tv serial essay

Free TV Show Review Essay Examples & Topics

Film and screenwriting students will often have to write a TV program review essay. There are several ways to approach this type of assignment. You might want to contrast several shows or write a critical analysis essay. Below, our team has outlined some advice that you might need when writing a TV show essay. We have also provided a list of examples that you can use for ideas or inspiration. Let us begin by exploring some definitions.

A television show (also known as a TV program or TV series) is a piece of media produced for educational, instructional or entertaining purposes. It is usually comprised of a certain number of episodes that make up a “season”.TV shows have different formats – they can be unstructured or follow a script or screenplay. Examples include cooking programs, reality TV, fictional dramas, etc.

To write a TV show review essay, you will have to watch and closely study your chosen program. You’ll need to focus on describing the characters, the setting, what it is about, and what emotions it evokes. Conduct semiotic analysis of the contents of the show and evaluate its premise.

In this article, you will find even more useful advice. We have also described the differences between a critique and a review of a program and provided some TV show analysis examples.

TV Show Essays: Critique vs. Review

Even though you might see TV show reviews and critique as interchangeable terms, there is still a difference. In the article, we will equate analysis with criticism since both types examine the work from different angles. However, a review is usually a part of such analytical essays.

In this section, we will explain in detail what are the differences between TV show critique and review:

• TV show critique:

It is an analytical paper that might be published years after the release of the show. TV show critique essays serve as an evaluation of the series. The writer can compare the series to other ones and provide an estimated effect on the viewers.

• TV show review:

A review of the TV show is consumer-oriented and serves as a recommendation for viewing the series. They can be found in popular magazines or newspapers, while critiques – in scholarly publications.

You can look at the TV show review essay examples, as well as critique samples below.

How to Write about a TV Show in an Essay

To write a flawless paper, you should understand what exactly you’re supposed to examine or discuss. That’s why it’s better to check TV show analysis essay examples and see how others dealt with the task. Besides, in this section, we’ve prepared some tips that can help you nail the assignment.

Things to cover in your TV program review essay:

• Summary . You should at least write a synopsis of the show or give a general description of what is happening in the TV series.
• Your impression . Ask yourself how the show made you feel. Did it produce any emotional response? How well were the dialogues written? Did you have to pause to understand what was happening?
• Performances. How well did actors portray the characters? Were they age-appropriate? If there are too many good actors, you can focus on the main ones and describe them.
• Director’s other works . If necessary, you can mention other notable works of the director. You can devote a paragraph to compare his other movies or shows to the one you chose.

Here are some tips for your TV show analysis:

Provide some general information:

• What’s the name of the show?
• How many seasons or episodes have already aired?
• What are the genre and intended audience?

Talk about realism:

• How real is the show?
• Do the actors look like ordinary people or models?
• Are their emotions realistic or politically correct for the time?
• Do they portray issues that happen in real life?

Elaborate on the script:

• Is it good?
• If you’re describing Reality TV, is the show scripted?
• Do people act, and if they do, how is it evident?
• How the show makes you feel?

Describe the overall impression:

• Would you recommend it? Why?
• What was the reason to start watching the show initially?
• What were the expectations?
• How did they influence your final impression of the show?

Thanks for reading! We hope this was helpful to you. In addition, you will find free essays about television shows via the links below.

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How To Write A TV Show Review: A Detailed Overview

• By Amanda Dudley
• May 5, 2022

Writing a professional TV show review isn’t as easy as you think. Throwing several facts in the message and writing your thoughts on them isn’t enough. Such a structure is great when you’re leaving a comment on Amazon after buying a DVD or a digital copy. But if you aim at a professional review such as essaysevice com review , consider things like the director’s previous work, the script, etc.

You can always use a writing service in case of an emergency. Such online writing websites, like SmartWritingService, have hundreds of professional academic writers, ready to assist 24/7. A lot of them are trained in writing reviews and do this on a daily basis. Nevertheless, it’s still very important to know how to write a TV show review yourself.

We’ve prepared several methods pro reviewers use to make their messages stand out.

Things That Make a TV Show Review Good

There are two important questions to answer:

• What do you want to convey with your review?
• What do your potential readers want to see in it?

