Story

 Arc  
 
A  Story  Arc  (arc  as  in  "over-­‐arching  storyline")  is  a  sequence  of  series  installments,  
TV  episodes,  comic  issues,  or  a  certain  period  of  time  in  a  Video  Game  that  puts  
characters  through  their  paces  in  response  to  a  single  impetus;  basically,  an  ongoing  
storyline.  This  can  be  a  few  episodes,  an  entire  season,  or  even  the  focus  of  the  
entire  series.  
 
Arcs  are  not  necessarily  consecutive  episodes.  The  story  may  reach  a  point  where,  
although  the  arc  is  not  completely  resolved,  it  ceases  to  be  of  immediate  concern  to  
the  characters,  thus  allowing  the  writers  to  intersperse  (or  insert)  non-­‐arc  episodes.  
This  is  the  case  whenever  an  episode  or  a  series  of  episodes  have  self-­‐contained  
storylines,  which  are  then  cut-­‐off  by  a  continuation  of  the  arc.  Usually,  the  filler/self-­‐
contained  stories  don't  have  any  major  effect  on  the  arc  itself,  set  up  character  
development  to  be  used  in  the  arc,  or  show  off  character  development  displayed  in  
an  early  storyline.  
 
Writers  may  decide  to  use  a  stand-­‐alone  episode  to  lighten  the  mood  during  a  dark  
arc,  or  to  feature  a  character  not  involved  in  the  arc.  
 
Episodes  that  form  a  story  arc  cannot  be  run  out  of  order,  or  at  least  
they  shouldn't  be.  Not  that  this  always  stops  networks  or  syndicators  from  doing  so.  
While  the  Soap  Opera  has  been  exclusively  arc-­‐based  since  the  beginning  of  
television  and  before,  the  subsequent  popularity  of  arcs  doesn't  seem  to  come  from  
soaps.  Back  in  the  90's  when  half-­‐funny  Sitcom  reruns  and  poorly  constructed  
Saturday  morning  cartoons  ruled  with  an  iron  fist,  the  consensus  among  writers  
was  that  casual  viewers  wouldn't  be  able  to  get  into  the  show.  Hill  Street  Blues  was  
the  first  American  prime-­‐time  drama  to  rely  on  arcs,  and  is  probably  when  the  term  
came  into  the  American  TV  vernacular.  British  Shows  have  a  longer-­‐standing  
tradition  of  arcs  (See  Doctor  Who).  
 
According  to  Doctor  Who  producer  Russell  T.  Davies,  the  term  is  not  used  by  UK  TV  
writers.  However,  it  is  becoming  increasingly  well  known  by  UK  viewers,  and  
UK  Comic  Book  writers  certainly  use  the  term.  
 
Story  arcs  also  occur  in  most  other  serial  media;  Super  Hero  and  dramedy  comic  
series  (especially  online  series  in  the  latter  case)  are  well  known  for  them,  and  since  
they  lack  the  seasonal  format  of  most  Western  television  shows,  some  of  them  
take  years  to  resolve.  
 
For  some  specific  types  of  story  arcs,  see  War  Arc,  Rescue  Arc,  and  Tournament  Arc.  
A  character  who  serves  as  the  Big  Bad  for  a  story  arc  is  called  an  Arc  Villain.  
See  also  Myth  Arc,  Rotating  Arcs,  Arc  Welding,  Half-­‐Arc  Season,  Plot  Threads,  Season  
Fluidity,  and  Aborted  Arc.  
 
Sometimes  the  term  is  interchangeable  with  "Saga",  especially  in  shonen.  
  
Examples:  
         Anime      
• The  vast  majority  of  anime  series  are  built  around  arcs,  which  further  
distinguishes  them  from  American  cartoons,  which  are  very  often  episodic  
(though  less  exclusively  so  as  time  passes  on).  In  various  Shōnen  series,  the  
arcs  are  structured  in  a  way  such  that  the  main  characters  face  the  minions  of  
a  Big  Bad  first  (sometimes  from  the  lowest  rank  to  the  highest,  if  there  is  a  
hierarchy),  and  then  the  Big  Bad  himself/herself  to  settle  the  climax  of  that  
arc.  And  whenever  a  competition  approaches,  the  episodes  covering  it  are  
encased  into  a  Tournament  Arc.  Examples  of  series  with  these  properties  
include:  
o Saint  Seiya:  Sanctuary  (itself  divided  into  Galaxian  Wars,  Black  
Saints/Pope  Ares'  minions,  Silver  Saints  and  Gold  Saints;  the  total  is  
73  episodes,  and  is  the  largest  major  arc  in  the  series),  Asgard  (26  
episodes),  Poseidon  (15  episodes),  and  Hades  (13  episodes  for  
Sanctuary,  12  for  Inferno  and  6  for  Elysion;  the  total  is  31).  
o Fist  of  the  North  Star:  Southern  Cross  (22  episodes,  God's  Army  &  
Jackal  mini-­‐arcs  moved  here  for  filler  purposes),  Fang  Clan  (7  
episodes),  Jagi  (3  episodes),  Cassandra  (11  episodes),  Ken-­‐Oh  (6  
episodes),  Yuda  (8  episodes),  Souther  (11  episodes),  Raoh's  Return  (9  
episodes),  Gosha  Stars  (23  episodes),  Musou  Tensei  (10  episodes,  
overlaps  with  the  last  6  episodes  of  the  Gosha  Stars  arc),  Jakoh  (13  
episodes),  Shura  (30  episodes).  The  manga  went  on  for  several  more  
arcs  as  well:  Kouketsu  (7  chapters),  Sava  (12  chapters),  Baran  (10  
chapters),  Bolge  (8  chapters).  
