Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 05:38, 28 July 2006

"Villain of the week" (or, depending on genre, "monster of the week") is a term that describes the nature of one-use antagonists in episodic fiction, specifically ongoing American genre-based television series. 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 The X-Files, where fandom 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 Power Rangers).

Sometimes the villain will return later in the series but now having a larger role in the story (such as in the Japanese manga Fullmetal Alchemist).

Use of the Format

American series

There are two different uses for this plot gimmick. Some American television series (especially animated cartoons) 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., Jonny Quest's Doctor Zin appears three times).

Another reason for using this format is that it is convenient for writers to supply a continuous and varied amount of challenges for the protagonists to overcome. One perceived "flaw" to continuity-based series is that, if the show is based upon a single dominating plot device (ie: defeating a single reappearing adversary), then should that plot device ever be resolved, the series would supposedly "end". Conversely, if the plot device is not resolved eventually, the premise of the show may become stale. Therefore, a lack of major continuity is often thought to be a convenient solution.

However, in recent decades, many American animated series have shifted away from this style. A prominent example is the DC Animated Universe, which is covered from Batman: The Animated Series to the current Justice League Unlimited. While the former series was mostly episodic, with only moderate 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. 24, Jackie Chan Adventures, Lost, Gargoyles, and The Sopranos are shows that placed varying levels of importance of continuity.

Import Editing Controversy

In Japan, continuity in animated television series is used more frequently than in the United States. A significant number of 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 Prince Planet in America), but other shows like Mobile Suit Gundam 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. This practice is sometimes extended to imported live-action series. An example are the edits done to the Japanese series Kyoryuu Sentai ZyuRanger, which were minced together (mostly out of context) to create the first season of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.

However, as anime has become more popular with American markets, more shows have been shown in full continuity, with little to no editing.

Other Examples

Series that make frequent (or, in some cases, near-constant) use of the villain/monster-of-the-week formula include: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (though in most later seasons, monster-of-the-week episodes took a backseat to increasingy arc-based storytelling, with reoccurring arcs present in every season of the show. A good example of this trend is the sixth season, where the first two-thirds follow the earlier formula of sprinkling arc elements over monster-of-the-week episodes, and the final third of the season is a specifically interconnected series of threats and challenges taking place in the span of only a few days), Charmed, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Jackie Chan Adventures, Kirby: Right Back At Ya!, Sonic X, Power Rangers, Sailor Moon, Smallville, Ultraman, Teen Titans, Xena: Warrior Princess, and The X-Files.

• Narratology
• Television villains