By combining the two things and writing them in a proper way, you can make the best TV show review possible.

The answer to the first question might be that you loved the show and want to promote it and recommend it to other people. It might also be that you liked some of the parts but there are things that, in your opinion, could have been portrayed better. And it also may be that you didn’t like the show at all, the script is boring and plain, and that you don’t recommend this show to anyone.

As to the second question, it’s much easier to answer. Usually, people read reviews to find out whether the show is worth their time and money (in case they want to buy a copy). 

Some additional elements of a good review are:

• Entertaining bits like jokes, sarcastic comments, etc. Make sure you don’t overdo it, though;
• Interesting facts about the show, actors, director, etc.;
• Your personality as a reviewer. This is especially important if you want people to follow your future work.

What to Include in a Review

There are specific things that look good in TV show reviews, given you’re writing about them properly and do sufficient research beforehand. While your personal opinion is very important, there must be some clear information for the readers to try and make their own conclusions.

Let’s see what a review can contain:

• Plot summary. There are two types of such summaries: a full one and a partial one. The first can be used if you’re writing on a platform where people go to read the full plot of the show. This means they aren’t afraid of spoilers. The second one is to give the reader a taste of the show.
• Write your opinion on the script. Think about how well the show was written. Does the script awake any emotions? Are the characters natural? What about the dialogues? Do you have to stop the show to understand what’s going on? Paying attention to the script will make you a better reviewer since you’ll understand what is worth watching and what common mistakes are.
• Evaluate the actors. How well have the actors portrayed a character? Is the age proper? The attitude? What about their acting credentials? If the show has a lot of actors, it’s a good idea to evaluate the main ones in detail and all the other ones in general. A talented cast can make a plain script seem much better.
• Mention the directors’ other works. If relevant, write more about the other works of the director. Maybe there are some honorable mentions? You can compare the level of “that one” movie or show with the one you’re reviewing. This will put a lot of things in perspective and can become the main point of the whole review.

Proper Writing Is Another Key

No review is good without proper vocabulary, grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Here’s a checklist of all the things to pay attention to when writing:

• Keep the structure easy to understand and read;
• Make the paragraphs connected, don’t leave cliffhangers in the middle of a review unless you’re doing it on purpose;
• Proofread the text several times;
• Use online tools to check grammar and punctuation;
• Make sure you use proper vocabulary. Make the reviews sound smart but not too much;
• Be fair, don’t base the whole text only on your opinion. Some people might like the show that you think is trash just because the main actress isn’t blonde, even though you imagined her blonde in this role.

To Summarize

Reviews are one of the most powerful ways to promote or destroy a show. Before buying, watching, listening to anything, people go online to find reviews. Customer time is precious, and they never want to waste it on a movie or a show they won’t like. There are thousands of reviews online, you can find them on YouTube, Amazon, and specialized platforms. But if you want to stand out as a professional reviewer, put some effort into your message.

Include your persona there, joke, provide interesting information, make it catchy and easy to read. And practice a lot to make sure you improve with every new TV show review you write. There are enough shows to watch and write about, so go ahead!

Amanda Dudley is a lecturer and writer with a Ph.D. in History from Stanford University. After earning her doctorate in 2001, she decided to pursue a fulfilling career in the educational sector. So far, she has made giant strides by working as an essay writer for EssayUSA , where she delivers high-quality academic papers to students who need them.

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How to Write a Television Show Review

Television reviews focus on a range of TV shows, such as nail-biting dramas or situation comedies, but they all provide a critical perspective that entices readers to watch the show. In a review, draw upon a show's performance and production, and illustrate the strengths and weaknesses of a show, as well as what audiences might enjoy most. Reviews evaluate the overall production and performance of a show and also compare the show to the cast and crew's previous work.

Summarize the Plot

In the first paragraph, describe the show's basic storyline to pique readers' curiosity and give them context for the rest of your review. Incorporate a brief plot summary, which introduces the central character and his primary conflict, and also introduces the setting, time period and genre. Since your readers have not yet seen the show, limit your summary to only the most important details. Don't reveal plot spoilers, which could ruin the story for potential viewers.

