Coming off of last week’s post about Lovecraft Country, I’ve been circling back around to Operational Theme and how it works in guiding a show. Again, I can not recommend highly enough tv writer Javier Grillo-Marxuach‘s article about Operational Theme as a primer.
For today we’ll be taking the same idea and applying it to another genre tv show, The Boys. Amazon’s adaptation of Garth Ennis’s superhero satire goes all out with its critique. Corporate superheroes engage in carefully staged heroics while our main characters try to find a little truth and justice in a messed up world.
Operational Theme
Sometimes theme ties directly to a character’s arc. As they grapple with some question, so too does the audience. But sometimes, especially with shows which have to last for dozens of hours, theme and character arcs can diverge.
For The Boys, the driving force of the show is the subversion of superhero tropes. From the opening when a speedster accidentally runs someone over, splattering them, the show announces its intention of showing what would really happen if people had superpowers.
The main storyline follows this, with our team The Boys trying to bring down superheroes secretly abusing their powers. But it filters down to every level. One-off characters, like someone with regenerative powers who lets others mutilate him for a price, continuously reinforce this theme. The show never passes up an opportunity to take some familiar part of the superhero monoculture and give it a surprising spin.
Our main character, Hughie, starts off in a similar place to the audience. He grew up a fan of superheroes, but after his girlfriend accidentally gets killed by one he has his eyes opened. For the first part of season one, he like us realizes the truth of what it would mean for ordinary people to have superpowers.
But even once he accepts this reality and moves on, the show remains guided by this idea. Deep into Season 2 it’s still making decisions about scenes and characters with an eye towards what new aspect of superheroes it can subvert.
Applying To Your Own Writing
Wherever you are in the writing process, you can take some time and consider the theme of the piece. Whether it’s a character’s journey, an idea being explored, or something else, knowing your theme can only help you strengthen everything else in your story.
By having your operational theme locked in and articulated, it gives you a guide for deciding how to make each and every element of your script unique. Any superhero property can have an Übermensch with unlimited powers, but only The Boys would make him a narcissistic fascist with a mommy complex. Find your theme and with it your unique spin.