{"product_id":"beautiful-tv-greg-m-smith-9780292716438","title":"Beautiful TV: The Art and Argument of Ally McBeal","description":"\u003cp\u003e During its five-year run from 1997 to 2002, the popular TV show \u003ci\u003eAlly McBeal\u003c\/i\u003e engaged viewers in debates over what it means to be a woman or a man in the modern workplace; how romance factors into the therapeutic understanding of relationships; what value eccentricity has and how much oddity society should tolerate; and what utility fantasy has in the pragmatic world. In addition to these social concerns, however, \u003ci\u003eAlly McBeal\u003c\/i\u003e stood out for being well-constructed, narratively complex, and stylistically rich--in short, beautiful TV. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Starting from the premise that much of television today is \"drop-dead gorgeous\" and that TV should be studied for its formal qualities as well as its social impact, Greg M. Smith analyzes \u003ci\u003eAlly McBeal\u003c\/i\u003e in terms of its aesthetic principles and narrative construction. He explores how \u003ci\u003eAlly\u003c\/i\u003e's innovative use of music, special effects, fantasy sequences, voiceovers, and flashbacks structures a distinctive fictional universe, while it also opens up new possibilities for televisual expression. Smith also discusses the complex narrative strategies that \u003ci\u003eAlly\u003c\/i\u003e's creator David E. Kelley used to develop a long-running storyline and shows how these serial narrative practices can help us understand a wide range of prime-time TV serials. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e By taking seriously the art and argument of \u003ci\u003eAlly McBeal\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBeautiful TV\u003c\/i\u003e conclusively demonstrates that aesthetic and narrative analysis is an indispensable key for unlocking the richness of contemporary television. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Greg M. Smith\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0292716435\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780292716438\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Texas Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/01\/2007\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 285\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.88lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.93h x 6.33w x 0.71d","brand":"Greg M. Smith","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":44056731582719,"sku":"9780292716438","price":27.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_972c886d-93db-47fc-a45b-14ccd90f4acb.jpg?v=1685042949","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/beautiful-tv-greg-m-smith-9780292716438","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}