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{{Short description|Antagonist that only appears in one episode of a work of fiction|}}
{{pov}}
{{About|antagonists in episodic fiction|the 1998 song "Freak of the Week"|Marvelous 3|the tabletop role-playing game|Monster of the Week}}


"'''Villain of the week'''" (or, depending on genre, "'''monster of the week'''") is a term that describes the nature of one-use ] in episodic fiction, specifically ongoing American genre-based ]. As many shows of this type air episodes weekly at a rate of one or two dozen new episodes per year, there is often a new antagonist to forward the plot of each week's episode. The main characters usually confront and vanquish these characters, often leaving them never to be seen again. Some series alternate between using such antagonists and furthering the series' ongoing plotlines (as in '']'', where ] is often divided over preference for one type of episode versus the other). Others use these one-time foes as pawns of the recurring adversaries (as in '']''). "'''Villain of the week'''" (or, depending on genre, "'''monster of the week'''", "'''freak of the week'''", "'''alien of the week'''", or '''"dinosaur of the week'''") is an ] that only appears in one ] of a multi-episode work of fiction, commonly British, American, and Japanese genre-based ]. As many shows of this type air episodes weekly at a rate of ten to twenty new episodes per year, there is often a new antagonist in the plot of each week's episode. The main characters usually confront and vanquish these characters, often never encountering them again.


Shows that use such characters include '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'',<ref>{{cite web|last=Eirth|first=Annabelle|url=https://screenrant.com/charmed-biggest-problems-fans-ignore/|title=25 Things Wrong With Charmed Fans Choose To Ignore|date=January 20, 2019|website=Screen Rant|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> '']'',<ref name=leane>{{cite web|last=Leane|first=Rob|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/us/tv/superhero-tv/245124/does-superhero-tv-need-the-villain-of-the-week-format|title=Does Superhero TV need the Villain of the Week Format?|date=April 1, 2015|website=Den of Geek|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> and '']''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Sproull|first=Patrick|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/us/tv/scooby-doo/219931/the-10-scariest-scooby-doo-episodes|title=The 10 Scariest Scooby-Doo Episodes|date=September 13, 2018|website=Den of Geek|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> Some series alternate between using such antagonists and furthering the series' ongoing plotlines (as in '']'',<ref>{{cite web|last=Vinney|first=Cynthia|url=https://screenrant.com/buffy-vampire-slayer-monsters-episodes/|title=Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The 5 Best Monsters Of The Week (And The 5 Worst)|date=March 16, 2019|website=Screen Rant|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> '']'',<ref name=leane /> '']'',<ref>{{cite web|last=Jeffery|first=Morgan|url=https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a373145/fringe-a-short-story-about-love-recap/|title='Fringe': 'A Short Story About Love' recap|date=March 26, 2012|website=Digital Spy|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> and '']''),<ref>{{cite web|last=Bassett|first=Jordan|url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/xfiles-scariest-monster-of-the-week-episodes-2215681|title=The X Files' scariest 'Monster of the Week' episodes|date=January 8, 2018|website=NME.com|publisher=New Musical Express|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Navarro|first=Megan|url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3519356/x-files-turns-25-10-best-monster-week-episodes/|title="The X-Files" Turns 25: The 10 Best Monster of the Week Episodes!|date=September 10, 2018|website=Bloody Disgusting|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> while others use these one-time foes as pawns of the recurring adversaries (as in '']'',<ref>{{cite web|last=Eisenbeis|first=Richard|url=https://kotaku.com/i-cant-decide-if-samurai-flamenco-is-brilliant-or-terr-1503049913|title=I Can't Decide if Samurai Flamenco is Brilliant or Terrible|date=January 17, 2014|website=Kotaku|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> '']'',<ref>{{cite web|last=Wellham|first=Melissa|url=https://www.sbs.com.au/popasia/blog/2016/11/21/re-watching-sailor-moon-adult|title=Re-watching Sailor Moon as an adult|date=November 21, 2016|website=SBS.com.au|publisher=Special Broadcasting Service|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> ] and '']''<ref>{{cite web|last=Whitbrook|first=James|url=https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-io9-guide-to-super-sentai-1769494693|title=The io9 Guide to Super Sentai|date=April 7, 2016|website=io9|publisher=Gawker Media|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref> and its American equivalent, '']'').{{sfn|Clements|McCarthy|2015|p=}}<ref>{{cite web|last=Bruce|first=Amanda|url=https://screenrant.com/power-rangers-main-major-villain-ranked-worst-best/|title=Power Rangers: Every Major Villain, Ranked Worst To Best|date=August 25, 2017|website=Screen Rant|access-date=July 11, 2019}}</ref>
Sometimes the villain will return later in the series but now having a larger role in the story (such as in the Japanese Full Metal Alchemist manga).


In some cases, these villains return reformed in later episodes, becoming invaluable allies or gaining a larger role in the story.
There are two different uses for this plot gimmick. Some American television series (especially ]) are designed to be purely episodic so that they can be "stripped", that is, after the initial broadcasting as a network series, usually one day a week, the film or tape is leased to independent stations to be shown five or six days a week ''in any order''. Hence, there is no plot development, although interesting villains may appear several times (e.g., '']''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s Doctor Zin appears three times).


