• by Betsy , January 25, 2007

I have been an avid watcher of The L Word on Showtime since its beginnings. Season 4 began three weeks ago. In the first episode Alice, played Leisha Hailey, is talking with friends about a new website her radio station is launching. The site is called OurChart, is a replication of a ‘Chart’ created by Alice in Season 1, mapping out who has slept with whom, creating a large web of women. Now in Season 4, the chart is an important tool for three reasons; one, it introduces a new character to the show, Papi. Two, it lets characters in the show see who has slept with whom. And three, it advertises for the actual OurChart.com in real life.

To be clear, there are two OurChart.com’s:
1.) In the show, as a chart created by the character Alice.
2.) In real life, created by the creators of The L Word.

Basically The L Word is self-promoting within their own show. And we, real people, can use the same type of site as the characters in The L Word. This product placement within the show is a good tactic in my mind, because it is blurring the lines of our real lives and the character’s lives in the show. Before and after the show they advertise a commercial to check out OurChart.com, and they have links for it on the ShowTime website. This isn’t your typically product placement, such as a favorite character drinking a coke or eating some Doritos, but a creative way to tie together real world and a story world.

I won’t go too far into the storytelling in Season 4 of The L Word, because my disappointment may never stop. But what I will talk about is the OurChart.com in real life. The site is still in its beta version. When they launch the actual ‘Chart’ you should be able to create a map of your friends. Sort of like a MySpace or Facebook type site with a linking system. Like a concept mapping of sorts, you can mark who you know, and they mark who they know forming a web of friends.

I am interested in the new type of social networking site, and even though The L Word may be disappointing me, I have not missed an episode. :)