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.