This is a collection of essays (mostly more-or-less academic essays) on the subject of cult TV shows. Which is kind of a slippery subject to pin down, really. Quite a few of the authors wrestle a bit with the definition of the term "cult TV," but the general consensus is that a cult TV show is defined not by any inherent property of the show itself, but by the unusually attentive and dedicated audience it attracts. Which sounds about right to me.

The book covers a variety of subjects in addition to the question of what cult TV even is. There are essays about how fans interact with the shows, about production aspects of such shows, and so on. One of the most interesting is a piece by Jane Espenson, a writer who knows a great deal about creating cult-worthy television stories, outlining what she sees as the rules for keeping viewers engaged. There are also short commentaries on various shows from various time periods, with approximately equal representation for US and UK shows.

In general, the essays are kind of a mixed bag. I don't think any one of them really goes into entirely satisfying depth on the subject. Some of them are pretty dry, or slightly more obscure in their language than they really need to be, and there were one or two of them I wanted to argue with, or spotted factual errors in. (To the person who couldn't spell Captain Sisko's name properly: shame on you! Shame!) It's also somewhat dated, as it was published in 2010, and the landscape of television and how people watch it has changed significantly in the last few years. It's rather telling that the word "Netflix" appears nowhere in the entire book.

But, despite all that, I was quite fascinated by this volume, mostly because a lot of the authors in it are addressing something that I myself have really been trying to get to grips with in recent years: the "mainstreaming of the cult." I grew up as what the authors of this book would call a "cult TV fan" in an era when that was something misunderstood and often seen as mock-worthy -- see William Shatner's infamous SNL "Get a Life!" sketch -- and when shows that stood out in any way or demanded too much of their audiences struggled to stay on the air if they ever made it there at all, while facing great pressure to appeal to a more mass audience. And now, shows -- often the most successful shows -- are designed to work only for people who pay very close attention episode to episode. Rabid fan audiences are carefully cultivated and encouraged (and seen as a useful cash stream). Terminology -- "shipping," "cosplay", "fanfic" -- that was once obscure subcultural lingo gets tossed around casually on my actual TV, and activities that were once marginalized subculutral practices -- like cosplay and fanfic -- are now much more widely recognized and accepted. I'll be honest, I'm having a hard time adjusting to it. It constantly boggles me. So it was extremely relevant and interesting to me to read others' attempts to explore or explain some of these changes in terms of how the business of making television has evolved since the days when I was laughed at for wearing a Star Trek t-shirt.

Rating: Objectively, I think this mixed bag of essays is worth about a 3.5/4, so that's what I'm giving it. But, being extremely relevant to my interests, it felt rather better than that to me. ( )

Terrifically helpful and accessible for students - it was great to give them the Jane Espenson chapter on how to write a cult show. ( )