History Main / ContinuityCreep

* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' initially had two- and three-part episodes which didn't really affect each other (except for the recurring villains). Then they started throwing in short arcs that built on the plot of previous Franchise/{{DCAU}} series, such as the season two premiere, which was a follow-up to ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries'''s finale. And then, even the completely standalone episodes would still have brief moments suggesting continuity: the slow buildup of {{U|nresolvedSexualTension}}ST between John Stewart and Hawkgirl, and the very subtle bits of foreshadowing pointing towards the season two GrandFinale. Then ''Justice League Unlimited'' went all-out and used overarching plots that took half the season to resolve--CADMUS in the first two seasons, then the Secret Society in season three. It's generally agreed that the growth in continuity was concurrent with [[GrowingTheBeard an upswing in quality]].

* ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'', once enough episodes were in circulation for viewers to know what the hell was going on. It actually started with an unexplained OneWePreparedEarlier opening.

* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' started off using HalfArcSeason's: most episodes were self-contained, with only four or five episodes per season contributing to its StoryArc. Around the 3rd or 4th season, references to events in past seasons started to be made. Culminating in the final season becoming almost completely serialized.

-->-- ''Series/{{Supernatural}}''

* In Creator/NeilGaiman's ''ComicBook/TheSandman'', this is intentional from the start, but it's still rather odd to find out that a small event from the fourth comic ends up being important for the climax of the series.

* Wiki/SCPFoundation started off just with pages on the various, isolated [=SCP=]s, but the site has developed stronger continuity thanks to stories about the Foundation members themselves and, especially, thanks to later [=SCP=]s being used, collected and/or produced by various anti-Foundation organizations such as the cult of the Serpent's Hand, rich people club Marshall, Carter, and Dark Ltd., and AlternateUniverse institute Alexylva University. However, it's also split into so many parallel canons that there's a section of the wiki dedicated to keeping track of them.

* ''VideoGame/KingsQuest'' wound up with this. The first two or four (depending on your point of view) games were pretty episodic. But then you have ''VideoGame/KingsQuestVAbsenceMakesTheHeartGoYonder'', where the BigBad is motivated by revenge for events from ''VideoGame/KingsQuestIIIToHeirIsHuman'', and the ending of ''VideoGame/KingsQuestVAbsenceMakesTheHeartGoYonder'' directly leads to ''VideoGame/KingsQuestVIHeirTodayGoneTomorrow'', which makes a ''lot'' of references to ''King's Quest III'', and includes anm incriminating letter linking three of the series villains to the same secret society. ''VideoGame/KingsQuestVIIThePrincelessBride'' hits, and the plot of that game directly ties back to ''VideoGame/KingsQuestIVThePerilsOfRosella'' ...And it all resets to NegativeContinuity with ''VideoGame/KingsQuestMaskOfEternity'', but few even consider that to be a ''King's Quest'' game.
* ''VideoGame/SpaceQuest'' had the same progression. The first three games were quite episodic, but the fourth game? The villain from the second game is now a VirtualGhost and a little ticked off about being killed by a janitor. TimeTravel gets involved, and soon Roger is up to his eyeballs, going back to the first game and getting asked about the slot machine he broke, going to his future and getting punished for something he technically hadn't done yet, and finding out about his KidFromTheFuture and future wife. Well, that leads into the fifth game where he tries to better himself by going to the space academy, and meets said future wife. If she dies, it's a NonStandardGameOver for Roger due to temporal paradox. The sixth game mostly stands alone, but Roger is shown to have a collection of inventory items from previous games.

* In its early years, ''VideoGame/{{Warframe}}''s plot was mostly focused on episodic events that added in new game modes and enemies to fight. Starting with ''Ties That Bind'', though, the storyline became more connected, with 2014 seeing the game gain a structured narrative, while 2015 saw the release of two major {{Wham Episode}}s, ''Natah'' and ''The Second Dream'', that [[NothingIsTheSameAnymore permanently altered the direction the game would go in]].

* Ostensibly, one of the reasons Rooster Teeth ended ''Machinima/RedVsBlue: The Blood Gulch Chronicles'' at Episode 100 was to put an end to the continuity creep and continue writing for the series from a point where newcomers could enjoy the show without ContinuityLockout. While they succeeded, the series from that point forth became [[CerebusSyndrome much more plot based]], and a good number of the [[CallBack Call Backs]] still require familiarity with all the older episodes (as opposed to just episodes from the most recent trilogy, ''Recollection'').

