Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Voice-over Theory

I have a running discussion with a friend that many television shows we like are voiced-over. So, we've developed this completely unscientific theory that television shows with voice-overs are usually good (note that I said "usually"). I find that they add something useful to the show and they can be integral to the story. For example, Arrested Development relies heavily on Ron Howard's voice-over because quite a bit of the story is told through it and it's funny. Other times the voice-over adds to the viewers understanding of the character's psychology such as Dead Like Me, Dexter and Veronica Mars. Burn Notice does a bit of psychology mixed in with how-tos: Michael details how to make a bomb MacGuyver-style or how he will coax a villain out of hiding (you never know when this stuff might come in handy...).

This list isn't exhaustive, but what I could remember having memorable voice-overs. Please let me know in the comments of other shows that you'd put in this category.
Arrested Development Find it in the catalog!
Burn Notice Find it in the catalog!
Dead Like Me Find it in the catalog!
Dexter Find it in the catalog!
Veronica Mars Find it in the catalog!
Wonderfalls Find it in the catalog!