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- Initiators / Followers
- Capsule Pitch Description: Description
- Implementation: Implementation
- Cuéntame Cómo Pasó (2001, TVE)note / Los 80 (2004, T5)note
- Capsule Pitch Description: Spanish prime time shows set in the Transición,
relying hard on family-friendly nostalgia and socio-political commentary alike. - Implementation: Cuéntame begins in April 1968 and is very reminiscent of The Wonder Years, following a nuclear, working class family and featuring the adult version of the youngest child as the show's narrator. Los 80 is in theory more adult-oriented, beginning in February 1981 and following two families - a middle class one headed by a divorced left-leaning journalist and a broken upper class one reluctantly piloted by a submissive trophy wife after her fascist husband goes to jail. No guesses about the targets of incoming UST.
- Capsule Pitch Description: Spanish prime time shows set in the Transición,
- Mad Men (2007) / Pan Am (2011) & The Playboy Club (2011)
- Capsule Pitch Description: Dramas set in the early '60s about a subset of workers in the era (Publicity creatives, Pan Am stewardesses and Playboy bunnies, respectively).
- Implementation: The shows focus on the historical changes of the era, as well as breaking viewers' Nostalgia Filter for The '60s by highlighting the injustices (racism and sexism, specifically) that were still rampant then.
- Downton Abbey (2010) / Upstairs Downstairs (2010 series)
- Capsule Pitch Description: Ensemble drama about the relationships between the family and staff of a large Edwardian house
- Implementation: Downton (like the original series of Upstairs Downstairs) is set in the 1910s, in the leadup to World War I; Upstairs Downstairs is set in the 1930s in the leadup to World War II — aside from that the storylines are strikingly similar, including one of the sisters having an affair with the driver, and the lady of the house dealing with a late pregnancy.
- Spartacus (2010) / Game of Thrones (2011)
- Capsule Pitch Description: Shows introduced in the very beginning of The New '10s that defined Interplay of Sex and Violence in TV that also established the fact that Anyone Can Die, including the main characters.
- Implementation: Spartacus is an adaption of the historical Third Servile War set during Ancient Rome, while Game of Thrones was from the book A Song of Ice and Fire set (fictionally) in the medieval times. The main plot of Spartacus revolves around Slave Liberation and opposing tyranny, while Game of Thrones revolves more around politics and power struggle.
- The Borgias (2011) / Borgia: Faith and Fear (2011)
- Capsule Pitch Description: R-rated cable shows based on the historical Borgia family.
- Implementation: The Borgias, produced by American network Showtime, was first planned as a film before being turned into a TV series; Borgia is an European coproduction that was intended as a series all along
- The Borgias (2011) / Game of Thrones (2011)
- Capsule Pitch Description: R-rated premium cable series heavy on medieval political intrigue. And incest.
- Implementation: Neither series is an original work — Game of Thrones is based on A Song of Ice and Fire novels by George R. R. Martin, while The Borgias is based on the historical family.
- Magnificent Century (2011) / Resurrection: Ertuğrul (2014)
- Capsule Pitch Description: Turkish historical dramas based around the life and times of important Ottoman figures (Süleyman the Magnificent and Ertuğrul Gazi, respectively).
- Implementation: Ertuğrul is the most successful of the shows formulated as a counter to Century, which attracted controversy for its depictions of sexuality, alcohol, and focus on harem women over warfare. Among its detractors was then-president Erdoğan, a conservative known for his adulation of the Ottomans; he also happens to be a huge fan of Ertuğrul, which airs on government broadcaster TRT1. While Century developed a tragic narrative and increasingly depicted its subjects as deeply flawed figures, Ertuğrul portrays its protagonists as unambiguous action heroes who righteously triumph against the likes of Crusaders, Mongols, Byzantines, and rival beyliks.
- Isabel (2011, TVE) / Toledo: Cruce de Destinos (2012, A3)note
- Capsule Pitch Description: Spanish prime time TV series set in Medieval Castile.
- Implementation: Isabel follows the life of Queen Isabella I (1451-1504), with few fiction licenses. Toledo, while de jure set in 1270, has near-zero historical content and is a youth-oriented TV series from the makers of Los Serrano and El internado who use the setting as an excuse to show castles and sword fights.
- Black Sails (2014) / Crossbones (2014)
- Capsule Pitch Description: TV series set during the Golden Age of Piracy, specifically on the island of New Providence in the modern-day Bahamas in the year 1715.
- Implementation: Black Sails (on Starz) is an action/adventure prequel to Treasure Island, telling the story of Captain Flint and his crew 20 years before the events of the book. Crossbones (on NBC) is a historical drama based on the life of Edward Teach (a.k.a. Blackbeard) who used the island as a political base of operations.
- Victoria (2016) / The Crown (2016)
- Capsule Pitch Description: The life of a long-serving British queen regnant, her sometimes troubled family relations, and the evolution of society around her. Prominent ex-Doctor Who actors feature in lead role.
- Implementation: Victoria shows the rise of Britain as an imperial power during the nineteenth century whereas The Crown shows its decline in the twentieth. The contrasts extend to the personalities involved: as to the monarch, Victoria is portrayed young and naïve but has big dreams, while Elizabeth is a little older and quickly demonstrates competence, but is tentative; for the foreign consort, Prince Albert is portrayed as a sensitive and awkward intellectual, while Prince Philip is every inch the hard Navy officer; for the scheming uncle played by Alex Jennings, Leopold of Belgium is forward-looking, a good strategic thinker, and genuinely concerned for his niece and nephew's welfare, while the Duke of Windsor is backward-looking, bitter, superficial, and frequently tries to sabotage the sitting royals.
- Catherine the Great (2019) / The Great (2020)
- Capsule Pitch Description: Depictions of the life of Catherine the Great, Empress of All Russia and the country's longest-serving female leader. Both from the writers of previously acclaimed period adaptations — Nigel Williams (Elizabeth I) for Catherine, Tony McNamara (The Favourite) for The Great.
- Implementation: Catherine the Great is a Sky Atlantic/HBO miniseries starring Helen Mirren as Catherine, presenting the bulk of her reign over the course of 4 episodes. The Great, from Hulu and starring Elle Fanning, is a look at Catherine pre-reign (at least in its first season) and, unlike Catherine, is much more comedic in its presentation.
