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<blockquote data-quote="ClassyCo" data-source="post: 438628" data-attributes="member: 7">KNOTS LANDING&#039;s own Michele Lee once stated, &quot;There isn&#039;t a single show on today that isn&#039;t soap, as in a continuing story,&quot; when she was interviewed for the &quot;Primetime Soaps&quot; retrospective special that PBS did back in 2013.And, in theory, she&#039;s pretty much right. If you define a &quot;soap&quot; as a &quot;continuing story among a group of characters&quot;, then that can be applied to everything from DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES to WHEN CALLS THE HEART to THE OFFICE to LAW &amp; ORDER: SVU. Almost all shows today incorporate some form of ongoing narrative to keep the viewers engaged and interested enough to come back and find out what happens next. Primetime television and shows on various streaming platforms are full of this type of storytelling and narrative structure. And the format isn&#039;t just confined to melodramas anymore, either. Small-screen comedies and sitcoms (i.e. FRIENDS and SUPERSTORE) have infused their narratives with ongoing story-arcs, while still utilizing episodic plots to execute the funnier moments that call back to their sitcom forefathers.In saying that, I agree with the idea that classifying a show as a &quot;soap&quot; is pretty difficult to do. I&#039;d bet that many showrunners today wouldn&#039;t tell you that they&#039;re producing a &quot;soap opera&quot;, even if they&#039;re the ones that are influential in incorporating ongoing storylines into the show in an effort to retain a steady audience and perhaps intrigue new viewers to tune in.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="ClassyCo, post: 438628, member: 7"] KNOTS LANDING's own Michele Lee once stated, "There isn't a single show on today that isn't soap, as in a continuing story," when she was interviewed for the "Primetime Soaps" retrospective special that PBS did back in 2013. And, in theory, she's pretty much right. If you define a "soap" as a "continuing story among a group of characters", then that can be applied to everything from DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES to WHEN CALLS THE HEART to THE OFFICE to LAW & ORDER: SVU. Almost all shows today incorporate some form of ongoing narrative to keep the viewers engaged and interested enough to come back and find out what happens next. Primetime television and shows on various streaming platforms are full of this type of storytelling and narrative structure. And the format isn't just confined to melodramas anymore, either. Small-screen comedies and sitcoms (i.e. FRIENDS and SUPERSTORE) have infused their narratives with ongoing story-arcs, while still utilizing episodic plots to execute the funnier moments that call back to their sitcom forefathers. In saying that, I agree with the idea that classifying a show as a "soap" is pretty difficult to do. I'd bet that many showrunners today wouldn't tell you that they're producing a "soap opera", even if they're the ones that are influential in incorporating ongoing storylines into the show in an effort to retain a steady audience and perhaps intrigue new viewers to tune in. [/QUOTE]

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