using two or three shots, and they give the impression the characters are together by cutting between the close ups. I applaude the inventiveness of the director of the show.

 

[Richard Channing]

Ricky Gervais has decided not to do it.

I think he made the right choice not including it and I agree with his reasoning.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Yeah, it's like you couldn't make a movie during war time without mentioning the war.

It's OK for a long running series like Coronation Street because it will be followed by many non-pandemic episodes while After Life has only 3 seasons and that last season would be forever tarnished by Covid shenanigans.
Therefore my final opinion is: if it can be avoided, avoid it.

 

[DallasFanForever]

Therefore my final opinion is: if it can be avoided, avoid it.

I agree, although I do appreciate how creative some of these shows have had to get during the pandemic. It can’t be an easy task producing a show with everything going on.