Stephanie O'Brien
  • Home
    • About Stephanie
    • Privacy Policy
  • Stories
    • Novels >
      • The Silent Fugitive Series >
        • My Fugitive
        • Voice of a Silent Fugitive
        • Silent Fugitive: The Complete Series
      • Heroic Lies
      • Catgirl Roommate
    • Short Stories >
      • The Aristocrats and the Beasts
      • Upholding the Covenant
      • The Echoes In Our Heart
      • Living Through You
    • Fanfiction >
      • Undertale - Just Cause >
        • Just Cause, Chapter 2
        • Just Cause, Chapter 3
        • Just Cause, Chapter 4
        • Just Cause, Chapter 5
        • Just Cause, Chapter 6
        • Just Cause, Chapter 7
        • Just Cause, Chapter 8
        • Just Cause, Chapter 9
        • Just Cause, Chapter 10
        • Just Cause, Chapter 11
        • Just Cause, Chapter 12
        • Just Cause, Chapter 13
        • Just Cause, Chapter 14
        • Just Cause, Chapter 15
        • Just Cause, Chapter 16
        • Just Cause, Chapter 17
        • Just Cause, Chapter 18
      • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand >
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 2
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 3
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 4
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 5
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 6
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 7
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 8
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 8
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 9
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 10
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 11
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 12
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 13
        • Skyrim - Your Truth Cannot Stand, Chapter 14
      • Farscape - Means to an End
      • Don't Starve - Four Times I Begged Them
      • Avengers Endgame - Baby Pictures: How Endgame Should Have Ended
      • Subnautica Below Zero - It Will Be Okay
      • Subnautica Below Zero - Regrets of Sellswords and Scientists
      • Subnautica Below Zero - Naked Secrecy
      • Subnautica Below Zero - I Wish You Were​
      • Wakfu - Echoes of Bitter Comfort
    • Undertale Webcomic - Just Cause
  • Art & Commissions
    • Commissions
    • NFTs
    • Undertale Fan Art
    • Farscape pictures
  • Merch
    • Pride flag art
    • Abstract art
    • Symmetrical art
    • Floral art
    • Animal and People Art
    • Text Art
  • Videos
    • Art Videos
    • All Farscape Videos
    • Funny Farscape Videos
    • Peaceful Farscape Videos
    • Energetic Farscape Videos
    • Farscape Songs
    • Undertale Videos
    • Extended Songs
  • Patreon & Ko-Fi
    • Patreon
    • Ko-Fi
  • Contact
  • Blog

Boring Plot, Great Story: How House M.D. Pulls That Off

3/6/2014

0 Comments

 
There are several basic components that make up a story. Premise, plot, execution and characters are the four most fundamental ones that come to mind. And it's amazing how much you can get away with screwing up the first two if you can get the third and fourth ones right.

I've been rewatching some episodes of House: M.D. during the last few weeks, and it really serves to highlight what's most important in storytelling.

​The premise, while good, is hardly earth-shattering; it's a show about a doctor who's a brilliant, idiosyncratic jerk, and the plot pretty much always consists of "House and his team make one wrong diagnosis after another while new symptoms rear their heads, until the correct amount of time has been spent, and THEN they get to diagnose them correctly."

Picture
Every. Darn. Time.
So how does a show that's so terminally formulaic get to be so good?

Execution and characters.

While the lines the show is colouring between are almost always the same, the colours they use are so interesting that it doesn't get old.

The patient gets sick, gets sicker, then eventually gets diagnosed - that's a given. But the patients themselves are intriguing and varied, and they always manage to draw out the personalities of the main cast. No matter who the patient is, somebody's buttons are going to be pushed, and the resulting character development is great to watch.

And then there's the execution. By that, I mean the mood, the tone, the lighting, the pacing, the foreshadowing, all the little technical details. This show does them well.

​It draws the viewer into what's happening on the screen, enough that if you can forgive it for the fact that you KNOW when the patient is going to be diagnosed, it's a thoroughly enjoyable watch.

Have you ever noticed a show, book or movie like that? One where the plot was repetitive, or the premise overused, but it still managed to be really good?

If so, I'd love it if you'd name some examples in the comments section. Who knows - you might help someone to find a new favourite, or at least a guilty pleasure. :)
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Stephanie is the author of My Fugitive, Voice of a Silent Fugitive, Heroic Lies, and Catgirl Roommate, as well as the artist behind the Undertale webcomic Just Cause.

    This blog often updates with new stories and artwork, so please keep checking in!

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Art Tips
    Behind The Scenes
    Comic Dubs
    Don't Starve
    Excerpt
    Fan Art
    Fanfiction
    Farscape
    Flash Fiction
    Humor
    Interactive
    Just Cause
    Madoka Magica
    MCU
    Music
    Music Videos
    Observations And Opinions
    Other People's Blog Posts
    Personal Stories
    Poetry
    Print On Demand
    Reviews
    Romance Writing Tips
    Special Opportunities
    Subnautica
    The Elder Scrolls
    Underfell
    Undertale Fan Art
    Updates About My Novels
    Videos
    Wakfu
    Works In Progress
    Writing Tips

    Archive

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly