10 Things Television Fans Found Too Distracting
5. Clip Shows
Television series are all about maintaining continuity through the method of linear storytelling — at least, the vast majority of them are made this way. Because of this, watching a series means the viewers follow a certain path the characters take, and when this is broken, it's distracting.
Not only is it distracting, but it also tends to make the fans angry. After all, they tuned in to see what was going to happen after last week's episode, and finding something like a clip show in the place of a normal episode can leave them frustrated and angry.
This is especially true of sitcoms, which are the real culprits behind the creation of clip shows. One series that truly upset fans in this regard is Friends, which had a clip show called "The One with the Invitation." Instead of seeing what was happening with the characters, viewers were treated to a rehashing of scenes they already watched.
That episode is also the lowest-rated one for the series, which just goes to show how poorly clip shows are received by fans. These days, binge-watching makes the clip show less of a nightmare for viewers, but the practice still continues to anger.