Provide Production Information

Since many shows earn reputations based on previous credits of a show’s production team, comparing the show with the creators' and writers' previous work can help readers connect it with programs they're already familiar with. You might discuss how the show fits into the creators’ overall body of work or compare and contrast it with other shows they've produced. A television show also may earn cult status among a specific audience demographic or blaze creative trails with its structure and episodes. Describing the show's unique appeal to viewers and groundbreaking elements can reveal what sets it apart from programs that may be similar.

Critique the Script

All television shows begin as scripts that incorporate carefully composed dialogue with production directions. Your review should detail how successful the show is in creating a believable plot and characters. Discuss how the dialogue reveals the characters, presents key story and plot information, or creates mood and tone. Write about the writer's use of action, developing the story through the characters' behavior. If the show takes place in a specific setting or time period, discuss how the costumes and scenery make the story real for the viewer.

Evaluate the Acting

The ability of the actors to evoke emotion and believability is a crucial mark of its success. Your review can evaluate the quality of the actors' performances and how they contribute to creating a realistic, entertaining story. Focus on the actor who portrays the show's central character, using specific examples to illustrate why his performance is successful, and also point out the supporting actors who add depth and meaning to the story. If you're reviewing an established show, consider how the characters have changed throughout the series and how the actors' performances contributed to this development.

• American Library Association: Elements for Basic Reviews

Kori Morgan holds a Bachelor of Arts in professional writing and a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing and has been crafting online and print educational materials since 2006. She taught creative writing and composition at West Virginia University and the University of Akron and her fiction, poetry and essays have appeared in numerous literary journals.

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How to write a review for an entire television season.

Table of Contents

With all of the streaming services now airing exclusive TV series all at once, webmasters and TV critics have begun reviewing entire TV seasons. This type of television review is so prevalent now it is common place.

Most of these streaming TV series consist of ten-to-thirteen episodes per season and each episode is 50-60 minutes long.

Methods of Review

There are two ways to review an entire television season all at once: 1.) an overview review that talks about the season as a whole, one continuous narrative, and 2.) review all the episodes in one article but review each episode individually.

The positives of each type of review: the overview review is easier to write and it will have a clear narrative (the writer looks at the entire season as an elongated episode). The all-episode review is more detailed and informative.

Whether you choose the overview review or the all-episode review format, there is a misstep that should be avoided. It has to do with the title of the review.

Accurate Title

Streaming services have a tendency to release a few, half, and possibly the entire season to TV critics to review (substitution based upon the number of episodes referenced in early season reviews that I have read) in advance of a TV season premiere.

When writing an entire season review and placing that (“entire season review” or something analogous) in the title of your article, you need to have actually watched the entire season so that your review’s title is factually based.

I read a early review for the first season of Iron Fist on Netflix on a TV and film website (we interviewed their webmaster here ) that touted the review as being for the entire season – “Season 1 Review” was in the title for the review:

When I clicked on the review to read and get a general gist of the upcoming season for the superhero television show, it was noted right at the beginning of the review that it was only a review for the first six episodes:

The first season of Iron Fist was thirteen episodes long .

Because of those two facts, the title for the review was completely misleading and was not accurate.

If you are going to write a review for a set amount of episodes for a season below the full season mark, write in the title of your review how many episodes you actually reviewed.

When I write a full season review title, instead of writing “Season X Review”, like some writers, I write “Season X, Episodes X-X.” This way the potential reader knows exactly what they are about to read, what season and what episodes that I have reviewed.

Even if it is an entire season review, I still place the episode range in the title. So for a thirteen episode season, I would place into the title of the review “1-13.” I could easily place “Entire Season” or “Season 1 Review.” What I put in the title is a clarifying preference but it still a preference.

The point is to be factual.

Advertise the exact contents of your review in the title of your article. Then give the reader exactly what the title advertises in the body of your review. If its an entire season review, let the reader know that in the title of your article then review the entire season in your review. If you have only reviewed three, six, or half of the season, that should be in the title of your article as well so that it is reflective of your review’s contents.

