Continuation and desperation in contemporary multiseason television drama.

This paper analyzes how multiseason drama serials, including so-called "quality" or "complex" television, manage narrative continuation across multiple seasons, focusing on a storytelling mode termed "desperation." This mode arises from the tension between sustaining ongoing storylines and delivering satisfying conclusions, often foregrounding the provisional and adaptive nature of serial storytelling. The study examines adaptations from literary and historical sources alongside original narratives, highlighting how earlier seasons and supplementary texts like "show bibles" shape subsequent storytelling. It also discusses challenges faced by showrunners in balancing continuation and closure, illustrating these dynamics through examples such as *The Wire*, *Breaking Bad*, and *Homeland*. Ultimately, the paper argues that continuing dramas effectively adapt themselves over time, negotiating industrial demands and audience expectations within evolving television aesthetics.