Webisodes offer alternative to original

The future of television won’t be on TV. It will be on the Internet.

As streaming shows on the Internet becomes more accessible to college students, networks have to figure out how to deal with this growing demand.

Enter the “webisode.” A webisode is online content, usually two to five minutes long, that can be an original series or a piece based on a popular TV show. Webisodes frequently center on either minor or new characters and have stories that are somewhat related to the primary show on TV.

With YouTube, Current TV, and Funny or Die creating an outlet for original online content, webisodes are becoming increasingly widespread.

As these online shorts have become more and more popular, webisodes have become a large part of the attraction for shows like “Heroes,” “Lost,” “The Office,” and “Breaking Bad.”

“Grey’s Anatomy” has continued the tradition, having recently premiered its new webisode series “Seattle Grace: On Call” while it continues to have strong ratings on air.

But although webisodes have been met with popularity, a show’s on-air success does not guarantee the success of online content. “I only watch webisodes when there is nothing else to watch,” Ari Frydman, JTS/GS ’10, said. “I don’t watch them regularly. The storylines aren’t interesting enough to keep me tuning in.”

“The quality also isn’t very good,” Hannah Mackler, BC ’11, said. “Take, for example, ‘Nowhere Man,’ one of Heroes’s former webisode series. The camera is shaky and the writing isn’t the greatest. It also follows a character that I’m not that fond of. But the episodes were only three or four minutes long and the series short, so I watched them anyway.”

However, not all webisodes are created equal. “I love ‘The Office’ and the online episodes are so funny,” Alexandria Ross, BC ’11, said. “They really capture the spirit of the show and give me more of the characters I love.”

The differences between “The Office” and “Heroes” webisodes can be traced back to those who work both behind and in front of the camera. “The Office” webisodes use many of the same talents for writing, directing, and acting, whereas “Heroes” uses a different creative team and follows new and minor characters—its many online shows deal more with the expanded universe.

The current “Heroes” series, “Slow Burn” has more relevance to its current TV season than some of its predecessors. Mackler likes that the webisode corresponds to the aired show “because it really adds to the show. Some of the characters that we don’t get to know in the show are explored in the online series, which just enhances the experience on the television.”

“Seattle Grace: On Call,” the new online webisode series of “Grey’s Anatomy,” follows a similar pattern to “Heroes” webisodes—it follows minor characters and contains dialogue that sounds different from dialogue in the original show. The online content may not be up to par with the corresponding TV shows, but the webisodes fulfill the networks’ intended purposes.

“Watching them makes me want to see more,” Ross said. And, of course, network supply comes with consumer demand.