o Dragon  Ball:  The  first  quest  for  the  Dragon  Balls  (Emperor  Pilaf,  13  
episodes),  21st  Tournament  (15  episodes),  the  second  quest  for  the  
Dragon  Balls  (Red  Ribbon  Army,  17  episodes;  General  Blue,  12  
episodes;  Commander  Red,  10  episodes;  Fortune-­‐Teller  Baba,  16  
episodes;  55  episodes  total),  22nd  Tournament  (Tenshinhan,  18  
episodes),  the  third  quest  for  the  Dragon  Balls  (King  Piccolo,  21  
episodes),  and  23rd  Tournament  (Piccolo  Jr,  31  episodes).  
o Dragon  Ball  Z:  Saiyan/Vegeta  (39  episodes),  the  fourth  quest  for  the  
Dragon  Balls  (Namek/Freeza,  68  episodes),  Garlic  Jr.  (10  episodes),  
Androids/Cell  (84  episodes,  including  the  Cell  Games),  Saiyaman  and  
25th  Tournament  (20  episodes),  and  Majin  Buu  (72  episodes).  
o Dragon  Ball  Kai:  Saiyan/Vegeta  (26  episodes),  the  fourth  quest  for  the  
Dragon  Balls  (Namek/Freeza,  25  episodes),  Androids/Cell  (Androids,  
24  episodes;  Cell,  20  episodes;  44  episodes  total),  and  Buu  (Majin  Buu,  
34  episodes;  Evil  Buu,  25  episodes;  60  episodes  total)  
o Dragon  Ball  GT:  Black  Star  Dragon  Balls  (15  episodes),  Baby  (25  
episodes),  Super  Android  17  (7  episodes),  and  Shadow  Dragon  (17  
episodes).  
 o YuYu  Hakusho:  Spirit  Detective  (25  episodes),  Dark  Tournament  (41  
episodes),  Chapter  Black  (28  episodes),  and  Three  Kings  (18  
episodes).  
• JoJo's  Bizarre  Adventure  is  quite  notable  in  the  sense  that  each  story  arc  is  a  
self-­‐contained  story  in  an  overarching  continuity,  which  helps  
prevent  Continuity  Lockout  in  this  rather  lengthy  series.  The  arcs  are:  
Phantom  Blood  (5  volumes;  9  episodes),  Battle  Tendency  (8  volumes;  17  
episodes),  Stardust  Crusaders  (17  volumes;  48  episodes),  Diamond  is  
Unbreakable  (19  volumes;  39  episodes),  Vento  Aureo  (17  volumes),  Stone  
Ocean  (17  volumes),  Steel  Ball  Run  (24  volumes,  currently  the  longest  in  the  
series),  and  JoJolion  (ongoing).  
• In  various  shoujo  series,  since  they  tend  to  follow  the  Monster  of  the  
Week  format,  the  arc  sorting  is  based  on  which  Big  Bad  becomes  the  ultimate  
source  of  all  the  weekly  monsters;  so  when  that  Big  Bad  is  defeated,  then  the  
arc  ends  and  another  starts  with  another  villain  releasing  their  own  weekly  
monsters.  Examples  of  series  following  this  style  include:  
o Sailor  Moon:  Original  series  (46  episodes,  introduces  the  Inner  Senshi:  
Sailor  Moon,  Mercury,  Mars,  Jupiter  and  Venus),  Sailor  Moon  R  (43  
episodes,  introduces  Chibiusa  and  Sailor  Pluto),  Sailor  Moon  S  (38  
episodes,  introduces  Sailor  Uranus,  Neptune  and  Saturn),  Sailor  Super  
S  (39  episodes),  Sailor  Moon  Sailor  Stars  (36  episodes,  introduces  the  
Sailor  Senshi  from  outside  the  solar  system).  The  Sailor  Moonmanga  
also  has  named  story  arcs:  the  Dark  Kingdom  arc,  the  Black  Moon  arc,  
the  Infinity  arc,  the  Dream  arc,  and  ending  with  the  Stars  arc.  
o Cardcaptor  Sakura:  The  arcs  don't  have  any  particular  names,  but  
they're  sorted  by  season.  The  first  one  has  35  episodes,  and  focuses  on  
Sakura  sealing  most  of  the  stray  cards  with  her  power,  starting  with  
Fly  and  finishing  with  Fire.  The  second  has  11  episodes,  in  which  
Sakura  seals  the  remaining  cards  and  initiates  a  Final  Judgement  trial  
with  Yue.  The  last  season  has  24  episodes,  and  focuses  on  Sakura  
enhancing  the  cards'  powers  with  a  new  incantation,  followed  by  a  
climactic  confrontation  against  Clow  Reed.  
o Pretty  Cure,  as  a  whole,  has  spanned  eighteen  series,  but  only  two  of  
them  are  sequels  to  previous  series.  
o Corrector  Yui  has  two.  In  the  first,  Yui's  first  priority  is  to  reunite  all  
Correctors  and  then  eliminate  the  viruses  originated  from  the  Big  Bad,  
Grosser.  The  second  season  introduces  a  new  villain,  Bogles,  as  well  as  
a  new  Corrector  who  is  first  introduced  as  an  Anti-­‐Villain.  
• Pokémon,  true  to  its  original  source,  sorts  the  story  arcs  by  league  and  
generation,  and  some  of  them  are  long  enough  to  span  more  than  one  season.  
