Mad Men, Dexter - Anti-heroes Take Over TV
The Rising Prominence of Complex Protagonists in Television Dramas
Nov 10, 2009
In the past TV audiences chose to identify with heroic characters that were driven by strong moral centers. From Columbo and The Rockford Files to Law and Order, the protagonists of the shows were good people who knew right from wrong and (for the most part) lived clean lives. Today viewers seem to prefer complex anti-heroes like Don Draper, Patty Hewes, and Walter White. They are characters who have to answer difficult questions and do not always make the choices people would like to think they would make in the same situations.
For the past two years Mad Men has won the Emmy award for Outstanding Drama. During the same period of time Bryan Cranston was twice victorious for Best Actor in a Drama for his portrayal of Walter White in Breaking Bad, and Glenn Close won back-to-back awards for Best Actress in a Drama for her role as Patty Hewes in Damages. Each show features characters who are not black and white, but gray and who, though they are the focal points of the shows, sometimes do brutal and ugly things.
Interest in Enigmatic Heroes is Nothing New
Mad Men, Damages, and Breaking Bad are three successful programs built around characters that are intriguing to watch, but dangerous to emulate, but they are not a new phenomenon. This decade alone has seen hits like The Sopranos, Deadwood, The Wire, and The Shield, that dealt with protagonists who were the furthest possible thing from heroic.
Cable television especially has allowed for writers to become more creative and has also raised the bar for them as far as what is considered groundbreaking or out of the ordinary. Tony Soprano, Al Swearingen, Jimmy McNulty, and Vic Mackey were characters whose behavior affected viewers in a profound way. The characters were unfaithful husbands, sometimes possessed violent and deadly tempers, and in the case of Soprano, Swearingen, and Mackey, they committed murder and (for the most part) got away with it.
How Far Down the Road of Indecency is it Going?
Even though producers and writers have pushed the boundaries in terms of what is allowed to be shown on TV, there still does seem to be a limit to how far they can go. On the Showtime program Dexter, the protagonist (played brilliantly by Michael C. Hall) is a serial killer, but he only dispatches murderers. He is eradicating deadly monsters, but he is not doing it out of a love of justice, but because HE is a monster as well who must have an outlet for what he calls his “Dark Passenger.”
The question then is: is there a line somewhere that cannot be crossed? After all, Dexter does wrong, but he only does it to people who the audience is made to feel deserve it. Could a show be made about a serial killer with no redeeming qualities at all? Could a drama be a hit if it were to focus not on gray anti-heroes, but on absolute villains?
If the Show is Good, the Characters don't Have to be
There is no easy way to explain the success of one program over another. Some shows (like Arrested Development) are admired by critics and have committed fans, yet they are unable to catch on and reach broad appeal. Mad Men is about high-powered advertising executives in early 1960s Manhattan who have the world at their fingertips, yet they are often melancholy, and are callous to one another. The production is first rate and allows investment from the audience even though people realize they do not want to be like the characters they are watching.
Excellent TV does not require that viewers must identify with those they watch on screen. People watch Superman because they want to be like him, but they do not watch Don Draper (flawlessly portrayed by Jon Hamm) or Dexter Morgan for the same reasons. There are elements of Draper and Dexter that the audience can empathize with (both are fathers and appear to care deeply about their children), but overall they can watch Don’s cruelty towards those he works with and his infidelity and believe that they are more whole than he is. Dexter is not the first murderer to get the audience on his side (Hannibal Lecter did that, too) but he is forgiven his faults because fans of the show know what he’s dealing with and maybe some small part of them wishes they could take vengeance on those who are evil.
Cable Changes the Way Stories are Told
Among the many changes cable TV has brought to the industry (from looser restrictions on violence, sexual imagery, and language to higher production values) perhaps the most lasting will be the deepening of characterizations in dramas. It is not just a coincidence that Mad Men, The Sopranos, The Wire, Breaking Bad, Damages, Dexter, and Deadwood are not network shows; NBC, ABC, CBS, and Fox, have stricter guidelines than FX, AMC, Showtime, and HBO. Network TV can get away with less, and it has to answer to the whims of advertisers.
The cable channels were able to create characters with greater depth and realism, even if they are not admirable. People tune in not to applaud the behavior of the protagonists, but to enjoy engrossing and complex stories that could not have been told 20-years ago. The anti-hero is more popular than ever as the audience can now delve further into what makes him or her tick. TV has changed now, for better or worse, and it will never be the same again.
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