* The original ''Anime/FullmetalAlchemist'' started off as a real AdventureTown-type show, with Ed and Al travelling to various places throughout the country and solving various problems. As more and more of the plot began to unravel, however, the series began shifting into telling one, continuous story with almost no breaks or time leaps in-between episodes.

* The [[Film/MissionImpossible first]] [[Film/MissionImpossibleII three]] [[Film/MissionImpossibleIII movies]] in the ''Film/MissionImpossibleFilmSeries'' were each largely self-contained, connected only by Tom Cruise and Ving Rhames. However, a few characters carried over from ''III'' to ''[[Film/MissionImpossibleGhostProtocol Ghost Protocol]]''; Simon Pegg's character Benji was elevated from a minor character to a team member and Brandt's backstory obliquely involves Julia, Ethan's wife from ''III''; specifically, [[spoiler:he thought she was killed while he was protecting her, but it turns out her death was faked]]. ''[[Film/MissionImpossibleRogueNation Rogue Nation]]'' has even more continuity, with the bulk of characters from the previous film returning in supporting roles, Benji getting even more focus, and a major subplot dealing with the fallout from the previous movie. ''[[Film/MissionImpossibleFallout Fallout]]'' is a direct sequel to ''Rogue Nation''; Solomon Lane from that film is part of the BigBadDuumvirate, the remnants of the Syndicate are still out in the world as a terror-for-hire organization, planning nuclear strikes on major religious centers for a client, and Julia even plays a minor role in the climax.

* ''ComicBook/{{Aria}}'': With the exception of the two-parter "Les Chevaliers d'Aquarius"/"Les larmes de la Déesses", the earlier books are all standalones adventures. Starting with "Janessandre" (where the sculptor from "La Montagne aux sorciers" and Glore from the aforementioned two-parter come back), the series regularly references earlier storylines.

** The nineteenth season featured heavier continuity, introducing new character PC Principal to kick off an overall arc about PoliticalCorrectnessGoneMad - however, again, the first seven episodes mostly focus on their own subject matter and stand alone, with topics such as the upcoming presidential campaign and Yaoi fan art. Like the previous season, the final three episodes of the season tried to tie everything together into one cohesive storyline, though the final episode maintains its own theme on gun rights as well. The season is often described as serialized due to the ongoing themes.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'': The games went from being almost completely separated with extremely little plot ([[AllThereInTheManual in the foreground, at least]]) to having dense plots with immense amounts of cutscenes and backstory, to the point where it no longer makes sense sometimes. Interestingly, it rarely ever crosses over multiple games; you can play ''VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog'' without having played ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes'', for example, as the links between other games tends to be only for a few specific events that are given due exposition when brought up again.

* The ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'' games' continuity creep is arguably one of the most well-known examples of the medium, even if the series' usual formula hasn't changed too much. While the series has always made frequent reference to its past history (most notably through bringing back previous characters and bosses), the original ''Kirby'' games' plots mostly boiled down to Kirby going on adventures to stop a MonsterOfTheWeek from wreaking havoc. However, following Shinya Kumazaki's appointment as the series' director, the franchise has increasingly put more focus on its lore, continuity and worldbuilding with little signs of stopping. Starting with ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'''s UpdatedReRelease of ''Kirby Super Star Ultra'', the games began a trend of using pause-screen FlavorText to directly flesh out the nature or backstories of boss characters, with the following ''VideoGame/KirbysReturnToDreamLand'', ''VideoGame/KirbyTripleDeluxe'' and ''VideoGame/KirbyPlanetRobobot'' using these pause-screen descriptions, along with in-game character dialogue and environmental clues, to flesh out their narratives and conflicts even further and further. In particular, the ''Kirby'' games under Kumazaki's direction have also frequently and heavily alluded to the possibilities of certain elements, characters or antagonistic forces seen across the series' history [[AmbiguouslyRelated having connections to each other in some way]], with ''VideoGame/KirbyStarAllies'' even giving a possible insight into [[spoiler:the origins of the titular Kirby himself]].