In  the  case  of  the  Johto  saga,  there  are  several  sub-­‐arcs  in  which  the  main  
characters  are  looking  for  (or  even  helping)  a  Legendary  Pokémon.  
o In  Japan,  the  series  is  sorted  as  such:  Original  Series  (Indigo,  80  
episodes;  Episode  Orange  Islands,  36  episodes;  Episode  Gold  &  Silver,  
158  episodes;  274  episodes  total),  Advanced  Generation  (Hoenn,  145  
episodes;  Battle  Frontier,  47  episodes;  192  episodes  total),  Diamond  &  
 Pearl  (191  episodes),  Best  Wishes(142  episodes),  XY  (XY,  92  episodes;  
XY  &  Z,  43  episodes;  140  episodes  total),  Sun  &  Moon  (ongoing).  
o In  the  United  States,  while  the  series  is  arranged  identically  to  the  
Japanese  one,  it  is  divided  between  seasons  rather  than  by  game  
equivalent.  The  current  arrangement  is:  Indigo  League  (52  televised  
episodes;  79  home  video  episodes),  Adventures  in  the  Orange  Islands  
(52  televised  episodes;  36  home  video  episodes),  The  Johto  Journeys  
(52  televised  episodes;  41  home  video  episodes),  Johto  League  
Champions  (52  episodes),  Master  Quest  (52  televised  episodes;  64  
home  video  episodes),  Advanced  (52  televised  episodes;  40  home  
video  episodes),  Advanced  Challenge  (52  episodes),  Advanced  Battle  
(52  episodes),  Battle  Frontier  (47  episodes),  Diamond  and  Pearl  (51  
episodes),  Battle  Dimension  (52  episodes),  Galactic  Battles  (52  
episodes),  Sinnoh  League  Victors  (34  episodes),  Black  &  White  (48  
episodes),  Rival  Destinies  (49  episodes),  Adventures  in  Unova  (45  
episodes),  XY  (48  episodes),  Kalos  Quest  (45  episodes),  XYZ  (48  
episodes),  Sun  &  Moon  (ongoing).  
• The  Melancholy  of  Haruhi  Suzumiya's  six-­‐episode  arc  was  broadcast  with  
eight  Breather  Episodes  that  flashed  forward  to  after  the  arc.  It  also  
successfully  broke  the  rule  of  never  showing  a  story  arc  out  of  order.  Helped  
largely  by  Arc  episodes  being  still  in  order,  just  with  the  Breathers  inserted  
in-­‐between.  
• Neon  Genesis  Evangelion  can  be  divided  into  four  arcs:  
o Prologue  Arc,  from  the  beginning  to  the  Jet  Alone  filler  (Episode  1-­‐7).  
This  arc  establishes  characters,  character  relationships,  and  settings,  
having  an  overall  melancholy  tone  due  to  it  being  a  deconstruction  of  
the  mecha  genre.  
o Action  Arc,  starting  with  Asuka's  introduction  and  ending  with  Iruel.  
Though  there  are  some  melancholic  and  introspective  moments,  the  
main  focus  is  firmly  on  humor  and  action,  and  all  episodes  
are  Monster  of  the  Week  episodes;  this  part  is  in  many  ways  just  like  
any  other  mecha  series  (Episode  8-­‐13).  
o Descent  Arc,  starting  with  the  Recap  Episode  and  ending  with  Zeruel  
(Episode  14-­‐19).  There  are  still  Monster  of  the  Week  episodes,  but  
they  start  having  overt  lasting  effects  on  the  characters,  and  a  couple  
of  episodes  focuses  exclusively  on  the  human  drama  between  the  
characters.  There  are  still  the  occasional  humorous  moments,  but  they  
get  gradually  exorcised  and  stop  appearing  all  together  after  Episode  
18.  Mind  Screw  kicks  into  high  gear  in  this  part  and  the  viewer  starts  
having  an  inkling  things  are  not  what  they  seem  to  be;  with  the  
appearance  of  Bardiel,  the  show  takes  one  hell  of  a  nosedive  into  
the  Darker  and  Edgier  zone.  
o "The  Bitter  End"  (Episode  20-­‐24,  25-­‐26/End  of  Evangelion).  Even  
more  Mind  Screw  with  a  side  order  of  Nightmare  Fuel.  Most  of  the  
cast's  backstories  are  revealed  in  all  their  dark  and  troubled  glory,  
and  most  of  them  are  pretty  much  completely  worn  down,  both  
 physically  and  mentally,  and  the  Monster  of  the  Week  episodes  tends  
result  in  at  least  one  character  getting  pushed  completely  over  the  
edge  whenever  they  appear.  Also  The  End  of  the  World  as  We  Know  
It  occurs  at  the  end.  The  part  that  made  the  franchise  famous.  
• Black  Lagoon  is  notable  for  having  a  story  arc  that  ended  up  being  33  
chapters  long.  This  wouldn't  be  very  impressive  if  it  weren't  for  the  fact  that  
it's  a  monthly  series  -­‐  so  said  arc  lasted  for  nearly  half  the  series  at  the  time  it  
ended.  
• In  the  anime  adaptation  of  Little  Busters!,  each  girls'  route  was  adapted  into  a  
separate  story  arc  of  4  or  5  episodes  in  a  row  (Kud's  arc  is  a  minor  exception,  
as  it  had  a  Rin  episode  in  between  the  first  and  second  episodes).  
