Beautiful TV: The Art and Argument of Ally McBeal

287 Pages·2007·1.5 MB·English

by  Greg M. Smith

Beautiful TV

Beautiful TV

The Art and Argument of Ally McBeal
greg m. smith
University of Texas Press
Austin
Copyright © 2007 by the University of Texas Press
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
First edition, 2007
Requests for permission to reproduce material
from this work should be sent to:
Permissions
University of Texas Press
P.O. Box 7819
Austin, TX 78713-7819
www.utexas.edu/utpress/about/bpermission.html
∞ The paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements
of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (R1997) (Permanence of Paper).
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Smith, Greg M.
Beautiful TV : the art and argument of Ally McBeal / Greg M. Smith. — 1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-292-71642-1 (cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-292-71642-7 (cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN-13: 978-0-292-71643-8 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-292-71643-5 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Ally McBeal (Television program) 2. Television--Aesthetics. I. Title.
PN1992.77.A533S65 2007
791.45'72—dc22
2006033327
For Mary,
who made my heart go “boom”
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
Contents
Introduction: Why Ally? 1
Aesthetics
1. Practical Music, Personal Fantasy: Creating a Community
of Song in Ally McBeal 19
2. Getting into Ally’s Head: Special Effects, Imagination,
and the Voice of Doubt 47
Narration and Argument
3. Redeeming Ally: Seriality and the Character Network 73
4. “Is It Possible to Love Somebody Only Two Days?”:
Guest Stars and Eccentricity 145
5. Victim of Love: Ally McBeal and the Politics of Protection 177
Afterword 193
Episode List 201
Notes 205
Bibliography 253
Index 267
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
Beautiful TV