ABSTRACT
Every genre has its own distinctive formulaic premise; that is, a characteristic situation in which characters finds themselves. Scholar Ken Burke describes the premise of the disaster genre in terms of the following worldview to identify a premise is to begin with statement. The formulaic structure of a genre reinforces the worldview of the genre. Bob Ivry describes the formulaic plot that typifies the action/adventure genre: Conflict is central to any plot. One of the formulaic plot conventions of the program was The Fight. Another troubling formulaic plot convention in the reality genre is ritualistic humiliation. The formulaic setting is also an essential element of the horror genre. Producers of popular genres are faced with the same challenge: programming must be fresh enough to attract an audience but not be so innovative that it loses that audience altogether. In addition, formulaic elements may also serve as points of departure for the franchise properties.