If not, you may be accused of not knowing how to write a headline or worse, misleading the reader.

Body of the Review

Pyramid of journalism.

Use the inverted pyramid of journalism as your default format for your review, whether you are writing an overview review or the all-episode review format.

I like to place keywords in the first few lines of my copy for search engines and meta data (e.g. the television network, TV Show Review, the title of the TV series, etc.) but that may not be necessary anymore with WP plugins like Yoast SEO that let you manually manipulate meta data for search engines.

Thesis Statement

For a more formal structure, create a thesis statement for your review, your general thoughts on the season then back up that thesis statement with facts.

A thesis statement :

• tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter under discussion.
• is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper.
• directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself.
• makes a claim that others might dispute.
• is usually a single sentence near the beginning of your paper (most often, at the end of the first paragraph) that presents your argument to the reader. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.

Use direct examples from the episodes of the season as said evidence and build your argument for your thesis statement.

To keep yourself on track, for an overview review, create an outline. The outline will be the bone structure of your review and will help keep your review focused.

For an all-episode review, break your review apart by episode. After you have those titles or episode numbers written down (or both), write down notes for each episode, the points that your want to discuss, review, and analyze. Once that’s done, fill in each section of your outline using the notes you previously jutted down for each episode.

Track the Back-Plot Throughout the Season

Usually there is something big in the background of a television season, growing with each successive episode. Identify, track, and note that something’s successful or unsuccessful progress throughout the season. It may be the back-plot or sub-plot of a season but it will be there. It’s taught in television screenwriting school. It usually grows in significance as the season goes on. Identify it (it should become apparent by the mid-point of the season) and analysis it in your review. Your review will be much more in-depth and critical if you do.

Page Breaks

If your TV season review is very long, most-likely with an all-episode review, breaking the review up into multiple pages is a good practice. By instituting page breaks, your review page does not stretch down for past your ads and other sidebar information.

Conclusion of Your Review

The conclusion of your overview review or the all-episode review can be your proven thesis (if you don’t know how to end your review), where all the main points of your review are tied together tightly. Or you can end the review organically, ending the review with the last paragraph of the review.

For the all-episode review, you may need a separate section for your concluding opinions on the season – a distillation of your final thoughts.

This is arbitrary though. As I wrote, you can end the review with your final words on the last episode. It’s up to you.

I hope you found this “How to Write a Review for an Entire Television Season” article informative.

Leave your thoughts on this article below in the comments section. Want up-to-the-minute notification of newly published articles? ProMovieBlogger publishes articles by Email , Twitter , Tumblr , Google+ , and Facebook .

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About the author.

Rollo Tomasi

Rollo Tomasi is a Connecticut-based film critic, TV show critic, news, and editorial writer. He will have a MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University in 2025. Rollo has written over 700 film, TV show, short film, Blu-ray, and 4K-Ultra reviews. His reviews are published in IMDb's External Reviews and in Google News. Previously you could find his work at Empire Movies, Blogcritics, and AltFilmGuide. Now you can find his work at FilmBook, ProMovieBlogger, and TrendingAwards.

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What “Serial” Really Taught Us

By Sarah Larson

The final episode of the first season of “Serial”—the podcast to end all podcasts—came out this morning. The series has given us a lot to think about. Like other devotees, I’ve listened to many episodes more than once, felt sympathy for Adnan Syed and the loved ones of Hae Min Lee, confusion about Jay, and even more confusion about the cell-phone evidence. I’ve felt a listener’s kinship with the host, Sarah Koenig, and made jokes about MailChimp and the shrimp sale at the Crab Crib. “Serial” lured us in with the promise of a good story—a murder mystery given the “This American Life” treatment, but over an entire season, like an HBO drama. I got up at six this morning to listen to the conclusion. Long anticipated and much discussed, it was a major cultural event—even though by now we expected something closer to the mood of the “Sopranos” finale than to Sherlock Holmes.

