Exegesis of Normal: episodes one and two.

A Genre Analysis of the Superhero Genre in Serialised Television.

The epic tales of myths and legends about great heroes and vile villains have been popular for a thousand of years. Always evolving and changing to suit its current times to become one of the most persistent genres to ever exist in modern literary genre fiction. The Superhero genres eternal prominence has naturally embedded into every medium imaginable however this exegesis will focus mainly on its prominence in serialised television. This Exegesis will explore the genre through examining many televised superhero series such as Daredevil, Luke Cage and the Gifted and more. It is through researching these television series, that I aim to incorporate some of these findings into my own body of work. The genre of the superheroes will be investigated by harnessing identifiable signatures linked to its many sub-genres and probing into the genre’s rich history from its earliest conceptions such as the Phantom in its original comic book format to the movie blockbuster-hits such as the Dark Knight. The exegesis will identify these key signifiers commonly associated with superhero-based narratives, with tropes and staples located in their iconic costumes with domino masks to the deadly motives of their advisories with such as the Joker. A brief examination of the expectations of the genre’s contemporary audience will be inspected, touching slighting on the audience’s satisfaction of seeing their hero win. After accumulating these results, they will be applied into my screenplay’s narrative as well as provide an insight into the genre.