6. Casino Royale Threw Out Everything That Came Before
When it started out, the linage of the James Bond films didn't really matter. There weren't legions of obsessive fans and no one could jump to the Internet to highlight the inconsistencies; originally it was the adventures of one just one man. So, when Connery made way for Lazenby, who despite meeting Blofeld for the seeming first time, had all of Connerys previous gadgets, it was taken as being the same person. In fact, it was only once Roger Moores increasingly camp tenure stretched well into the eighties that people began to comment on how the British spys age was pretty constant. The Broccolis took a "so what?" attitude to the whole thing, letting the character stay young, but move with the times, the stories changing to fit the current climate. After Pierce Brosnans films took a really silly turn with Die Another Day (although, with elements unashamedly lifted from Diamonds Are Forever and Goldfinger, not too out of character with the series), something different was done, and when Casino Royale arrived, it was in the role of a reboot. This gritty Bond had no link to the previous adventures (aside from Judi Dench as M, which really muddies the water). However, after a stumble into all-out sequel territory with Quantum Of Solace, Skyfall left us in pretty much in the same nondescript continuity that we saw in the Connery days.