Also known as a ColdOpening or "Cold Open." A one to five minute mini-act at the beginning of the show, before the [[TitleSequence opening credits]], used to set up the episode.

In a MonsterOfTheWeek show such as ''TheXFiles,'' the teaser usually contains the first RedShirt of the episode. In a CrimeAndPunishment show, it usually contains the first murder.

Though it technically does not really set up the plot, as there is usually no lengthy continuous plot, the first sketch right before the opening credits in sketch comedy shows like ''SaturdayNightLive'' and ''{{MADtv}}'' is also called a cold opening. (The show ''Studio60OnTheSunsetStrip'' actually had an episode titled "Cold Open" in which the writing of such a sketch is a plot element.)- non sketch entertainment programming often also uses a comedy sketch as a Cold Open.

As recently as the early 1990s, the teaser was a relatively unusual phenomenon (although there had been some examples, such as soaps from the early 80s). Today, nearly every American show has a teaser (to get viewers hooked before they can consider changing channels). Many British shows still don't use the technique, but it is increasing in prominence: the revival of ''DoctorWho'', its spinoff ''{{Torchwood}}'', and ''{{Life On Mars}}'' are three recent examples.

Similarly, almost no animated shows had cold opens before ''{{Cro}}'' in the mid 90s (its cold opens were used to lead in to the main FlashBack). These days, many animated shows do cold opens (''KimPossible'', for example).

Although the term is usually reserved for television, the practice is now prevalent in comic books, having crept into the medium in the mid-80s and grown popular through the 90s. While older comics tend to have the title and credits on the first page, most modern comics now wait until three-to-five pages in, for a suitably dramatic moment. Some comics vary this by introducing the title at the ''end'' of this issue (eg. "Shoot", a lost issue of ''{{Hellblazer}}'') or sometimes square in the middle.

A subtrope is BatmanColdOpen.