• The  arcs  in  Captain  Tsubasa  are  sorted  by  the  teams  Tsuabasa  and  his  friends  
are  playing  for,  as  well  as  the  competitions  in  which  they  are  participating.  
The  first  arc  has  them  play  the  national  Japan  tournaments;  World  Youth  has  
Tsubasa  play  in  Brazil,  and  later  in  Japan  again  for  the  AFC  Youth  
Championship  before  moving  to  Spain  to  play  for  FC  Barcelona  (by  this  point,  
his  friends  join  teams  of  other  European  teams);  Road  to  2002  has  the  
characters  prepare  to  play  for  the  Japan  national  team  in  the  2002  edition  
of  The  World  Cup.  
• Attack  on  Titan:  Interestingly,  the  anime  identifies  its  episodes  as  belong  to  
these  as  well  as  each  episode  being  part  X  of  an  arc.  They  are:  The  Fall  of  
Shiganshina,  The  104th  Trainees  Squad,  The  Battle  of  Trost,  Night  Before  The  
Counteroffensive,  57th  Expedition  Beyond  the  Walls,  and  The  Raid  on  
Stohess  District.  Fans  commonly  refer  to  the  last  3  as  sub-­‐sections  as  part  of  
the  Female  Titan  arc.  
• The  Sword  Art  Online  anime  has  thus  far  adapted  five  of  the  light  novels'  arcs,  
each  one  usually  revolving  around  a  new  virtual-­‐reality  MMORPG.  The  arcs  
are:  
o Aincrad,  which  deals  with  Kirito,  Asuna,  and  thousands  of  other  
gamers  being  trapped  in  the  MMORPG  Sword  Art  Online  (SAO),  and  
their  efforts  to  escape  by  defeating  the  boss  on  each  of  the  100  levels.  
o Fairy  Dance,  which  deals  with  Kirito's  attempts  to  rescue  Asuna  from  
her  Jerkass  fiance,  who  has  taken  control  of  the  SAO  game  engine  and  
trapped  her  and  many  other  SAO  victims  in  another  game,  Alfheim  
Online  (ALO),  for  some  nefarious  purpose,  after  he  and  most  of  the  
other  gamers  escape  back  to  the  real  world.  
o Phantom  Bullet,  which  introduces  new  character  Sinon,  and  details  
her  and  Kirito's  investigation  of  Death  Gun,  a  player  in  the  steampunk  
MMO  Gun  Gale  Online,  who  seems  to  be  able  to  kill  players  in  the  real  
world  by  killing  them  in  the  game.  
o Caliber,  which  is  a  bit  of  a  breather,  mini-­‐arc  following  Kirito,  Asuna,  
and  their  friends  as  they  attempt  to  win  an  ALO  game  event  and  
prevent  an  in-­‐game  apocalypse.  
o Mother's  Rosario,  which  focuses  on  Asuna  instead  of  Kirito,  and  deals  
with  her  friendship  with  new  character  Yuuki,  her  helping  Yuuki's  
 guild,  the  Sleeping  Knights,  to  defeat  a  particularly  deadly  Aincrad  
boss,  and  her  fraught  relationship  with  her  mother.  
       Audio    
• Big  Finish  Doctor  Who  has  a  mass  of  story  arcs  going  on.  
o With  the  Eighth  Doctor  there  was  the  Anti-­‐Time  story  arc,  as  changing  
history  by  saving  his  companion  Charlotte  Pollard  was  causing  the  
Web  of  Time  to  break  down.  Finally  the  Doctor  gets  infected  with  
Anti-­‐Time,  leading  to  the  Divergent  Universe  arc  where  he  travels  into  
a  different  Universe  to  suppress  the  Anti-­‐Time.  
o There  is  the  Viyran  story  arc,  involving  various  strange  diseases  
spread  throughout  time  and  the  Viyranstrying  to  stop  this.  
o The  later  8th  Doctor  stories  show  the  opening  stages  of  the  Time  War,  
with  the  Time  Lords  and  Daleks  working  against  each  other  and  the  
Master  being  resurrected.  
o This  also  ties  into  the  Eminence  storyline,  involving  a  Fog  of  
Doom  who  are  so  dangerous  the  Doctor  is  willing  to  help  the  Daleks  
against  them,  although  the  Time  Lords  are  trying  to  help  the  
Eminence  in  the  hope  they  will  prevent  the  Daleks  becoming  the  
supreme  life  form.  
       Comic  Books    
• Cerebus  the  Aardvark  is  broken  down  into  10  major  arcs:  Cerebus,  High  
Society,  Church  and  State,  Jaka's  Story,  Melmoth,  "Mothers  and  
Daughters",  Guys,  Rick's  Story,  "Going  Home",  and  "Latter  Days."  Church  and  
State  has  two  parts,  and  the  arcs  in  quotation  marks  have  two  to  four  distinct  
sub-­‐arcs  fitting  under  the  general  title.    Each  arc  and  sub-­‐arc  tells  a  distinct  
story,  lasting  anywhere  from  11  issues  (Flight)  to  almost  60  issues  (the  
entirety  of  Church  and  State),  and  each  is  collected  in  its  own  TPB.  
• Since  most  American  comics  are  now  published  with  collected  editions  in  
mind,  they  tend  to  come  out  with  five-­‐or-­‐six  issue  storylines  that  are  usually  
connected  to  each  other  to  tell  a  larger  Myth  Arc,  but  are  just  as  easily  read  as  
their  own  self-­‐contained  stories.  
