Genre

Categorising Texts

1) What example is provided of why visual iconographies are so important?

The article says that iconographies 'work together to indicate the genre' of media platforms e.g. by adding certain iconographies, a person sitting at a desk can be turned into a TV News programme.

2) What examples are provided of the importance of narrative in identifying genre?
The article states that the initial story-lines of soap operas and sit-coms are similar but the way the narratives develop makes it easier to distinguish between the two.

3) What is the difference between character representation in action movies and disaster movies?
In action movies, the heroic characters are typically placed away from the rest of the characters, whereas in disaster movies, the heroes often remain within a group of other people.

4) What are the different ways films can be categorised according to Bordwell? 
The first way Bordwell believes films can be categorised is by the period or country they are set in because these aspects of a film can help audiences determine its genre. Another one of Bordwell's methods of categorisation is the director or the stars of the film, because if a certain director e.g. Tim Burton has a specific style of film-making then the audience have an initial idea of what to expect from that film. Similarly certain actors tend to feature most in a certain genre e.g. Jim Carrey tends to star mostly in comedies. Another of Bordwell's methods of categorisation is technical process, e.g. animated films have their own technical process which could instantly give them their own category. Another one of Bordwell's methods of categorisation is style which audiences are able to identify when watching certain films. Another method is series which enables film franchises like Harry Potter, James Bond Indiana Jones and the Hunger Games to be grouped into one category. The last method Bordwell suggested is that films can be categorised based on their audiences because specific genres of films will have specific audiences.

5) List three ways genre is used by audiences.

-One way audiences use genre is by using knowledge they already have about that genre to help determine how much they are going to enjoy a text.

-Another way audiences use genre is being able to compare texts with ones they're already aware of that are of the same genre.

-The third way audiences use genre is, similarly to the first one, using their existing knowledge to potentially decide not to consume a certain text because they know it won't appeal to them.

6) List three ways genre is used by institutions or producers.

-One way genre is used by producers is by producing what they think will be popular among audiences and what will get the most consumption.

-Another way genre is used by producers is by seeing what has already got the audience's attention and keep producing similar things that will retain their attention and keep them interested and entertained.

-The third way genre is used by producers is by telling the audience what the genre of the text will be before releasing the text e.g. through trailers in TV and film so the audience know what to expect of the text. 

7) What film genre is used as an example of how genres evolve? What films and conventions are mentioned?

The film genre mentioned in the article is Gangster films. Some texts that would be seen as typical gangster films are: Scarface and Reservoir Dogs and the TV series The Sopranos. It also states that one common convention that tends to appear in gangster films is a Tommy Gun hidden in a violin case.

Superheroes

1) List five films the factsheet discusses with regards to the Superhero genre.
Spiderman, X Men, Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers Assemble and Batman. 

2) What examples are provided of how the Superhero genre has reflected the changing values, ideologies and world events of the last 70 years?
-One example of a Superhero text that has reflected a world event is Superman, who during the 1940s, was seen fighting European villains. This is the same time period as the Second World War during which the US, in allegiance with the UK saw themselves as fighting European enemies.
-Another example could be the 2006 film V for Vendetta that could be argued as having links in its narrative to 9/11.

3) How can Schatz's theory of genre cycles be applied to the Superhero genre?
Most Superhero films start out as comic/cartoon characters e.g. Superman and this is where the innovation takes place/the establishing of the codes and conventions of the genre. Then the classical stage is when the codes and conventions are repeated so in the case of Batman, the first text created after the original cartoon character was a TV series Batman and Robin in 1949 in which the same codes and conventions from the comic were repeated. During the next stage, parody, we see the 1966 film Batman being "intentionally funny and camp" as the article states and then in the deconstruction stage, the later versions of Batman in 1978 and 1989 began to show experimentation with special effects, a change of director in 1989 (Tim Burton) and an increase in humour, whilst keeping the classical elements.



General

The text I have chosen is the TV series The Mighty Boosh.

