Miniseries

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A miniseries (sometimes mini-series), in a serial storytelling medium, is a production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes.

1 Television
2 Comic books
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Television

Although no strict rule exists which differentiate a miniseries from a "regular" series or serial there are some suggestions. Leslie Halliwell and Philip Purser argue in Halliwell's Television Companion that miniseries tend to "appear in four to six episodes of various lengths." whilst Stuart Cunningham defines them as, "a limited run program of more than two and less than the thirteen part season or half season block associated with serial or series programming."^[1]

In television, the format dates back to at least a 1966 ABC broadcast of an adaptation of The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, produced by David L. Wolper. The term became well-established in the mid 1970s, particularly with the success of Rich Man, Poor Man, based on the novel of Irwin Shaw, in 1976.

Alex Haley's Roots in 1977 can fairly be called the first blockbuster success of the format. Its success in the USA was partly due to its schedule: the twelve hours were split into eight episodes broadcast on consecutive nights, resulting in a finale with a 71 percent share of the audience and 130 million viewers. TV Guide (April 11-April 17, 1987) called Jesus of Nazareth "the best miniseries of all time" and "unparalleled television."

In British television, the term 'miniseries' is almost never used, except in reference to American imports. The term serial is preferred for short-run British television drama, which has been a staple of UK schedules since the early 1950s when serials such as The Quatermass Experiment (1953) established the popularity of the form. 'Miniseries' is, however, used as a kind of exonym for non-miniseries British TV series in the United States, where the typical season length of six to thirteen episodes is considered short.

Very rarely, a multi-part episode within a longer running TV show may also be called a "miniseries", and with a few shows, a miniseries became the effective pilot episode of a longer production run.

[edit] Comic books

Main article: Limited series

A miniseries or limited series is a very common format for comic books, as it allows creators to tell a single specific story focusing on a character or set of characters, whether that story stands alone (Watchmen) or is heavily interlinked with other events in the same fictional universe (Civil War). Two to twelve issues is the usual length for a comic book miniseries (a story contained in a single issue is termed a one-shot). 52 is the longest comic book miniseries to have been planned, as it is intended to last for fifty-two weekly issues.

Comic book series intended from the beginning to tell a complete story can become longer still, for example Sandman, which lasted 75 issues; these are not considered miniseries, partly because of their size and partly because no fixed number of issues is announced right at the beginning.

The opposite is an ongoing series.