Resumen: In this chapter, we ask whether there is anything specific about the handling of time in contemporary television series that distinguishes it from seriality in other media such as cinema, literature, and comics. We claim that there is, doing so by elaborating upon a concept proposed in Nannicelli¿s recent monograph ¿ ¿temporal prolongation.¿ This term is borrowed from yet another art medium ¿ music ¿ but it nicely suggests ¿a temporally unfolding, yet organically unified structure.¿ Our suggestion is that we use the term ¿temporal prolongation¿ in the study of television to refer to television¿s medium-specific handling of temporality and the effects it creates. In the monograph, Nannicelli glosses three ways in which temporal prolongation affords television particular qualities that serialization does not afford the cinema: The fostering of a particularly intense form of character engagement, the sustainment of suspense over long periods of time, and a unique, cognitively pleasurable way of eliciting comic amusement. This chapter aims to review and elaborate upon the concept of temporal prolongation, further distinguish it from seriality, illustrate its manifestation in a number of different cases (e.g., documentary series; sitcoms; and ¿reality¿ TV series), and defend it from potential objections (such those relating to ¿binge-viewing¿).