Every episode began with the show’s contemplative theme and a prerecorded prison-call greeting, and we reflected, sadly, about the fate of a thirty-two-year-old man serving a life sentence, who may have been wrongfully convicted. The show presented us with the very best of what radio and podcasts can do. It provided listeners with the voices of the many people involved with the case, detailing accounts, ideas, memories. It made good-faith efforts to solve the dozens of small mysteries that were part of the big mystery—where people were on January 13, 1999, and what they were doing; whether there was a pay phone at a certain Best Buy; the implications of events at high-school dances. We felt like we were listening to a story, an entertainment, but in truth what we were listening to was much bigger than that.

In the beginning, Koenig, a “This American Life” producer, had wanted to do a spinoff podcast involving a story told over time. After a woman named Rabia Chaudry contacted her about her friend Adnan Syed’s case, which involved a defense attorney whom Koenig had written about in the past, Koenig investigated for a year and made it the basis of the first season. When the show began broadcasting, Koenig and the other producers were still gathering information. They knew they had enough for a great show, but they didn’t know how it would end. From the start, intentionally or not, the show was about doubt.

Ira Glass, in his introduction to “Serial” on “This American Life,” told us that “what really happened was actually much more complicated than what the jury heard,” and that “each week, we will go with Sarah on her hunt to figure out what really happened. And we will learn the answers as she does.” This implied that there was a thriller in the works, but he also said that the producers of “Serial”—Koenig, Dana Chivvis, and Julie Snyder—have “flipped back and forth” in their thinking about Adnan’s guilt, and so would we. When I  talked to the producers  in the “This American Life” office the week before “Serial” débuted, in early October, there was much discussion about the nature of truth and how, in a criminal investigation, you can uncover many facts that seem to point toward a suspect’s guilt or innocence, and then learn other facts that confuse it again. We cited examples: Snyder told me about the documentary “The Staircase,” which the producers of “Serial” had watched; I mentioned the 1994 William Finnegan piece “ Doubt .” I also thought, both at the time and as I listened to “Serial” in the following weeks, about a jury I’d served as an alternate for, in a case involving a violent incident in which details and motives—like those in Syed’s case—were unclear. All of these cases involved considerable reasonable doubt about the suspect’s guilt. And all resulted in convictions.

In the course of “Serial,” we learned a huge amount of relevant information that proved inconclusive. Koenig managed to track down a woman named Asia McClain who could have provided an alibi for Adnan, but the discovery was legally useless. Koenig and Chivvis learned that Mr. S., the person who found Hae’s body in Leakin Park, was a suspicious character with tenuous connections to both Hae and Adnan, who, it seemed, for a minute, might have  known  that the body was there to discover. But in the end it appeared that Mr. S. was, in fact, just a boozy streaker who happened upon the body, possibly while running naked though the woods.

Every episode was like that. Each character, central or fringe, was at worst odd, human, and even endearing; most of them were a little flawed, but no one was sinister. Jay, the chief witness for the prosecution, who testified that he had helped Adnan bury Hae’s body and who led the police to her car, also sold drugs, liked punk rock, and worked at a porn video store. He had provided conflicting stories about the details of the murder and his involvement several times. But he came across as a sympathetic outsider, not a thug, and as someone who was deeply uncomfortable with murder. He seemed genuinely traumatized by his involvement. And if he was involved, wasn’t Adnan? Who else could it have been? Many of us found ourselves feeling, or “believing,” an impossible logical tangle: that Jay helped bury Hae’s body, that Jay did not kill Hae, and that Adnan did not kill her either. We liked them both too much to believe otherwise. Just about everyone interviewed on “Serial” likes Adnan—even those who think he’s guilty. Even, we learned today, Don, Hae’s boyfriend and LensCrafters co-worker, thought Adnan was a good guy.

