Why time travel?

Why does every long running series(and sometimes not even that) have a sequel with time travel at some point?

Do they? :/

Percy Jackson.

Fire Emblem(well, okay, in Awakening its relatively minor plot point compared to others on this list :P), Sly Cooper, Ratchet & Clank, Spy Kids, Men in Black, Yu-Gi-Oh(okay, that might be excluded as cross over film of sorts :P), etc.

Its like time travel is now some kind of stock plot you use when you run out of ideas.

edited 24th Aug '12 3:24:05 AM by SpookyMask

@Spooky: I think you might've answered your own question: They've run out of ideas. That, and "Time travel is one of those "always-interesting" tropes.

Well, why not another of those "Always-Interesting" tropes?... Wait, what those tropes are again?

Well not every- wait, would long running sitcoms count?

...There are sitcoms with time travel? O_o

I think some of them did. family matters comes to mind.

Because Dinosaurs man.

Mork and Mindy probably did.

At very least, I think I remember Family Matters had a time travel episode, probably around the time they suddenly made Urkel an inventor and started throwing in the occasional sci-fi plot.

edited 24th Aug '12 1:19:53 PM by MikeK

Pretty sure that was most of the run of the show. Urkel broke out very quickly.

But I do remember an episode where he made a wrist-mounted time machine that ran on plutonium batteries, and took himself and Carl to a pirate ship in the 1700s.

Yeah, the 90s were weird.

weird and EXTREAM!!!!

Family Matters was much better as a Sci-Fi sitcom than a domestic sitcom. As a domcom it was a blue collar Fresh Prince without the Fresh Prince.

edited 24th Aug '12 1:58:01 PM by TParadox

@Spooky Mask: Cloning Hitler, A change you make in the past causes Those Wacky Nazis to win WWII and the Rebellious Princess.

edited 24th Aug '12 4:12:19 PM by MorwenEdhelwen

Wait, Cloning Hitler is commonly used plot in long series? O_o

No, it's a commonly-used plot, full stop. I thought you meant commonly-used plots in general.

I suppose it's a way to break out of the mold from time to time.

Time travel gives you an excuse to do period pieces where you otherwise couldn't.

All I can think of is Doctor Who.

Why am I thinking of Doctor Who. I hate Doctor Who. God dammit now I want to watch Doctor Who. I am convinced you and Ashens (some guy who does reviews of cheap products on youtube) are Doctor Who advertisements.

Before Aon posted, I convinced myself not to bother posting that people praise the format of Doctor Who for being able to do something different every week.

@Aon: You are saying I'm advertising Doctor Who by wondering about tendency of series to at some point have time travel plot? ._.

...Oh wait, forgot TMNT from previous list. Though I did say "etc" :P

Time Travel in a "realistic" series always sounds a bit bizarre. I mean, where did they get the technology in a supposedly normal 21st century setting? I'm glad that That70s Show never used Time Travel- the closest it went was the episode when Eric sees what his life would be like if he'd never dated Donna, and they had that look into the future. And Eric was a loser.

edited 25th Aug '12 5:40:55 PM by MorwenEdhelwen

Well just look at my sig Time Travel is freaking awesome.