On the heels of the last point, Person of Interest really shook up its format this season by delivering very few standalone episodes. It became very serialised as nearly all of the episodes fed into the bigger picture, whether that was the HR conspiracy or the growing threat of Decima and Vigilance. Even standalone episodes like 4C and Provenance built off events previously established and added to them, albeit in a more character than plot-driven manner. What makes this so remarkable is CBS is well-known for its episodic series. Audiences dont always need prior knowledge of CSI or NCIS to tune in which makes for some very easy viewing, and is one of the reasons both those shows have not only gone on for so long but gained multiple spin-offs. Though Person of Interest always had an intricate backstory, audiences could mostly watch it without having much knowledge of what came before, but this season really changed that. It was impossible to watch any episode this season without having seen the prior ones as each built upon the last, creating a cohesive story from start to finish. Season 2 set the groundwork for this, but Season 3 really built upon this serialised format and the show strengthened because of it.