1) Why did you choose the text you are analysing?
I chose this text because I find it entertaining and I love it for its originality.
2) In what context did you encounter it?
My dad wanted to show me a particular episode - this was a few years ago and after realising how much I liked it, I decided to watch the rest and now watch it all the time on Netflix.
3) What influence do you think this context might have had on your interpretation of the text?
I think the fact that my dad thought I'd enjoy it gave me an optimistic predetermined view on it, so the anticipation of watching something I knew I'd enjoy gave me a positive outlook and enabled me to see all the good aspects of it in my interpretation.
4) To what genre did you initially assign the text?
Comedy because the title is particularly comic and doesn't make much sense which I think points to comedy as being the genre.
5) What is your experience of this genre?
Again, my dad has introduced me to some of his favourite comedians and comedy shows e.g. Blackadder, Fawlty Towers, Monty Python, The Young Ones, I'm Alan Partridge, The Office, Extras, Green Wing, The League of Gentlemen etc. so I've had a wide range of experience with this genre.
6) What subject matter and basic themes is the text concerned with?
Each series takes place in a different location e.g. in series 1 the four protagonists (Vince, Howard, Naboo - a shaman - and Bollo - a gorilla) work/live in a zoo, in series 2 they share a flat and in series 3 they run a shop and each episode has a different story line. The main narrative of each episode is something will go wrong, usually for Vince and Howard and then Naboo and Bollo will have to save them by the end of the episode although some episodes will have narratives that don't follow that general trend. Although there is no chronology to the episodes, most have recurring jokes or recurring minor characters e.g. the moon, the Hitcher.
7) How typical of the genre is this text in terms of content?
Personally, I would consider this show a typical comedy show because its content entertains me and doesn't fail to make me laugh, but I don't think that the humour in it would appeal to everyone because some of its content and subject matters could be considered slightly controversial so others might not view it as typically comical as I would.
8) What expectations do you have about texts in this genre?
I think the only expectation I have about comedy texts is that I expect them to make me laugh or at least cheer me up when I need it. I also like it when I'm able to relate to elements of the narrative e.g. family life in Outnumbered.9) Have you found any formal generic labels for this particular text (where)?
Wikipedia describe it as a 'surreal comic fantasy'.
10) What generic labels have others given the same text?
IMDB categorises it as 'Comedy, Fantasy and Musical'.
11) Which conventions of the genre do you recognize in the text?
Recurring jokes, comedic characters, 'crimping', petty arguments between characters, frequent use of one-liners, a serial killing Granny (Nanageddon).
12) To what extent does this text stretch the conventions of its genre?
I think that it stretches its comedy conventions to the point where the humour becomes dark and quite eerie and the audience aren't sure whether to laugh or feel scared.
13) Where and why does the text depart from the conventions of the genre?
An example of this could be in series 3 when Vince and Howard almost leave the shop to start new lives and there is a brief moment of sadness that doesn't have any aspects of comedy or fantasy in it at all.
14) Which conventions seem more like those of a different genre (and which genre(s))?
The frequent use of magic, potions, flying carpets, demons, a talking moon, characters like Old Gregg and the Crack Fox are the conventions of the show that I think seem more like those of the Fantasy genre.

15) What familiar motifs or images are used?
There are a number of recurring characters like the moon - who, each time we see him always talks to the audience briefly about things that don't make sense. There is also the Hitcher who first appears in an episode called 'Hitcher' but he reappears nameless in a number of other episodes. Furthermore, there are a number of recurring catchphrases from certain characters e.g. Tony Harrison with "this is an outrage" and Naboo with "I'm going to have to turn my back on you" which he does, slowly, with country music in the background.

Mode of address
1) What sort of audience did you feel that the text was aimed at (and how typical was this of the genre)?
I think because of some of the potentially controversial content, the age of its target audience would probably be 15+ and people who enjoy dark humour and possibly also other things that star the same people e.g. Never Mind the Buzzcocks with Noel Fielding. I think comedy texts usually aim to appeal to an older audience because comedy can be very clever in ways that only adults understand which sometimes makes it funnier and more enjoyable for the audience.
2) How does the text address you?
It assumes that I am its target audience so it tries to appeal to me and make me laugh in the way that it felt it would appeal to its target audience.
3) What sort of person does it assume you are?
Having watched the whole show, I think it would assume me to be someone who enjoys having fun and being a bit weird and eccentric, possibly also someone who doesn't tend to follow the crowd, especially since a lot of the time it mentions places like Shoreditch and Camden which are places that are usually seen as the more eclectic, gritty, alternative parts of London.
4) What assumptions seem to be made about your class, age, gender and ethnicity?
I think it has assumed me to be of working class, and educated enough to understand some of the clever puns/inside jokes that feature in it. I think it has assumed that I'm possibly a young adult, either male or female, possibly more likely to be male and I think in terms of ethnicity, some of the humour would probably be more associated with White-British culture.
5) What interests does it assume you have?
There are a lot of references to fashion in the show so maybe it assumes that I'm interested in fashion too, with a strong disliking for jazz music, as expressed by all but one character throughout the show. Maybe it also assumes that I'm interested in the world of spirituality and divination as that features heavily throughout as well.

Relationship to other texts
1) What intertextual references are there in the text you are analysing (and to what other texts)?
There are a lot of references to 80s music artists e.g. Gary Numan, Level 42, Adam Ant, Bryan Ferry etc.which could also hint at the interests it assumes I might have.
2) Generically, which other texts does the text you are analysing resemble most closely?
I think it most closely resembles Monty Python. 
3) What key features are shared by these texts?
They both share similarities in terms of their styles of narrative, characters, and humour - they're both eclectic and surreal in style, have controversial subject matters and they both feature original musical numbers that contribute to the comedy.

4) What major differences do you notice between them?

As opposed to The Mighty Boosh whose episodes feature one narrative per episode, Monty Python's episodes feature multiple compilations of non-chronological sketches per episode.