• The  Shazam  Captain  Marvel  had  one  of  the  earliest  such  arcs  in  the  1940s  
when  he  took  on  the  Monster  Society  of  Evil  that  ended  with  him  discovering  
that  its  leader  is  the  worm  Mr.  Mind.  
• Judge  Dredd  stories  generally  come  in  two  different  modes.  The  one-­‐shot  
comics  are  "Day  in  the  life"  stuff  and  are  generally  more  darkly  comedic  in  
tone,  with  Dredd  often  showing  how  much  of  a  zero-­‐tolerance  asshole  he  can  
be.  The  so-­‐called  Mega-­‐Epics  are  huge  story  lines  that  generally  last  about  
half  a  year  to  a  year,  are  more  serious  in  tone  and  tend  to  make  several  
changes  to  the  status  quo.  
• Sonic  the  Hedgehog  (IDW)  is  broken  down  into  various  smaller  arcs  which  
lead  into  each  other  as  part  of  a  single  larger  narrative.  
o Fallout  (issues  1-­‐4):  Sonic  and  his  friends  deal  with  the  aftermath  
of  Sonic  Forces,  while  a  mysterious  new  figure  takes  over  the  Eggman  
Empire's  forces.  
 o The  Fate  of  Dr.  Eggman  (issues  5-­‐8):  Sonic  finally  tracks  down  the  
missing  Eggman,  while  Neo  Metal  Sonic  is  revealed  to  be  the  new  
mystery  antagonist.  
o Battle  for  Angel  Island  (issues  9-­‐12):  All  the  heroes  unite  to  liberate  
Angel  Island  after  Neo  Metal  Sonicand  the  Egg  Fleet  conquer  it.  
o Infection  (issues  13-­‐16):  Sonic  faces  off  with  Eggman's  new  minions,  
while  the  latter  develops  a  virus  that  turns  things  into  robots.  
         Fanfiction    
• Child  of  the  Storm:  
o The  fic  has  an  overall  plot  of  Harry  readjusting  to  life  as  the  son  of  
Thor,  while  Lucius  Malfoy  allies  with  HYDRA  and  
the  Necromancer  Gravemoss  to  destroy  the  Avengers  and  Take  Over  
the  World.  
o The  sequel,  Ghosts  of  the  Past,  has  doubled  down  on  this,  with  
interconnected  plot  arcs  with  separate  names  and  separate  Big  Bads.  
So  far  there's:  
§ Forever  Red,  featuring  the  Red  Room  and  Sinister  going  after  
Harry  as  a  base  for  new  Super  Soldiers.  
§ Bloody  Hell,  featuring  Dracula  going  after  Carol  Danvers,  and  
separately,  the  Heirs  of  Kemmler,  Voldemort,  and  Selene  Gallio  
fighting  each  other  and  Harry  Dresden  and  the  Scarlet  Witch  
for  the  Word  of  Kemmler.  
§ Of  Dungeons  and  Dragons,  featuring  the  First  Task  of  the  Tri  
wizard  Tournament  accidentally  awakening  an  Elder  Wyrm,  
which  goes  on  a  rampage.  
• Pony  POV  Series:  
o The  series  is  built  on  interlocking  story  arcs  —  freeing  Trixie  from  
her  Discording  and  her  Enemy  Within,  rehabilitating  Fluttercruel  and  
Fluttershy  breaking  into  a  Nightmare,  the  origins  of  Celestia,  Luna  and  
Discord,  various  World  Building  threads,  etc.  —  that  all  together  tell  
the  story  of  the  characters  moving  on  from  what  Discord  did  to  them...  
as  well  as  a  Myth  Arc  of  Discord  planning  his  second  escape.  
o There's  also  the  Dark  World  Arc,  which  was  originally  just  meant  
to  give  closure  to  the  Bad  Future,  but  grew  so  large  that  it  was  
eventually  declared  its  own  series,  subdivided  into  its  own  story  arcs:  
the  Redemption  of  the  Elements  Arc  (up  till  the  Duel  of  Tears  and  
Rainbow  Dash's  redemption),  the  Storming  the  Castle  Arc  (up  till  
Pinkie's  redemption),  the  Off  The  Rails  Arc  (up  till  Odyne!  
Fluttercruel's  defeat),  the  End  of  Days  Arc  (up  to  and  including  
the  Final  Battle  with  Nightmare  Paradox),  and  the  Alicorn  Ascension  
Arc  (which  acts  Dark  World's  Grand  Finale).  
o Dark  World  has  a  companion  piece  of  sorts  in  the  Shining  Armor  Arc,  
which  was  published  alongside  it  (and  is  kinda-­‐sorta  connected  to  it).  
This  arc  is  based  on  the  basic  premise  of  showing  where  Shining  
Armor  and  Cadence  were  during  the  rest  of  the  series,  as  well  as  how  
their  friendship  developed  into  romance.  It  is  also  divided  into  two  
 smaller  arcs  —  the  first,  and  longer  of  the  two,  has  Shining  and  
Cadence's  forces  coming  into  conflict  with  the  plans  of  General-­‐
Admiral  Makarov  of  the  Hooviet  Empire;  after  his  defeat,  the  story  
moves  back  to  developing  their  relationship,  even  as  Shining  seeks  a  
way  to  escape  the  threat  of  the  Blank  Wolf.  
o After  the  conclusion  of  Dark  World  and  the  SA  Arc,  the  series  returns  
to  the  Reharmonized  Timeline  with  the  Wedding  Arc,  which  sees  the  
Mane  Six  and  their  friends  attending  Shining  Armor  and  Cadence's  
wedding,  only  for  the  presence  of  a  much  more  dangerous  than  canon  
Queen  Chrysalis  to  turn  it  into  a  War  Arc.  
