The L-World as A Good Character-driven Drama Essay

The L-World as A Good Character-driven Drama - Essay Example The L-Word fits extremely well into this genre as it focuses on a very organic unveiling of personality and conflict. It is a high quality drama within this genre, as it features a well-written script with complex characters and original content. The scripts of the L-Word are extremely well-written. It is vital for character-driven dramas to be well written as dialogue is a focus of character-driven drama. Dialogue must be natural, realistic and fit organically into the characters established personality for character-driven dramas to succeed. The script of the L-Word achieves this through the naturalism of its dialogue and the way in which each characters lines fit well into their personality. For example in season 5 episode 7 â€Å"Longing†, the character of Alice is angry with Jenny for stealing her idea for a screen play. In justifying this, Jenny likens herself to Monet by pretending to hear him speak. Alice replies â€Å"That’s so funny because I hear him as well ...so weird...what’s that? He says don’t ever compare yourself to him.† This is a very appropriate and believable response for the character of Alice as she is portrayed as very witty and quirky. In the character of Bette the viewer is presented with an extremely strong, intelligent and highly educated woman and her dialogue is a constant reflection of this throughout each series as she debates and engages in discussions in a very wordy, articulate and well-informed manner. Character complexity is another area which is of fundamental importance to character-driven dramas. As people are naturally quite complex creatures, this must be echoed in character-driven dramas as they aim to reflect the complexities of existence. To have one-dimensional, straightforward characters would be detrimental in this genre as it would lose its appeal and indeed its integrity. Complexity is portrayed through every character of the L-Word but none more so than the characters of Bette and Jenny. Bette is a highly educated and confident professional who is deeply in love with her partner and together they are in a committed long term relationship. Despite this, Bette is constantly tempted by adulterous behavior. When she is presented with opportunities to cheat on her partner, she is severely conflicted about doing so and goes to great lengths to avoid temptation. The fact that she is so happy with her partner and they have serious relationship problems, conveys the complexi ties of Bettes character as there is no motivation for her to be disloyal. Another complex character is that of Jenny, a highly introspective, creative and sensitive character who goes through several drastic psychological transformations throughout each season of the show. In season 1, Jenny is a painfully shy, awkward and very kind girl. By the end of the final season, she is portrayed as cruel, arrogant, self-indulgent and unpredictable. In this way, the complexities of her character are realised through her many personality evolutions. Originality is an important factor of any TV show. If a show does not present something new or different, then the same material is simply regurgitated again and again which leads to poor quality of writing and content. By offering something fresh, be it in content, treatment or