TV Horror: Investigating the Dark Side of the Small Screen (Investigating Cult TV) by Lorna Jowett

TV Horror: Investigating the Dark Side of the Small Screen (Investigating Cult TV) Reviews

• 
  Julie

  TV Horror: Investigating the Dark Side of the Small Screen by Lorna Jowett, Stacey Abbott is a 2013 I.B. Tauris publication.
  
  For Halloween, I wanted to feature a book on my blog that analyzed the horror genre either in books, movies or television. I never got around to finding a book about horror novels, I did find a few disappointing lists and breakdowns of the horror genre in films, but television?? Not a lot out there analyzing the ‘small screen’ contributions to the horror genre.
  
  So, when I happened upon this book, I was intrigued, but cautiously optimistic.
  
  Thankfully, I was very pleasantly surprised by this book. It’s the perfect length, covers a great deal of material without getting too caught up in opinion and minutia. In fact, this book could be used for a class paper, or for research, but it is also very entertaining, and quite interesting.
  
  The small screen was often thought of a lesser medium compared to movies, but over time, television has evolved and is giving the movie industry a run for its money in technique, writing, and quality visual and audio effects.
  
  When I started reading this book, I was again reminded of the groundbreaking television shows that paved the way for the stellar horror related programs we are so very addicted to today.
  
  Naturally, ‘The Twilight Zone’ comes to mind, perhaps one the most popular anthology series ever, or at least in the fantasy, horror, or science fiction genres.
  
  But, lesser known anthologies that garnered cult status, are also highlighted, and will have you searching old episodes of ‘Night Gallery’ or ‘Kolchak: The Night Stalker’.
  
  But, the book doesn’t just touch on the weird, creepy, and perhaps lurid or gross aspects of the horror genre, but includes shows like ‘The Addams Family’ and ‘The Munsters’ and even expands upon some of the psychology and subtle messages these shows were sending.
  
  One show that crops up pretty often in this book is a phenomenon that is hard to explain, even today, but its influence is still prevalent after all these years- ‘Dark Shadows’.
  
  The show started off like a 'Jane Erye' like Gothic soap opera, which didn’t focus on the usual romances, affairs, medical dilemmas, and heavy emotional dramas daytime serials normally featured.
  
  Instead, this serial was mysterious, with murder mysteries, and ghosts. But, it wasn’t until the role of Barnabas Collins, a tortured vampire, was created, that the show skyrocketed in popularity. Throughout its five -year run, the show featured vampires, witches, a Frankenstein monster, ghosts, time travel and werewolves.
  
  Barnabas was to be a short term character, but when viewers saw him as reluctant villain, tortured by the monster he had become, the writers were happy to explore that thread. As a result, ‘Dark Shadows’ was the first daytime serial to have made it into pop culture history by having books, lunch boxes, posters, and a slew of other tie-in products sold during the height of its popularity.
  
  Two feature films were made featuring the cast from the series, and the show was watched in syndication after it was cancelled. It also spawned a revival series, and is the only daytime serial to have been sold on DVD. Even today it pops in and out of pop culture and the actors are still active in keeping interest in the show alive.
  
  Another serial that enjoyed cult status, was ‘Twin Peaks” and it too is mentioned several times in this book. This show was also groundbreaking, influential, and helped other shows gain popularity, that followed a similar style or theme.
  
  The X- Files is also a show, that while often centered on a science fiction tone, also dealt with many paranormal elements, is often very quirky, but also sparks much conversation, and remains one the most unique paranormal shows aired on television.
  
  The authors lead us through shows from the past, but also touched on newer, very popular shows such as ‘American Horror Story’ and of course, ‘The Walking Dead’.
  
  But, the last chapter, touched on point I had never considered. When we sit down to watch a program on television, we are inviting these characters into our homes. Characters like Dexter walking right into our living rooms!! This, in a way, leads to a moral ambiguity, not only for the character, the monster, but the viewer as well.
  
  This is just an example of the shows the author delves into, draws parallels to, or juxtapositions, if you will. Television has now tapped into areas movies seem incapable of capitalizing on or simply can't make it translate the same way it does in a series format.
  
  In the horror genre, television has come to excel, with superb writing, imaginative plots, and even with some special effects.
  
  Reading through this book, I was struck by how many programs that have aired over the years are paranormal in nature. Some are comical, whimsical, magical, futuristic, historical, and showcase the weird, the unexplained, the dark fascinations we harbor, our curiosity, and our need to exercise our imaginations, or lose ourselves in something outside of our normal reality.
  
  Although this book does cover a lot of ground, featuring some of the shows that have been the most powerful throughout television’s history, all the way up till the present. there were a few shows left out, which is often the case with these types of books, so don't be surprised that some didn't make the cut, but I think the authors made excellent choices.
  
  Overall, I found this book to be very informative, written with a unique approach, occasionally adding in a mashup, which kept it from becoming just another ‘list’ book, or dry reading.
  
  I had fun with this book, especially the nostalgia, but also discovered shows I had never seen, and will definitely seek those out someday.
  
  This is a book I recommend to horror fans, of course, but also to those who are fans of television and pop culture.
  
  4 stars
  
  
  
• 
  Michael

  This is an academic text (think Men, Women, and Chainsaws) as opposed to one meant for casual reading, and as such takes a very dry tone with its articles on the television side of horror. That said, it was still an enjoyable text which brought up some great points. I learned about a number of UK-based television shows and made-for-TV movies which, living in North America all my life, I had never been exposed to, and I'm excited to seek them out. Especially hoping I can track down a copy of Ghostwatch, which, as a sort of horror mockumentary, sounds right up my alley!
• 
  Barry Hammond

  While there have been plenty of books looking at horror in film or literature this is, as far as I'm aware, the only book to take a critical look at horror on television. Not only is it original in that way, it also has the distinction of being intelligently written by Lorna Jowett and Stacey Abbott, who seem to not only be incisive critics but who also have a solid background knowledge and respect for their subject. While many in the past view the genre as either low-brow pop culture or lament that it appears on television in a watered-down form, Abbott and Jowett actually look at what has happened in the past and what is currently going on and make quite brilliant analysis of horror's tropes, techniques, structural forms, content, and even the medium itself.
  
  It might be called an academic book but their writing is clear and concise and easily understood and the general brilliance of their observations makes it an exciting read. As a brief example, when writing on art-horror they observe the examples of Lars Von Trier and David Lynch, both of whom made surprisingly popular television series, despite their backgrounds. "Both David Lynch and Von Trier were associated with art cinema before making their landmark television shows. The fact that they did make successful television suggests that either TV or horror (or both) is well placed to subvert distinctions between art and mass culture." They then go on to define why that might be.
  
  They also break the subject down into three main periods: origins until 1975, 1975 to 1995 and 1995 to the present, solidly noting the changes in the medium in each period and defining why horror led the way in defining each. Their grasp of what's going on artistically in technology is second to none and the book is a pleasure to read from the first page to the last. A great piece of writing that changed the way I look at this subject completely. - BH.
• 
  Rob

  A helpful book for undergrad media students looking at TV horror