Class: Co-owner of a Lonely Heart blog tasks

Narrative:

The show "Class" is a sci-fi, teenaged drama that focuses on the life of high school teenagers that have to protect the school against invaders from other dimensions or realms. In this episode (Co-owner of a Lonely Heart) Corakinus, king of the Shadow Kin, finally discovers the destination of April when she gives her mum the ability to walk. Corakinus states that he will destroy the planet and everyone on it. April creates a portal to the shadow kin in hope of defeating Corakinus to protect the world.

Character:

The cast consists of Ram, a popular athlete. Tanya, a smart girl, who moved up a grade due to her intelligence. Charlie, the alien that used to be a prince on his previous planet. Miss Quill is also an alien and a guardian to Charlie. Last but not least, April, the normal teenage girl whose life was changed when she got hit by a ray that caused her to share a heart with the Shadow King. Together, they protect Coalhill Academy.

Iconography:

In this episode, there are constant references to the sci-fi genre and space. These things consist of colour changing eyes, futuristic guns and rifts reinforce the science genre. The connection between two beings from two different realms create the idea of space and time travel which reinforces the fact that Class belongs to the sci-fi genre 

The equilibrium is April sharing a heart with Corakinus. Although it was hard for April to adapt, her sharing a heart with Corakinus becomes normal for her and the others until Episode 4. The disruption is when April comes into contact with her father after he has been released from prison. April attempts to avoid him as he is the reason why her mother is paralysed. This enrages her and she threatens him with swords. The recognition is when April doesn't hurt him. The reparation is when April opens the portal to the shadow kin with the intention to save the world. The new equilibrium is not shown but it will be in the second half of the two-parter.
Applying Propps character theory to this episode, April would be seen as a hero. Her heroic nature is shown when she jumps through the portal to reclaim her heart and to protect the world against Corakinus. Ram would be seen as the fake hero. Although it seems as if his intentions are good, it could be argued that his "heroic" tendencies are just for show.

This episode is purposely left on a cliffhanger to make the viewer want more. This enigma code makes them watch other episodes of the series so that they figure out their unanswered questions.

Binary Oppositions within Class: 

• light vs dark - shadow kin and earth
• good vs evil - Corakinus and April
• adults vs teens - April arguing with mum about Ram

Representations

In this episode of Class, gender stereotypes are challenged, an example of this is April. She is portrayed as a heroic and brave, teenaged girl. she is also the protagonist. Male characters are usually associated with the hero role but the fact that this role is played by a female could potentially change the mindset of gender roles.

The representation adults are shown in this episode of Class. April mum being so concerned with her relationship with Ram is a key thing in doing this. The representation of teens is also reinforced through April's challenging behaviour toward her mother.

Charlie and Matteusz are in a homosexual relationship, which is perceived as completely ordinary to the other characters. This reflects diversity amongst people in modern-day Britain.

Aprils mother is disabled, however, this does not prevent her from being a mother. She still is protective over April and will do anything in her power to keep her safe which is shown in the line "Don't let this chair fool you, if you hurt her, I will kill you." This was potentially done to show that diability shouldnt be perceived as a limitation.


Audience

Only 5% of Tv audiences watched Class. The tims that it was aired limited the amount of people thatwatched it as it was shown very late. It also did not reachits target audience. Class was aimed at scifi fans but its marketing and promoting did not manage to reach these audiences 

Reformers may enjoy Class because it has representations of groups that are often under or misrepresented  in the media.

Personal Identity:

The school environment allows audiences to relate to Class. The school lockers also replicate the ones in American high schools which is important as BBC sells its media products to the US.

Personal Relationships:

More is uncovered about Aprils situation when her dad returns. This allows audiences to find out more about her and grow an attatchment. They might empathise with her situation.

Diversion (Escapism):

The scifi aspects of this show allow the audiences to be taken away from their evryday reality and enter a world out of the ordinary.

Surveillance (Information / Facts): Class fails on offering audiences information and facts. This could be a reason why it failed.

Industries

BBC Three was launched in 2003. The objective of BBC Three is to inform, entertain and educate an audience from the ages of 16 to 35. BBC Three broadcasted comedy sketch shows, dramas and documentaries that dealt with situations that were "hidden" from the world. BBC Three was available as a Freeview channel until it became an online-only service. This idea was put in place as it was discovered that their target audience spent the majority of their time watching things online and that they did not watch tv as much as that used to.

Class certainly provides entertainment to its viewers. The interesting storyline and similarly interesting characters gives enjoyment to the audiences. However, this episode of Class fails to educate and inform, which is2 out of the 3 requirements. This could potentially be one of the reasons why Class wasn't as successful as they might have hoped.

Another thing that contributed to the failure of Class was the fact that they did not properly reach out to their target audience. Class would be ideal for people that were fans of Dr Who. However, Class failed to engage with the Sci-fi audience and that was one of the main reasons why Class failed. 

Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child

Narrative:

Doctor Who is apart of the Science Fiction genre and focusses on time travel & interdimensional experiences. In this episode of Doctor Who follows the story of a young, teenaged school girl that is, later on, discover to be an alien from another time dimension. Certain things such as flashbacks and scenes of inside and outside the tardis help the viewer understand the story throughout. The episode ends with a silhouette that is seen as dark and mysterious, this creates a narrative cliffhanger. 

