# TV shows that used the commercial break to enhance the episode

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-used-the-commercial-break-to-enhance-the-episode/732418>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [September 24, 2015, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-used-the-commercial-break-to-enhance-the-episode/732418 "2015-09-24T18:39:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-used-the-commercial-break-to-enhance-the-episode/732418/21 "2015-09-25T15:46:51Z")

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_Sports Night_, an early Aaron Sorkin show, was about the behind-the-scenes workings of a cable sports show: episodes often started with a segment of the show-within-a-show, and their first commercial break was also the viewer’s first commercial break.

I can’t remember if the same conceit was ever used on _Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip_ or _The Newsroom_, but they used a similar one on the former for the opening title/credits: sometimes episodes would start with the cold open of the show-within-a-show, and when the director would yell “roll VTR!” (i.e., start the video tape recording of the title/credits) the actual show’s opening VTR would run.

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**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-used-the-commercial-break-to-enhance-the-episode/732418/22 "2015-09-25T19:13:50Z")

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[QUOTE=Morbo]  
True, but I liked the way the did it after the first few commercial breaks in the episode, not just pre-credits.  
[/QUOTE]

I remember seeing that episode “live” in its first run and we were all “:eek: AHHHH!! :eek: :eek:” and wondering what was going to happen after the opening credits. Making each act a self-contained time loop was nicely done.

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**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2015, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-used-the-commercial-break-to-enhance-the-episode/732418/23 "2015-09-25T21:14:59Z")

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On an episode of _Futurama_ (the one where Fry, Leela, and Bender go to a planet where humans are killed on sight), Leela has to make a decision, and says, right before the commercial, “It’s not an easy decision! If only I had two or three minutes to think about it…”

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