• RainbowDoubleDash's  Lunaverse:  
o The  first  season,  in  addition  to  the  overall  Myth  Arc  of  the  struggle  
against  Corona  and  standalone  threats,  is  built  around  the  
manipulations  of  the  corrupt  Night  Court,  which  comes  to  a  head  in  At  
The  Grand  Galloping  Gala.  
o Season  2  deals  with  both  Corona's  forces  and  the  Luna  6  developing  
alliances  in  preparation  for  the  eventual  final  confrontation  between  
the  two  sides.  
• In  A  New  Chance  Series,  there  are  several  story  arcs  ongoing,  some  of  them  
originating  in  the  first  story  of  the  series  and  continuing  into  the  second:  
o Larvitar's  search  for  his  mother.  
o Team  Rocket's  plan  for  world  domination  involving  capturing  
Legendary  Pokemon  with  powerful  Poke  balls/  
o Team  Magma  and  Team  Aqua's  own  respective  plans  for  the  world.  
o The  plans  of  the  being  that  killed  the  Father  Latios  and  tried  to  
destroy  Altomare,  as  well  the  Father  Latios'  own  revival  and  his  
efforts  to  stop  his  mortal  enemy  and  reunite  with  the  Eon  twins.  
• Digimon  02  The  Story  We  Never  Told  is  broken  up  into  several  arcs:  the  
Digimon  Emperor  arc  (Chapters  1-­‐18),  the  Spire-­‐Born  arc  (Chapters  19-­‐30),  
the  Regaining  The  Crests  arc  (Chapters  31-­‐41),  the  Dark  World  arc  (Chapters  
42-­‐51),  the  Digimon  World  Tour  arc  (Chapters  52-­‐58),  the  Invasion  of  the  
Deep  Ones  arc  (Chapters  59-­‐61),  and  the  Secrets  Uncovered  arc  (Chapters  
62-­‐70).  
• The  New  Adventures  of  Invader  Zim  has  the  ongoing  search  for  the  lost  
Meekrob  weapon,  though  it's  more  of  a  Half-­‐Arc  Season  given  that  the  story  
alternates  between  this  and  more  standalone  events.  
• Halloween  Unspectacular  is  an  anthology  series,  but  each  one  has  a  longer  
story  told  in  multiple  parts,  which  come  together  to  form  larger  Myth  Arcs.  
There's  usually  another  unconnected  multipart  story  in  each  one.  
o In  the  first  one,  there's  a  three-­‐chapter  arc  about  E350  and  his  friends  
trying  to  defeat  a  witch  version  of  Ember  McLain,  and  an  arc  
concerning  the  creation  —  and  rampage  —  of  a  creature  only  known  
as  ReGenesis.  
o In  the  second  one,  there's  a  four-­‐parter  about  Spongebob's  attempts  
to  stop  the  Underworld  King,  and  a  larger  story  arc  in  which  a  Ragtag  
 Bunch  of  Misfits  try  to  keep  the  Fiddley  Thing  away  from  a  German  
scientist  working  for  Dan  Phantom.  
o In  the  third  one,  E350  retells  the  story  of  the  ship  Batavia  with  
fictional  characters.  The  first  Myth  Arc  also  officially  begins  with  this  
collection,  as  the  heroes  face  off  with  an  Ancient  Conspiracy  of  anti-­‐
magic  fanatics  and  encounter  the  forces  of  Avalon  for  the  first  time.  
o In  the  fourth  one,  there's  an  arc  centered  on  a  colonial-­‐era  prison  only  
referred  to  as  "the  Gaol"  (an  alternate  spelling  for  jail),  and  another  
involving  several  villains  coming  together  to  destroy  the  heroes.  It  
turns  out  both  are  connected  to  the  Myth  Arc,  as  the  Gaol's  Governor  
is  the  lead  villain,  and  his  search  for  El  Dorado  leads  into  the  next  
story.  
o The  fifth  one  has  a  three-­‐part  "Freaky  Friday"  Flip  story.  And  the  Myth  
Arc  comes  to  a  conclusion  as  the  previous  Big  Bads  ally  under  
Galahad's  banner  to  collapse  The  Multiverse.  
o The  sixth  one  had  a  two-­‐part  story  about  Ford  and  Wirt  getting  
trapped  in  a  strange  land.  The  new  Myth  Arc  begins,  
as  PURITY  prepares  to  make  its  move.  
o The  seventh  one  has  PURITY  preparing  a  new  plan,  which  goes  into  
motion  at  the  climax.  
o The  eighth  has  the  various  heroes  waging  a  war  and  a  rebellion  
against  PURITY,  which  now  controls  America.  
