History Main / RecapEpisode

* ''WolfsRain'' probably deserves the booby-prize for including no fewer than FOUR recap episodes (#15 - 18) halfway through its original 26-episode run. To make up for this four new OVA episodes were made to conclude the story (#27 - 30). In the US DVD release the recap episodes occupy a single disc (Volume 4, "Recollections"), so buyers can skip from discs 3 to 5 without missing anything (apart from some new narration, a couple of new establishing shots and one scene that's re-edited to change its context by removing a character who was in the original version).
* Episode 13 of ''RevolutionaryGirlUtena'' provided some tantalizing clues as to what was really going on as framing material for a recap episode.
** More notable still is "The Prince Who Runs Through The Night," which was both a RecapEpisode and an intensely [[{{Squick}} squicky]] WhamEpisode.
* ''SerialExperimentsLain'' #11 (Infornography) is also some sort of a recap episode, in which images of previous episodes are quickly shown during the first 15 minutes.

* ''{{Destinos}}: An Introduction To Spanish'' includes many recap episodes. These serve not only to review the plot, but also to review the vocabulary terms presented in the reviewed episodes, and help viewers understand the conversations better.

* ''Manga/SailorMoon'' ended its second season on one of these for the entire series up to that point, also incorporating some extremely vague previews for the upcoming season. Frustratingly in North America the gap between this episode and the first episode of the third season was ''two years'' due to the license falling into limbo and eventually being taken up by a different company... it's even worse in the UK where this was the last episode to air all together.

* For awhile, each ''Literature/HarryPotter'' book would begin with a Recap Chapter, which would basically consist of Harry sitting around and thinking about the events of previous books for the benefit of anyone not starting the series with the first book. Eventually, JKRowling just gave up and started assuming everyone had read the previous books.

-->'''Senketsu''': Those of you who cringed when we said "Recap episode", don't worry! ''Kill la Kill'' prides itself on its lightning pace!

* The last BreatherEpisode of ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' before the GrandFinale, rather than a ClipShow, is a recap episode where the characters [[WhoWouldWantToWatchUs watch a play depicting their exploits of the three previous seasons]]. Actually it's not as much recap as it is a parody - including the 'real' characters sinking through their seats in shame.

* Hilariously {{Subverted|Trope}} in ''Anime/KillLaKill'', where Senketsu sets up Episode 16 as a RecapEpisode, then [[MotorMouth zips through]] fifteen episodes worth of story in ''one minute'' with Music/TheCancanSong playing in the background. The rest of the episode plays out as usual.

* Hilariously {{Subverted|Trope}} in ''Anime/KillLaKill'', where Senketsu sets up Episode 16 as a RecapEpisode, then [[MotorMouth zips through]] fifteen episodes worth of story in ''one minute'' with the Can-Can playing in the background. The rest of the episode plays out as usual.

* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' tends to do this after its filler arcs. Given that they often run upwards of forty episodes, and cannot be strictly in-continuity with the canon arcs, the recap is often sorely needed ("oh, right, we cut away in the middle of a climactic duel between TheHero and TheRival...")

* ''DotHackSign'' had a particularly weird example. Clips throughout the entire series thus far, with the only narration being various characters reading one long poem that is recited now and then in the show. This one poem reading lasts for twenty minutes.

-->-- [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdMCQ4J1OQA GWing TAS]]

* ''HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' did a cleverly-framed recap set in a house across the street from a wanted criminal's. The house's owners (audience standins) are asked if they mind the BPD officers using their living room for a while. While they're staking out and have nothing better to do, the cops talk, and the residents' questions (as 'new viewers' to the cops' stories) make it into a recap.

* The ''Series/StargateSG1''' recap episode from season 2 managed the impressive feat of getting a massive cliffhanger out of its 10% original content. It was even the SeasonFinale.

* In an episode in ''Legend of the Seeker,'' Richard wakes up on the day he first met Kaylen, but he remembers all the events that passed. As he tries to explain this to the people around him, they show clips of the past episodes. Also, [[spoiler: in this reality, he isn't the Seeker]].

* Chapter 2[[hottip:*:(actually chapter 1, the previous chapter was the prologue)]] of ''FanFic/PaperMarioX 2'' can be classified as a Recap Episode. Once Mario receives the letter that kicks off the plot, he starts to remember his adventures that he had with his other friends. The rest of the chapter consists of scenes of the previous Paper Mario X.

* The ''KamenRiderDragonKnight'' episode "The Many Faces of Xaviax" was one of these, framed around scenes where the show's three leads briefed potential ally Chris Ramírez on what was really going on.

* ''Manga/SailorMoon'' ended its second season on one of these for the entire series up to that point, also incorporating some extremely vague previews for the upcoming season. Frustratingly in North America this was the gap between this episode and the first episode of the third season was ''two years'' due to the license falling into limbo and eventually being taken up by a different company... it's even worse in the UK where this was the last episode to air all together.

* ''Manga/SailorMoon'' ended its second season on one of these for the entire series up to that point, also incorporating some extremely vague previews for the upcoming season.

* ''{{Trigun}}'' had one, though the framing device included some plot-relevant new material and a notable example of FanDisService.

* DotHackSign had a particularly weird example. Clips throughout the entire series thus far, with the only narration being various characters reading one long poem that is recited now and then in the show. This one poem reading lasts for twenty minutes.
* The first segment of episode 12 of Anime/PantyAndStockingWithGarterbelt. Even though it provided some interesting backstories for the ghosts Panty and Stocking killed, Gainax produced an alternate segment for the DVD release.
* DennouCoil recapped the plot through the lenses of Akira's glasses for episode 14.
* Manga/{{Bleach}} tends to do this after its filler arcs. Given that they often run upwards of forty episodes, and cannot be strictly in-continuity with the canon arcs, the recap is often sorely needed ("oh, right, we cut away in the middle of a climactic duel between TheHero and TheRival...")
* Episode 10 of Anime/LastExileFamTheSilverWing has Gisey writing a letter to her family to recap everything that happened so far.
* Episode 13 of TheRemake of HunterXHunter, in the style of the above example.
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* ''Armored Trooper VOTOMS'' has three recap episodes: episode 20, episode 28, and episode 40. Each one only covers the events of the first arc, which spanned episodes 1-13.

* ''{{Basquash}}!'' switches to the main character's reporter sister for the entire second half of episode 19 as she writes a reminiscence on the events of the series so far.

* The ''{{WesternAnimation/Motorcity}}'' episode "Threat Level: Texas!" has Texas being interrogated by Tooley of [=KaneCo=], who retells events from the episodes "Battle for Motorcity," "Power Trip" and "Going Dutch." Only he's an UnreliableNarrator, has a SelfServingMemory or is messing with Tooley; the flashbacks are shown in a way that portray him as the hero instead of Mike Chilton, and the Burners (and others) are shown to be ''very'' out of character.

!!Examples:

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

* The short-lived ''SilverSurfer'' cartoon, despite being [=AWESOME=] in most respects, inexplicably spoiled its second episode by devoting a huge chunk of it to recapping the events of the first episode in clips.
* The even-shorter-lived ''[[ClerksTheAnimatedSeries Clerks]]'' cartoon parodied this in the very second episode made. What compounded this even further was that, due to ExecutiveMeddling, this was actually the very first episode ever aired.