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Just noticed how many shows use the same 'cold open' trick
I was visiting a friend in Austin last weekend and we binged three different crime dramas back to back. Every single one started with a scene out of order, like a dead body or a confession, before jumping back to the start. Does this formula bother anyone else or am I just overthinking it?
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lilyo303d ago
Yeah the "every show does this" thing isn't exactly accurate. You said "every single one" started with a scene out of order, but that's not really how most crime dramas work. Plenty of shows like Law & Order or NCIS just start at the beginning with a normal crime scene. The cold open trick you're talking about is more of a HBO or streaming show thing. Basic cable shows usually don't bother with the jump back stuff because they want people to follow along easily during commercials. So you're not overthinking it, but your sample size of three shows in one night isn't really enough to say all shows do it. Maybe pick a fourth show tomorrow night and see what happens.
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claireg812d ago
Oh totally agree with you on that. Those basic cable procedurals are way more straightforward. Law & Order practically invented the "dead body in the first three minutes then straight to the precinct" formula. No fancy timeline games. But here's the thing even those shows sometimes play with the cold open a little. Like Criminal Minds would start with the victim walking home then boom cut to the team already working the case. That's basically the same trick just done faster. So maybe it's not every show but it's definitely most of them. The streaming stuff takes it further though. Orange is the New Black did the flashback thing constantly. That's a whole different level of messing with time.
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