This morning, the twelfth and final episode, “What We Know” (spoilers follow), revealed that, in the end, the “answers” in “Serial” were much like those in “Doubt” and “The Staircase.” The episode had several amazing revelations. Koenig was finally able to interview Don. (He didn’t want to be on the show, so she read his comments to us.) Don seemed like another good egg. He loved Hae and admired her confidence. His seemingly airtight alibi was undermined a bit when we learned that his manager at LensCrafters that day had been his mom. He and Adnan had chatted amiably after coming to advise Hae after she got in a minor car accident the month before her murder—no hotheads, no jealousy, nothing untoward. And, rather stunningly, Don had not tried to contact Hae after her disappearance—a behavior that in Adnan’s case had seemed deeply suspicious, implying that he knew she was dead. This seemed to make Adnan less guilty. Koenig also talked to Josh, Jay’s porn-video-store co-worker, who provided details about Jay’s fear and anxiety the week of the murder, seeming to implicate Adnan—or, at least, the “Middle Eastern” guy whose name he didn’t quite know, but who had gone to prison. Snyder and Chivvis did more research into cell-phone practices of 1998 and learned that the incriminating “Nisha call” could indeed have been a butt dial. More reasonable doubt. Deirdre Enright, of the Innocence Project, called with exciting news about a serial killer who had been in prison in Baltimore and who had a “tiny window of being out and about” in January of 1999, when the murder took place. She and her students were filing a motion to have DNA from the scene tested, and Adnan wanted it tested too. “There’s nothing about my case that I’m afraid of,” he said.

Episode 12 conclusively proved that what we’ve been listening to is not a murder mystery: it’s a deep exploration of the concept of reasonable doubt, and therefore an exposé,  if unwittingly so , of the terrible flaws in our justice system. Those among us who deign to be jurors, and don’t try to wriggle out of jury duty, too often don’t understand reasonable doubt, or can’t convince fellow-jurors about what it truly means. We convict people who haven’t been proved guilty because we  feel  that they are guilty. We feel that they’re guilty in part because they’re sitting in a courtroom having been accused of a terrible crime. In cases like this, the burden often ends up on proving the accused’s innocence—not innocent until proven guilty. And Adnan Syed is just the tip of the iceberg.

Many dozens of defendants are convicted or take pleas in the face of similarly inconclusive evidence. Adnan Syed, unlike many people who are convicted, was well-off; he was popular and beloved, with an incredible amount of support from his family, his mosque, his school. He had a passionate and respected attorney whom he still respects and appreciates, long after her disbarment and her death. Thousands of others do not have such support. Innocent or not, they are even easier to convict.

Koenig’s conclusion? In the end, she said, the only real piece of evidence against Adnan was that Jay was able to lead the police to Hae’s car—and that wasn’t enough to send a seventeen-year-old kid to prison for life. “As a juror, I vote to acquit Adnan Syed,” she said. As a person, she has doubts. That’s an essential distinction. “I feel like shaking everyone by the shoulders like an aggravated cop,” she says. “ ‘Just tell me the facts, ma’am.’ Because we didn’t have them fifteen years ago, and we still don’t have them now.”

Facts can only tell you so much; laws are meant to protect us all from the misapplication of facts, power, and force. “Serial” gave millions of people what felt like a personal connection to the realities of criminal prosecution, and it happened to come at a moment of heightened cultural awareness of the many injustices of that system, in part because of the deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and Akai Gurley, in part because of growing awareness of the need for prison reform, even in part because of shows like “The Wire” and “Orange Is the New Black.” As a public-defender friend of mine put it, “Terrible things have been happening for a long time with all of us not being aware of it. People go to jail whether they’re innocent or not. You can’t divorce ‘Serial’ from that.” The thing that’s important about “Serial,” he went on, is “not that that dude’s story is unique—it’s that it’s prosaic.”

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The Literary in Television, or Why We Should Teach TV Series in Literature Departments

• First Online: 19 January 2022

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This essay addresses the question of television series as literature from a pedagogical perspective. It springs from the experience of teaching television serial drama at the doctoral level in a Comparative Literature department. Barthes’ concept of plurality speaks to the differing and deferred reception of television drama once it travels across continents: it applies to the study and reception of non-Anglophone television series, screened with subtitles that invoke estrangement due to a reception that places emphasis and strain on concurrent images, writing, and sound. Retracing the experience of teaching television drama to literary scholars, my essay claims the urgency of a critical investigation of forms of textuality that defy disciplinary boundaries.

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Lombardi, G. (2021). The Literary in Television, or Why We Should Teach TV Series in Literature Departments. In: Winckler, R., Huertas-Martín, V. (eds) Television Series as Literature. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4720-1_8

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