"Villain of the week" plotlines are attractive to ], as it means that episodes can be ] in any order and do not need to be aired in sequence as ] with continuing storylines do.
However, in recent decades, many American animated series have shifted away from this style. A prominent example is the ], which is covered from '']'' to the contemporary '']''. While the former series was mostly episodic, with very little continuity between episodes, ''Unlimited'' is very continuity-heavy--even making continual references to past series. Other American series (both live-action and animated) have also adopted more plot-based continuity. '']'', '']'', '']'', ], and '']'' are shows that placed varying levels of importance of continuity.


==See also==
A significant number of Japanese television series are designed to have an overall plot, even if it's just an initial episode and one or two concluding episodes. Sometimes most of the intervening episodes have no plot or character advancement (e.g., the early "Planet Boy Popi," called '']'' in America), but other shows like '']'' have their plot based on a journey and even have character development. These cannot really be shown in any order, which American distributors find irksome. Sometimes, American distributors gut an existing Japanese cartoon series to force it into the desired pattern; often the concluding shows are left out, and certainly character deaths are. An example are the edits done to the Japanese series ], which were minced together (mostly out of context) to create the first season of ].
*]
*]


==References==
However, as anime has become more popular with American markets, more shows have been shown in full continuity, with little to no editing.
{{Reflist|30em}}


===Sources===
Series that make frequent (or, in some cases, near-constant) use of such the monster-of-the-week formula include: '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', and '']''.
* {{cite book|last1=Clements|first1=Jonathan|last2=McCarthy|first2=Helen|year=2015|title=The Anime Encyclopedia, 3rd Revised Edition: A Century of Japanese Animation|publisher=Stone Bridge Press|isbn=9781611720181}}


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Latest revision as of 13:41, 19 November 2024

Antagonist that only appears in one episode of a work of fiction This article is about antagonists in episodic fiction. For the 1998 song "Freak of the Week", see Marvelous 3. For the tabletop role-playing game, see Monster of the Week.

"Villain of the week" (or, depending on genre, "monster of the week", "freak of the week", "alien of the week", or "dinosaur of the week") is an antagonist that only appears in one episode of a multi-episode work of fiction, commonly British, American, and Japanese genre-based television series. As many shows of this type air episodes weekly at a rate of ten to twenty new episodes per year, there is often a new antagonist in the plot of each week's episode. The main characters usually confront and vanquish these characters, often never encountering them again.

Shows that use such characters include Doctor Who, Supernatural, Primeval, Grimm, Charmed, Smallville, and Scooby-Doo. Some series alternate between using such antagonists and furthering the series' ongoing plotlines (as in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Supernatural, Fringe, and The X-Files), while others use these one-time foes as pawns of the recurring adversaries (as in Kamen Rider, Sailor Moon, the Ultra series and Super Sentai and its American equivalent, Power Rangers).

In some cases, these villains return reformed in later episodes, becoming invaluable allies or gaining a larger role in the story.

"Villain of the week" plotlines are attractive to syndicators, as it means that episodes can be rerun in any order and do not need to be aired in sequence as serials with continuing storylines do.

See also

References

  1. Eirth, Annabelle (January 20, 2019). "25 Things Wrong With Charmed Fans Choose To Ignore". Screen Rant. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  2. ^ Leane, Rob (April 1, 2015). "Does Superhero TV need the Villain of the Week Format?". Den of Geek. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  3. Sproull, Patrick (September 13, 2018). "The 10 Scariest Scooby-Doo Episodes". Den of Geek. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  4. Vinney, Cynthia (March 16, 2019). "Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The 5 Best Monsters Of The Week (And The 5 Worst)". Screen Rant. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  5. Jeffery, Morgan (March 26, 2012). "'Fringe': 'A Short Story About Love' recap". Digital Spy. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  6. Bassett, Jordan (January 8, 2018). "The X Files' scariest 'Monster of the Week' episodes". NME.com. New Musical Express. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  7. Navarro, Megan (September 10, 2018). ""The X-Files" Turns 25: The 10 Best Monster of the Week Episodes!". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  8. Eisenbeis, Richard (January 17, 2014). "I Can't Decide if Samurai Flamenco is Brilliant or Terrible". Kotaku. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  9. Wellham, Melissa (November 21, 2016). "Re-watching Sailor Moon as an adult". SBS.com.au. Special Broadcasting Service. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  10. Whitbrook, James (April 7, 2016). "The io9 Guide to Super Sentai". io9. Gawker Media. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  11. Clements & McCarthy 2015.
  12. Bruce, Amanda (August 25, 2017). "Power Rangers: Every Major Villain, Ranked Worst To Best". Screen Rant. Retrieved July 11, 2019.

Sources

  • Clements, Jonathan; McCarthy, Helen (2015). The Anime Encyclopedia, 3rd Revised Edition: A Century of Japanese Animation. Stone Bridge Press. ISBN 9781611720181.
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