       Film    
• Within  the  Godzilla  series'  30  films  (and  counting)  there  are  a  few  distinct  
story  arcs.  
o Mothra  vs.  Godzilla,  Ghidorah,  the  Three-­‐Headed  Monster,  and  Invasion  
Of  Astro  Monster  form  a  tightly-­‐linked  trilogy.  GvM  introduces  Mothra  
to  the  series  and  establishes  her  as  a  protector  of  humanity,  in  
contrast  to  Godzilla,  who  is  a  destroyer.  GtTHM  introduces  the  
series  Big  Bad  King  Ghidorah,  and  features  Mothra  telepathically  
convincing  Godzilla  and  fellow  destructive  monster  Rodan  to  pull  a  
colossal  Heel–Face  Turn  and  join  her  in  defending  Earth  from  this  new  
threat.  IoAM  features  Ghidorah  returning  and  fighting  Godzilla  and  
Rodan  again,  this  time  without  Mothra  there  to  motivate  them.  
o Godzilla  vs.  Mechagodzilla  and  Terror  of  Mechagodzilla  are  a  duology  
concerning  the  Black  Hole  Aliens  attempting  to  conquer  Earth  using  
their  superweapon  Mechagodzilla.  
o All  seven  films  of  the  rebooted  "Heisei  Era"  form  a  massive,  century-­‐
spanning  story  arc  involving  futuristic  technology  which  ends  up  in  
the  present  via  time  travel,  a  psychic  named  Miki  Segusa  (the  closest  
thing  the  series  has  to  a  main  human  protagonist),  and  Godzilla's  
relationship  with  his  "son,"  a  younger  member  of  his  species  
nicknamed  Godzilla  Jr.  
o Godzilla  Against  Mechagodzilla  and  Godzilla  Tokyo  SOS  are  another  
duology  about  the  new,  human-­‐built  incarnation  of  Mechagodzilla  and  
its  angsty  pilot,  Akane  Yashiro.  
 • The  James  Bond  series  does  this  twice.  The  first  arc  is  the  SPECTRE  Arc,  
which  lasted  from  the  first  movie,  Dr.  No  (1962),  until  the  seventh,  Diamonds  
Are  Forever  (1971).  The  second  encompasses  Daniel  Craig's  run  as  Bond,  
with  Spectre  continuing  the  arc  left  hanging  by  Casino  Royale  
(2006)  and  Quantum  of  Solace,  while  also  following  the  events  of  Skyfall.  A  
miniature  arc  mostly  within  the  first  SPECTRE  arc  involves  the  death  of  
Tracy  Bond  and  Bond's  Roaring  Rampage  of  Revenge  after  it:  On  Her  
Majesty's  Secret  Service,  Diamonds  Are  Forever,  and  For  Your  Eyes  Only.  
• The  second  and  third  Pirates  of  the  Caribbean  movies  formed  an  arc  
revolving  around  Davy  Jones  and  the  East  India  Trading  Company.  Originally  
the  second  half  of  a  Two-­‐Part  Trilogy,  until  the  series  continued  afterwards.  
• Star  Trek  II:  The  Wrath  of  Khan,  Star  Trek  III:  The  Search  for  Spock  and  Star  
Trek  IV:  The  Voyage  Home  form  a  story  arc  within  the  larger  Star  Trek  movie  
series  centered  around  the  Genesis  device  and  the  consequences  of  its  use.  
All  other  Star  Trek  movies  have  self-­‐contained  plots.  
• The  mainline  Star  Wars  movies  are  sorted  by  trilogies:  
o Original  (A  New  Hope,  The  Empire  Strikes  Back,  Return  of  the  Jedi),  
which  narrates  the  story  of  Luke  Skywalker  and  his  friends  from  the  
Rebellion  in  their  struggle  to  defeat  Darth  Vader  and  the  Empire.  
o Prequel  (The  Phantom  Menace,  Attack  of  the  Clones,  Revenge  of  the  
Sith),  which  narrates  the  story  of  Anakin  Skywalker  and  his  Start  of  
Darkness.  
o Sequel  (The  Force  Awakens,  The  Last  Jedi,  Star  Wars  9),  which  narrates  
the  story  of  Rey  and  her  fight  against  the  remnants  of  the  Empire,  
known  as  the  First  Order.  
         Literature    
• The  Animorphs  series  can  neatly  be  divided  up  into  a  couple  story  arcs.  The  
first  arc  concerns  itself  with  the  development  of  the  children  into  soldiers  
and  explanations  about  morphing,  the  Yeerk  invasion,  et  cetera.  The  second  
arc  concerns  itself  with  the  day-­‐to-­‐day  missions,  and  is  cut  in  half  by  what  
you  could  call  Story  Arc  2.5,  which  concerns  itself  with  the  seventh  
Animorph,  David.  The  third  story  arc  deals  with  the  escalation  of  the  war  and  
the  reorganization  of  the  Yeerk  Empire  -­‐  the  execution  of  Visser  One,  Visser  
Three's  promotion,  Operation  9366,  et  cetera.  The  final  story  arc  begins  
when  the  Yeerks  discover  the  kids'  identities.  
• The  Baby-­‐Sitters  Club:  
o Some  plotlines  spread  over  a  couple  of  books,  such  as  Kristy  adjusting  
to  her  stepfamily.  At  the  end  of  the  series  Mary  Anne's  house  burned  
down,  which  was  the  background  for  the  Friends  Forever  spinoff.  
o The  Dawn-­‐considers-­‐moving-­‐back-­‐to-­‐California  plotline  lasted  for  so  
many  books  that  many  fans  were  extremely  glad  when  she  ultimately  
did  move  back  and  she  finally  stopped  agonizing  about  this  decision.  
• Doctor  Who  –  Expanded  Universe:  The  Eighth  Doctor  Adventures  had  two  
major  story  arcs—one  leading  into  the  other—and  several  smaller  ones,  as  
well  as  several  individual  character  arcs  for  the  Doctor  and  his  companions.  