----
!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime]]
* Special case: ''OjamajoDoremi'' opened its eps with an avant-title that relates to the plot, then the opening titles, then a short scene before the title card. When 4Kids dubbed it for America, they cut out the avant-title, and used the short scene before the title card as the ColdOpening instead. Sometimes, they cut out the short scene entirely, meaning that in those episodes, the show starts with the opening titles.
* The ''{{Pokemon}}'' anime dub did this starting in the second Johto season. In Diamond and Pearl(when the Japanese version started doing this), sometimes clips from later in the episode would play before the opening.
** The movies also do this.
* ''HigurashiNoNakuKoroNi'' used cold openings, the most effective being at the start of each arc; a clip would be shown of the [[spoiler:usually rather gory]] climax of that particular arc. Coupled with the cheerful tone of the early parts of each arc, it was also a good use of MoodDissonance.
* Since Shippuuden ''{{Naruto}}'' started using those. They kinda overused it with the very first episode which begann witha foreshadowing of episode 30 or so, crucial moment to the plot.
* ''{{Kaiba}}'' had brief recap/prologues in front of episodes for the first few episodes before switching to more standard cold openings, often setting up new locations.
* All of the episodes of ''PrincessTutu'' open with barely-animated charcoal drawings on the screen while a female narrator grimly tells a fairytale that's somehow related to the episode. After a dramatic music swell, the gentle opening theme starts up.
* ''{{Pretear}}'' starts off every episode with a cold opening that sets up the plot, or occasionally provides a recap of the end of the last episode--except for the last two episodes, which [[TitleOnlyOpening don't have an opening at all]].
* ''{{Harukanaru Toki no Naka de}} - Hachiyoushou'' has Fuji-hime's OpeningNarration in the first few episodes, after which it switches to regular cold openings, with the first scene placed before the theme song.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''{{Preacher}}'' would sometimes spend half an issue on a cold opening, or even wait until the last page to introduce the title and credits. Mostly, however, it stuck to a three-to-four page intro, then title.
* A classic issue of {{Spider-Man}}, promoted as the issue in which [[TonightSomeoneDies someone would die]], didn't have its title section until the very end: "The Night [[spoiler:Gwen Stacy]] Died."
* In chapter five of ''{{Fables}}: Legends in Exile'' there's a monologue by Bigby before the credits, title and the "InWhichATropeIsDescribed".
*''{{Global Frequency}}'' would usually end each issue with the title in a "closing credits" fashion.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film]]
* The ''JamesBond'' movies almost always start with an introductory sequence before the episode itself.
* ''{{Hoffa}}'' didn't have any credits, not even the name of the film, until the end, making it a 2 1/2 ''hour'' cold open.
* The words ''Film/IronMan'' don't appear in the movie for twenty minutes. The title appears only when the groundwork for Tony Stark's transformation into the titular character has been laid by [[spoiler:a story-within-a-story recap of his life, an introduction to his playboy ways, and his capture by Afghan rebels using weapons he developed himself]] - making this teaser a full-blown prologue.
**Really? The version I saw had the title five minutes in, with the recap occurring afterwards.
* ''TheDeparted'' also had no opening credits. When the title finally appeared ''18 and a half minutes later'' this troper wondered why they even bothered?
* The opening credits of ''{{Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind}}'' are roughly 15 minutes into the movie.
* The film ''{{Raising Arizona}}'' goes through a 10:43 [=cold open=], setting up the story and introducing us to (nearly) all the characters.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:LiveActionTV]]
* Every episode of ''{{Alias}}'' has a 15 minute teaser, so that they can not only recap the story (PreviouslyOn), but also have a prologue.
** ''{{Alias}}'', with its tongue very firmly in its cheek, decided to take advantage of having the Superbowl as LeadIn in "Phase One".
* The teasers on ''TheLWord'' are usually set anywhere from a year to several decades in the past, featuring characters we've never met before, but they always end up tying in with what goes on in the episode.
* All the ''LawAndOrder'' shows use a cold open, with a stock opening title card and narration. The action is either the crime itself or the discovery of a body, and thirty seconds of the detectives opening the investigation. While Jerry Orbach was still with us, almost always ended on a Lenny Briscoe OneLiner.
* Similar to ''{{Law and Order}}, {{CSI}}'' does this, often showing a bystanders view of the murder, or the (attempted) disposal of the body. Like Lenny Briscoe, Gil Grissom almost always gets to say the {{One Liner}} before the opening credits.
* ''SapphireAndSteel'' actually delivered its teaser in the ''middle'' of the TitleSequence: a short sequence showing the title and stars was shown, followed by TheTeaser, after which the rest of the sequence (with the ThemeTune and OpeningNarration) was shown. Such a style of opening (title both before and after the cold open) is more common these days.
* ''TheTomorrowPeople'' did something similar.
* ''{{ER}}'s'' cold openers generally focus on interpersonal ties (more than the hustle and bustle of the meat of the show could, anyway). A 12th season episode, "The Gallant Hero & the Tragic Victor", actually kills off a main character in the teaser.
*''MalcolmInTheMiddle'' was well-known for its cold opens that were completely unrelated to the episode's plot. Unfortunately, they are usually cut out in reruns.
*''DrakeAndJosh'' has one every episode.
* ''MyNameIsEarl'' is a rare live-action primetime non-reality show that does ''not'' use a ColdOpening.
* Both ''TheApprentice'' and ''{{Survivor}}'' did not use a cold open to begin with, but they adopted this practice later (''Apprentice'' started this practice around season 4, with ''Survivor'' doing this with the Fiji season).
