Purpose

This study aims to contribute to research into narrative brands by investigating if the lack of closure in the ambiguous season two’s ending of the Australian television series, Wanted, constituted a brand transgression.

Design/methodology/approach

Comments on posts about Wanted from social media accounts associated with the series were downloaded and analysed using thematic analysis informed by non-participatory netnography.

Findings

Audiences found the ambiguous ending of Wanted season two disappointing and it did not fulfil implied promises and their expectations, which fits the description of a brand transgression, and so they engaged in behaviours indicative of a brand transgression such as spreading negative word of mouth online. The ambiguous ending could have been a cliff-hanger to lead into a third season that was not guaranteed when the final episode aired, or the ending for the entire series. Although a third season was eventually made and positively received by audiences, viewer numbers declined by nearly a third, illustrating the importance of brand management for narrative brands.

Practical implications

This research has implications for the creators of television series, particularly if they do not know if it will be renewed. Not providing audiences with their expected closure can constitute a brand transgression and damage the narrative brand’s residual brand equity and potential earnings from streaming or a revival at a later date.

Originality/value

Prior research has focused on audiences’ responses to definitive endings, rather than ambiguous endings, which is the focus of this research. Furthermore, narrative brands are still an under-researched context.

中文翻译：

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探索缺乏封闭性作为品牌违规行为

目的

这项研究旨在通过调查在澳大利亚电视连续剧《通缉》（Wanted）的两季含糊不清中是否缺乏封闭性，构成了对品牌的侵犯，从而为叙事品牌研究做出了贡献。

设计/方法/方法

下载了与该系列相关的社交媒体帐户中有关通缉犯的帖子的评论，并使用非参与式网络志所提供的主题分析进行了分析。

发现

观众发现想要的第二季模棱两可的结果令人失望，并且没有履行隐含的承诺和他们的期望，这符合对品牌违规的描述，因此他们从事表明品牌违规的行为，例如在网上传播负面口碑。模棱两可的结局本来可以导致进入第三季的悬崖峭壁，但是最后一集播出后并不能保证第三季，或者整个系列的结局。尽管最终制作了第三季并获得了观众的好评，但观众人数却下降了近三分之一，这说明了品牌管理对于叙事品牌的重要性。

实际影响

这项研究对电视连续剧的创作者有影响，特别是如果他们不知道是否会续约的话。不向受众提供预期的关闭可能会构成品牌违规，并损害叙事品牌的剩余品牌资产和后期流媒体或复兴带来的潜在收益。

创意/价值

先前的研究着重于听众对确定结局的反应，而不是模棱两可的结局，这是本研究的重点。此外，叙事品牌仍处于研究不足的背景。