Character:

 Susan is a teenage schoolgirl presented as very intelligent and inquisitive. Her smart mind and quick mouth make the teachers (Barbra & Ian) speculate about how she possesses such great knowledge.  The flashbacks used builds Susan character along with creating a narrative. The two teachers, Ian and Barbara, are presented as kind and prioritises their student's well-being. It could be argued that Barbara is a side character as she does not have many lines in the episode.  With Ian being a more dominant character, he is presented as the heroic one.  In this episode of Doctor Who, the Doctor is presented as cruel. This contrast with the doctor's behaviours in other seasons, where he is loving and makes it his priority to protect mankind 

Iconography: 

One of the aspects that creates the narrative in Dr Who is the Tardis. The small appearance on the outside compared to the big spacious room on the inside certainly gives the feeling of the sci-fi genre.  The sound effects used when the Tardis takes off also adds to it

Setting:

The number of settings used in this episode is very minimal. This could be due to the time period that Doctor Who was created in.  Setting such as the school, the Tardis and the junkyard is the only day being shown in this episode. However, these three sets was a big impact as they create narrative and allow the watcher to understand more. Including the school could allow certain audiences to relate to Susan, therefore allowing personal identity between the audience and the characters to grow.

The original equilibrium is of when the teachers and Susan are in school. Other than the fact that they are questioning Susan, nothing else seems to happen. The disruption is when there is a conflict between the doctor and the teachers when they are searching for the missing child (Susan) The recognition comes when they here Susan's music coming from the small telephone box. Reparation cons when the two teachers for some self into the Tardis and the doctor and Susan explain everything to them. The new equilibrium is when they have travelled to another destination which is unknown to the viewer. 

Applying Propp's character theory to this episode, I would say that Ian would be perceived as a hero. This is because Ian tried his hardest to save Susan and later tries to protect Barbara when they are in the Tardis.  Susan would be the princess.  Although she was in no harm, Ian tries to rescue Susan and protect her from any danger. The doctor would be perceived as the villain, this is because he takes two innocent people (Barbara and Ian) to an unknown segment in time where they have to fight for their lives. Barbara would be seen as a helper as she is always kept on the sideline and does not have many major ports in the episode compared to you,. She acts as a helper for Ian.  

Representation

Some stereotypes are reinforced through the male characters. These characters are presented as more dominant and more significant compared to the female characters. An example of this is Ian and Barbara. Although they both care for Susan’s well-being Ian tends to dominate and acts as the hero while Susan remains on the sideline. It is also noticeable that the amount of lines that Barbara has in this episode is significantly lower than the number.

Moments such as Susan needing rescuing reinforces the stereotype that women cannot fend for themselves without assistance from a male. However, this idea is later neglected as it becomes apparent that Susan did not need saving after all. Another point that subverts women’s stereotypes is the fact that Susan is wearing trousers In this scene when the cast is in the Tardis.  In the year that he was filmed, it was rare to see women in trousers as it was thought that women should wear skirts as trousers were only for men.  

The stereotype of young people is reinforced in this episode of Doctor Who.  Suzanne playing music and jamming in the classroom reinforces stereotypes of teens as they tend to do the same as her.  However, it could be argued that she subverts stereotypes as she is very keen to do her work and she is focused and dedicated. Now, I am not saying that not all teens are keen to do her work, but her dedication and non-stop commitment could potentially subvert the stereotypes put on teens that they are lazy. 

In this episode of Doctor Who, characters played by actors from different cultural backgrounds and not included. In fact, the entirety of this cast is white English. This could be because of the year that this episode was recorded. in 1963, not many people from different at ethnic backgrounds were in London at this time. It is not surprising to see that the cast was all white, considering the time that this episode took place.  

Characters in this episode probably belong to a middle-class society. 

Industries

In the 1960s TV's were becoming more of a success & was favoured over print media. however, the variety of channels to pick from was limited as there were only 3 channels, BBC, BBCTwo and ITV.

Doctor Who is a note is an important franchise for the BBC as the BBC sells it to other countries to make money. With the Doctor Who be a very popular show, bringing in high amounts of use, it is clear to see why the BBC would most likely prioritise it over most of the shows honest timing
  
Doctor Who is about time travel, within certain episodes the doctor and his companion will travel back in time to different historical moments. This is educational as it teaches certain views about different significant moments in history.

All of the BBC’s funding comes from licence fee payers whereas other channels rely on advertising.

OffCom regulates the BBC to ensure that the shows broadcasted follow the set standard for the content of tv and radio programmes. Breaking these standards could result in removal of the show or fining.

Audience: 

The target audience for Doctor Who would be families or individuals from 12 and onwards. The educational factor would be important for the younger views and the doctor's wittiness, in other seasons, could be appealing for the older audiences.

What Doctor Who offers to the audience in terms of Blumber and Katz:

• personal relationships: the audience will be able to build ceratin bonds with a character which allows the audience to feel different ways when these characters are put in situations. An example of this is that audiences could be worried about Barbra and Ian's safety.
• Diversion (escapism): The audience gets to experience something, unlike their current lives. 
• surveillance (information): The time travel to certain points in history educates & informs audiences

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