*Nearly every episode of ''HouseMD'' starts with a cold opening showing the new patient getting sick, before cutting to the opening credits.
**The writers often try to make the patient unexpected by having someone show signs of illness before the ''real'' patient collapses. It's actually quite fun to try and figure out who will be the patient for the episode. [[{{Haven}} This troper]]'s favorite was the time Cuddy started to cough after drinking some water... and in the background, someone else (her hired handyman) suddenly ''fell off a roof''.
**''House'' even started playing with double {{Red Herring}}s, such as the opening that followed a young girl diving off a high dive, acting motionless underwater for some time, and then resurfacing to see that someone else had collapsed. Then later it's revealed that ''she'' wasn't the RedHerring, the other guy was.
* ''Studio60OnTheSunsetStrip'' devoted its second episode to showcase the main characters working against the clock to create an effective cold open, eventually settling on a fourth-wall breaking rendition of "A Modern Major General" from ''{{The Pirates of Penzance}}''.
* ''MontyPythonsFlyingCircus'' has the title sequence start after a man walked up to the screen and said "It's...". This was usually only a few seconds but was sometimes stretched out long enough to be considered a ColdOpening. It also must have set the record for the longest one ever in "Scott of the Antarctic" where the man and the title sequence didn't show up until ''halfway through the episode''.
**Or perhaps not: In other episodes they waited until the ''very end'' to show the opening credits, and occasionally left them out altogether. Which I suppose technically means that the title credits in the ''next'' episode mark the end of the cold open...
* ''HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' would sometimes start with a standard cold opening in which the detectives start their investigation or some other plot point is introduced, but some would just be like sitcom openings - little sketches unrelated to the actual story.
* ''TheWire'' usually has cold openings that are not related to the main story as such, but instead work as metaphors or thematic commentaries on the episode or the characters themselves.
* Each episode of ''SixFeetUnder'' begins with the death of someone that the family will be working on in that episode, with a card displaying their name and dates of birth and death.
** Even though it's after the credits, so it doesn't really count.
*''XenaWarriorPrincess'' got a bit carried away with 'em sometimes: a teaser could be up to five minutes long.
*''StarTrek''. Teasers could run as long as over six minutes ("Ship in a Bottle") to as short as under 20 seconds ("Impulse", "Scorpion"). TNG frequently opened with scenes that had nothing to do with the main plot, just some interaction between some characters before they get called to the bridge and the teaser ends with the ''real'' plotline of that episode. DS9 and VOY did this to a lesser extent, but ENT gave up on that practice entirely and featured teasers that were unusually short.
* ''PowerRangers'' had one from Turbo to Time Force.
* The first episode of ''PushingDaisies'' has a cold opening of ''13'' minutes.
* Every episode of ''{{Bones}}'' has a cold open where the characters discover the body. This is usually done in a dark comedic fashion. (Ex. A teenage couple getting naked in a mud spring where a corpse lies beneath.)
* ''{{Monk}}'' usually begins with the murder being committed.
* ''{{Eureka}}'' often starts with something going wrong. And then goes on for a good period of time after. Probably about ten minutes.
* The teasers on ''{{Scrubs}}'' kept getting larger and larger as time went on, to the point where they consistently ended up as long as any of the other acts of the show.
* ''InPlainSight'' shows the Witsec client of the week and how they ended up having to join Witsec in the first place in the teasers.
* ''{{Stargate SG-1}}''and [[StargateAtlantis Atlantis]] feature these.
* ''TheDrewCareyShow'' often used its teasers for bizarre stand-alone skits apart from the show's continuity, such as having a guest appearance by [[LooneyTunes Daffy Duck]] or Drew battling invading aliens. The best known of these are the various dance sequences, two of which ended up being used for the opening theme.
* Early episodes of ''{{MacGyver}}'' started with an unrelated short adventure. This practice was dropped pretty quickly.
* ''{{Lost}}'' always begins with a teaser that establishes the episode's central character, often going into the first flashback/forward before the title card. Some teasers have been over ten minutes, such as "Exodus, Part 2".
*''{{Cheers}}'' always had a teaser unrelated to the main plot of the episode.
* Every episode of ''{{Castle}}'' opens with an extreme close up of a dead body before it is discovered or investigated.
* All forms of UK ''BigBrother'' [[SpinOff Spin Offs]] had some cold open element- notably in the case of ''Big Mouth'' where that episode's guests would usually be introduced in some nonsensical-[[OnceAnEpisode but-consistent]] fashion.
* The GuestHost series of ''NeverMindTheBuzzcocks'' featured a cold open for most episodes, introducing this week's guest.
* In ''{{Primeval}}'' it goes like this: RedShirt appears, [[TimePortal Anomaly appears]], MonsterOfTheWeek apears, Standard RedShirt Fate, [[ThemeSong Theme Music]].
* ''RedDwarf'' did it for ''Stoke Me a Clipper''.
* The short-lived UPN show, {{Special Unit 2}} always began with a short scene of the {{Monster Of The Week}}'s handiwork.
* ''{{Psych}}'' normally begins with a clip of a young Shawn getting yelled at by his dad.
* ''{{Band of Brothers}}'' mostly avoids the cold opening, except for one or two episodes that start with the interviews of the RealLife veterans. In most other episodes these interviews came immediately after the TitleSequence.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:VideoGames]]
* The episodic series of ''SamAndMax'' featured two episodes with cutscenes as cold openings in its first season. In Season 2, every episode but one had a playable cold opening.
