Why dont people like filler episodes in tv shows?

DatBoi

Another thread made me think of this.

I think there's a common belief that the more that happens in a tv episode, the better the quality of the episode. While there's definitely a positive correlation, it seems like many people will automatically gush over season finales and ignore "filler" episodes just because of their contribution (or lack of contribution) to the overall narrative.

For me, filler episodes often become some of my favorites. Since the narrative slows down, there's more opportunity for character development, witty dialogue, situational humor, etc. We get to see the main characters as themselves rather than super-combat-savetheworld mode.

For example, my favorite episode of Avatar the Last Airbender is Tales from Ba Sing Se (idc about spelling if its wrong). Technically "nothing happens" in this episode. The characters have arrived in a huge city and the episode is a collection of shorts concerning small, inconsequential adventures they find themselves in. One short is about two girls getting makeovers, one is about a guy who finds himself in a poetry competition, another character chases down animals that escaped from a zoo. But even though they aren't fighting bad guys and nobody is dying, this episode is terrific because it demonstrates how honestly and thoroughly written the characters are. We learn about them, and they learn about themselves.

Unlike other topics, im not trying to be aggresive/confrontational/argumentative since i know i judge the quality of stories very differently than most people, im just genuinely interested in hearing how people judge the quality of tv episodes.

(Im done)

Zephyrus

I agree with your point of view. I enjoy shows that give more depth to the character roles. I mean, if I'm going to watch XX amount of episodes of something, I'd prefer a balanced storyline then overly hyped up

Sticare_Courts_0073

Most tv shows tend to become repetitive though, and while the filler episodes slowly add to the bigger picture, they almost always contain a short version of the same old thing you've seen a dozen times before. Character development in itself isn't rated poorly, these episodes are frequently executed poorly.

Especially since most recent tv shows contain some kind of investigation work (police/medical/mystery), people judge the quality of an episode by the particular story of that episode, instead of the back story.

The only real counter example I can think of is Community's "Remedial Chaos Theory" which is, unsurprisingly, my personal favorite tv episode of anything, ever. Just like your own example, pretty much nothing happens, over and over again. I just wanted to say this basically, big plug for Community!

DatBoi

Sticare_Courts_0073 wrote: »

Most tv shows tend to become repetitive though, and while the filler episodes slowly add to the bigger picture, they almost always contain a short version of the same old thing you've seen a dozen times before. Character development in itself isn't rated poorly, these episodes are frequently executed poorly.

Especially since most recent tv shows contain some kind of investigation work (police/medical/mystery), people judge the quality of an episode by the particular story of that episode, instead of the back story.

The only real counter example I can think of is Community's "Remedial Chaos Theory" which is, unsurprisingly, my personal favorite tv episode of anything, ever. Just like your own example, pretty much nothing happens, over and over again. I just wanted to say this basically, big plug for Community!

I certainly agree that most filler isn't good often because it it can feel like stalling or because its a CW show and there are 30 something episodes per season without any decent characters to develop.

My point isn't necessarily that "filler" episodes are automatically good, but that they shouldn't be discounted or ignored simply because "nothing happens".

USAmazing

I only really hated filler episodes when I was watching LOST on tv, because I was so into the show and couldn't hardly wait until the next episode. When the next episode was just filler i would be waiting 2 weeks or more for the "good stuff", it drove me crazy sometimes.

But when I watched a season of Lost on DVD, the fillers didn't bother me, I could watch the next episodes back to back. Which was more like watching a long movie, and I enjoyed all the episodes more, even the filler episodes.

Since my experience with Lost, I have learned to wait for the seasons of any show I like to come out on DVD.