ER is one of the most decorated sit-com series there ever has been. We have all seen shows having to do with police, doctors and more that depict a more real life situation all put together in a show. Some shows that carry out still today are Grey’s Anatomy, Law and Order, Criminal Minds and more. However, are they really even matched by the success that ER gained? The 331st episode of ER, as well as its last, had record breaking viewers with 23 million people tuning in to watch. The article by Emily Todd VanDerWerff discusses how the show really can go in any direction with one small moment. The episode we watched in class had to do with minimal patients here and there having to be treated for various reasons, but one event triggered one hard-to-miss episode. A patient came in that was covered in some kind of poisonous, acidic liquid where anyone who got some on their skin or clothes instantly had to be treated. That didn’t stop the show from taking the focus off the other patients who were featured before the scene. All of a sudden, the intern doctor is now taking over a higher role in trying to figure put how to deal with all the patients in a hospital that seems to be losing space after most of it is now infected. He is trying to focus on trying to save so many lives but can all of them really be saved?

ER created that feeling of what it could be like being in the shoes of the actors they see on tv. The first month that it launched on Hulu in January of 2018, viewers viewed on average 19.4 hours monthly. As well, 5000 viewers who subscribed to Hulu finished the series in a month. That’s roughly 8 hours a day watching the same show. Why? It attracted viewers on a more personally level. Watching a show about a hospital makes you forget about what it’s actually like in a hospital near your house. ER gave a fictional view of the stress that doctors and patients go through on a day to day basis. The camera angles that are shown in the show create a sense of stress for viewers, making them inclined to keep watching because they want to know what is going to happen next. It has the emotional appeal that viewers want and was really the first series to capture that idea.

M*A*S*H was another one of those shows. It was created around the Vietnam War, and like most people, they needed an escape from reality. That is where tv comes in and M*A*S*H comes in. A surgical unit finds itself stuck in hard times during the Korean War with little resources of help. So, they have to make their own fun. The show isn’t all completely serious, where they are able to make jokes and have fun while being stuck in a hard time. Just like in regular day life, people needed that relief and that positive energy and the tv show gave them that opportunity.

TV shows like M*A*S*H, ER and more showed life in alternative ways. How a hospital that goes through so much struggle in saving lives while also discussing relationships among the actors. It keeps viewers interested and more attracted. Game of Thrones was another tv series that had major popularity. However when the last season seemed almost rushed, people felt disinterested and disappointed with how things are left off. That’s why shows like ER that take a long time to develop and end get the most attention. The emotional involvement is what keeps everything into place. That’s why the series finale episodes do so well with viewership. The long developing process keeps everyone on the edge of their seats and they can’t wait to see what comes next or how it is. I don’t believe tv today is the same as it was back in the 70s, 80s, and 90s. However, I think they are trying to revamp the whole concept. Shows like Grey’s Anatomy, Law and Order and more are trying to give that same emotional feel without trying to exaggerate it too much.

Jason Berardicurti