** The TV series and original LucasArts game also featured cold openings, before the "Pleasantly Understated Credit Sequence".
* Lucasarts like this one, they've done similar things in several of their point and click adventure games, such as ''[[IndianaJones Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis]]''.
* Most of the games in the ''FinalFantasy'' series open with an action sequence or other story based sequence before the opening credits and logo come up.
* The ''MetalGearSolid'' games start off with Snake performing an infiltration and then cut to a credit sequence between 5-20 minutes into the game, as a [[SatireParodyPastiche pastiche]] of the ''JamesBond'' movies which spawned the whole idea of them. In more detail:
** In the first ''MetalGearSolid'' you have to wait around in a dock area while the credits play, superimposed on the screen. When they're done you're free to enter the elevator to the next area, where Snake removes his mask and the logo comes up on screen as we see his face for the first time. It's probably the closest you can get to playing a movie.
** ''MetalGearSolid 2'' was more circumspect about it. The opening titles roll before the main menu comes up, and you play a mission on a Tanker (where, again, the title pops up as soon as we see Snake's face for the first time). It led many people into thinking it was the proper game - but it was a prologue, and the main meat of the game was later on, with a different main character - and again, the title popped up as soon as we saw Raiden's face for the first time, as he stripped off his diving equipment. There was a [[MindScrew reason]] for the blatant repetition.
** And ''MetalGearSolid 3'' was the most blatant. There was a very short, fifteen or twenty minute gameplay segment before the game started for real, heralded by a lengthy {{Cutscene}}, an offer to save, and the unlocking of the fantastic opening title movie, which played then and there and would now play every time the game was booted. The style of the opening sequence combined with the ColdWar setting and the timing clearly marked it out as a homage to Bond's delayed starts.
* Incredibly, the small-time web RPG [[http://armorgames.com/play/2900/sonny-2 Sonny 2]] pulls this off quite dramatically. After beginning the game ''in the [[InMediasRes middle of a battle]]'', it then proceeds with an opening cinematic and [[TitleSequence title card]] 5 minutes in.
* The original ''[[WildArms1 Wild ARMs]]'' game has the main characters go through their introductory stories and mutant powers roll call, travel abroad, get forced into working together, the death of one character's father, the end of the world, and then, mid processional, we get a short animatic of the father's funeral procession while credits roll.
* ''GearsOfWar 2'' has a playable section teaching players the ropes and "working out the ginks" before the TitleSequence.
* ''Lock & Key'', an award-winning {{interactive fiction}} game by Adam Cadre, uses one of these to establish its premise. What exactly happens is best experienced by playing it yourself.
* ''VagrantStory'' begins with a suspenseful infiltration and several battles; only after this does the title appear, with the sunrise in the background.
* Similarly, ''FinalFantasyTactics'' begins by asking you to pick your character's name and birthdate, followed by a beautiful SceneryPorn introduction, with the title appearing midway through the FMV sequence.
* ''FateStayNight'' begins with a prologue narrated by Rin. After this, the main game begins with Shirou as narrator. Some scenes are even repeated from his perspective.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:WebComics]]
* A recent issue of [[TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja Dr. McNinja]] presented the title on page 46 -- right before the Doctor's [[SpoofAesop final thoughts]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:WebOriginal]]
* "A Call To Arms", Chapter 1 of ''[=~LG15: the resistance~=]'' used the original prologue trailer video as a cold opening, before fading to the OpeningNarration.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:WesternAnimation]]
*''{{Ben10}}'' generally has its first fight before the opening theme, as a way to kick off an episode.
* ''TheSimpsons'' does not use a cold opening, except sometimes for Halloween specials, they do, however, often use a LeadIn.
* The first few episodes of ''{{Futurama}}'' have a cold opening.
* Many of the early episodes of ''TheLifeAndTimesOfJuniperLee'' had teasers that didn't relate much to the plot, except for maybe one mention of where the main part of the story starts. One episode, "It Takes a Pillage", had a teaser which appeared to be setting up the MonsterOfTheWeek by showing him and having him monologue, but right at the point the monster's supposed to name-check himself, June conks him with a stone.
*''CodenameKidsNextDoor'' periodically has one of these before the TitleSequence. These can last from just a couple of seconds to several minutes.
* The 2003 [[WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003 Ninja Turtles]] series frequently started with a FlashForward.
* ''BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'' has started every episode with one of these so far. One has been an actual LeadIn ("Terror on Dinosaur Island!" has Plastic Man in both segments), but as often as not they seem to be used to have fun or introduce a hero we may see in a later episode.
* ''DannyPhantom''. Mostly fight scenes that usually ends in jokes, but there are a few times where it foreshadows the upcoming plot.
* ''SpaceGhostCoastToCoast'' does this almost every episode. In one particular case, the episode "Joshua" is a super long cold opening promoting "Space Ghost 2000". The actual episode basically consists of the winners of the "Haikuin' for Space Ghost" contest reading their haikus, and that's about it.
* Done quite well in early episodes of KingOfTheHill, in which the ColdOpen would transition seamlessly into the TitleSequence.
* TheSecretSaturdays have this in every episode, to let the viewer know the current situation of the characters.
[[/folder]]
----
<<|ScriptSpeak|>>
<<|ShowParts|>>