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'': The games went from being almost completely separated with extremely little plot to having dense plots with immense amounts of cutscenes and backstory, to the point where it no longer makes sense sometimes. Interestingly it rarely ever crosses over multiple games; you can play ''VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog'' without having played ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes'', for example, as the links between other games tends to be only for a few specific events that are given due exposition when brought up again.

* Although the ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'' games have never had any overarching plot line, they've gradually accumulated enough {{Continuity Nod}}s that there is a clear serial progression between games. ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiPartnersInTime Partners in Time]]'' has the least amount of references to its predecessor, ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Superstar Saga]]'', with a cameo appearance by TheDragon of the previous game being the only significant plot connection. ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiBowsersInsideStory Bowser's Inside Story]]'' had many more connections, with the aforementioned Dragon becoming the BigBad and the plot of ''Partners in Time'' being mentioned several times in side quests. ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiDreamTeam Dream Team]]'' has the most connections with its predecessors, with the FairyCompanion of ''Bowser's Inside Story'' filling the role once again, the Block-like Broque Monsieur and Broque Madame revealed to be members of an entire Brock race, Beanbean Kingdom races being prominently featured again, Bowser retaining his leitmotif and VacuumMouth from the previous game, and the RunningGag about Bowser being unable to remember Luigi's name finally getting resolution by the end. ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiPaperJam Paper Jam]]'' dials back some of this but does make reference to games outside the ''Mario & Luigi'' series (''VideoGame/CaptainToadTreasureTracker'' for example), brings back characters that have not appeared for a while (Toadette and King Bomb-omb) and gives some of them a lot of characterisation like the Koopalings (in comparison to past portrayals anyway). The games also have a minor character arc for Bowser where he goes from a HarmlessVillain in ''Superstar Saga'' to the BigBad of ''Paper Jam''. Luigi also goes through minor character development, becoming a little more bold and not ''quite'' as cowardly as the series progresses.

* The manga version of ''Franchise/{{Negima}}'' started out as your typical Harem series, before turning into a DarkerAndEdgier Shounen action series. Supposedly this is because the creator, Creator/KenAkamatsu, who had already done a harem series, was tired of it and wanted to make a shounen series, but the [[ExecutiveMeddling Executives]] wanted another harem series because of the popularity of his previous work, ''Manga/LoveHina''. So he opted to give them what they wanted at first, and then slowly turn it into what he wanted. This genre change however, is not present in either of the Anime adaptations, both of which maintain the Harem genre throughout their runs.

* ''Film/JamesBond'': The series was not big on continuity, until the Creator/DanielCraig era. While ''Film/{{Skyfall}}'' was made standalone and looked as such, ''Film/{{Spectre}}'' picked up where it left off and connected it to ''Film/{{Casino Royale|2006}}'' and ''Film/QuantumOfSolace'', and ''Film/NoTimeToDie'' picks up where ''Spectre'' left off.

* ''Film/JamesBond'': The series was not big on continuity, until the Creator/DanielCraig era. While ''Film/{{Skyfall}}'' was made standalone and looked as such, ''Film/{{Spectre}}'' eventually connected it to ''Film/{{Casino Royale|2006}}'' and ''Film/QuantumOfSolace'', and ''Film/NoTimeToDie'' picks up where ''Spectre'' left off.

* The manga version of Franchise/{{Negima}} started out as your typical Harem series, before turning into a DarkerAndEdgier Shounen action series. Supposedly this is because the creator, Creator/KenAkamatsu, who had already done a harem series, was tired of it and wanted to make a shounen series, but the [[ExecutiveMeddling Executives]] wanted another harem series because of the popularity of his previous work, Manga/LoveHina. So he opted to give them what they wanted at first, and then slowly turn it into what he wanted. This genre change however, is not present in either of the Anime adaptations, both of which maintain the Harem genre throughout their runs.

* ''WesternAnimation/Amphibia'' was an episodic comedy with sprinkles of continuity, except for the season 1 finale. Then toward the latter half of season 2 it became more serialized in advancing the [[MythArc]], before season 3's premise became based entirely on the events of season 2's conclusion.

** ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'' started out episodic, but after the first season final it developed continuous {{Story Arc}}s.

* ''Manga/MoriartyThePatriot'' starts off with each chapter an individual noble to be murdered or dealt with and slowly grows and William's plan to save the empire is revealed.