The  first  story  arc,  almost  more  of  a  Myth  Arc,  involved  a  massive,  
 destructive,  universe  spanning  temporal  war  (not  actually  the  New  Series'  
Last  Great  Time  War)  fought  between  the  Time  Lords  and  an  
unnamed  enemy,  and  the  fallout  that  affects  the  rest  of  universe  after  the  
Doctor  destroys  Gallifrey  (for  the  first  time).  The  second  deals  with  an  issue  
that  arose  as  a  result  of  the  first—a  time  traveler  called  Sabbath  is  worried  
that  with  the  Time  Lords  dead,  the  universe  is  collapsing  into  chaos,  and  that  
the  Doctor,  by  not  doing  anything  about  it,  is  harming  the  Web  of  Time  by  
default.  His  attempts  to  fix  this  by  destroying  alternate  timelines  are  in  fact  
what's  causing  the  problem  in  the  first  place.  The  series  also  deals  with  
smaller  story  arcs  like  Sam  learning  the  truth  about  her  Mirror  
Universe  counterpart,  Compassion  becoming  a  TARDIS,  Fitz  coming  to  grips  
with  being  a  clone  and  having  to  face  Father  Kreiner,  and  Anji's  inability  to  
get  home.  
• J.  K.  Rowling  has  stated  that,  unlike  the  first  five  books  of  Harry  Potter  which  
are  thematically  autonomous  while  still  carrying  over  the  overall  continuity  
of  the  universe,  the  last  two  books  (Half  Blood  Prince  and  Deathly  Hallows)  
are  meant  to  be  two  volumes  of  the  same  arc,  which  is  evident  not  only  
through  the  fully  interwined  link  between  the  end  of  the  former  and  the  start  
of  the  latter,  but  also  through  the  plot  devices  that  both  books  share,  as  well  
as  the  fact  that  both  books  heavily  reference  the  events  of  the  past  five  books  
to  solve  any  pending  plot  point  and  then  settle  the  climax  of  the  story.  
• Star  Wars  Legends:  Galaxy  of  Fear  is  a  book  series.  Each  book  is  self-­‐
contained,  but  the  first  six  have  an  underlying  plot  about  the  connections  
between  the  Big  Bad,  Hoole,  and  The  Empire.  
• Each  series  in  Warrior  Cats  is  its  own  story  arc  that  contributes  to  the  
overall  Myth  Arc  (although  series  3+4  were  really  one  long  arc,  and  series  5  
was  a  prequel):  the  first  series  followed  Firestar's  rise  to  leadership  and  
defeat  of  villain  Tigerstar,  the  second  series  was  about  the  forest's  
destruction  and  the  Clans  finding  a  new  home,  as  well  as  Hawkfrost's  attempt  
at  following  in  Tigerstar's  pawsteps,  the  third  and  fourth  series  dealt  with  
three  cats  discovering  that  they  have  special  powers  and  the  Dark  Forest's  
attempt  to  destroy  the  Clans,  and  the  sixth  series  is  about  the  discovery  of  the  
modern  remnants  of  SkyClan.  
         Live  Action  TV      
• 24  has  one  constant  ongoing  storyarc  per  season,  each  of  which  can  also  be  
broken  up  into  3-­‐4  sub-­‐arcs.  
• The  Adventures  of  Brisco  County,  Jr.  had  two  intertwining  story  arcs  
throughout  the  series  (The  Search  for  The  Orb  and  The  Capture  of  the  John  
Bly  Gang).  
• Alias  —  So  heavily,  in  fact,  that  there  was  significant  Continuity  
Lockout  experienced  by  casual  viewers.  
• Brit  Com  'Allo  'Allo!  might  be  the  most  humorously  convoluted  example  of  
this  and  certainly  for  a  sitcom,  being  a  comedy  gave  the  writers  numerous  
excuses  to  resolve  them  in  absurdist  manners.  
• Arrowverse:  
o Arrow,  due  to  essentially  running  two  shows  simultaneously  (the  
present  day  and  flashbacks),  manages  to  have  two  distinct,  but  
usually  connected,  story  arcs  per  season  (though  this  formula  ends  
with  Season  5):  
§ Season  1:  The  flashbacks  are  about  Oliver  first  arriving  on  the  
island  and  becoming  caught  in  a  fight  against  Edward  Fryers'  
mercenary  forces;  the  present  day  storyline  is  about  Oliver  
returning  to  Starling  City,  first  becoming  a  vigilante,  and  
uncovering  the  truth  of  Malcolm  Merlyn's  conspiracy  
to  destroy  the  Glades.  
§ Season  2:  The  flashbacks  are  about  Oliver  and  his  allies  facing  
off  against  Dr.  Ivo  for  the  Mirakuru  and  Slade's  Face–Heel  
Turn;  the  present  is  about  Oliver  trying  to  become  a  true  hero,  
while  dealing  with  the  schemes  of  Brother  Blood  and  Slade.  
§ Season  3:  The  flashbacks  deal  with  Oliver's  time  in  Hong  Kong  
as  an  ARGUS  agent  trying  to  prevent  the  outbreak  of  a  deadly  
bioweapon;  the  present  has  Oliver  struggling  with  his  identity  
as  the  Arrow  after  being  dragged  into  a  conflict  between  the  
League  of  Assassins  and  Merlyn.  
§ Season  4:  The  flashbacks  see  Oliver  returned  to  the  island  by  
ARGUS  in  order  to  deal  with  Baron  Reiter's  operation  there;  
the  present  has  Oliver  remaking  himself  as  the  Green  Arrow,  
and  trying  to  protect  Star  City  from  Damien  Darhk  and  his  
plans.  
§ Season  5:  The  flashbacks  have  Oliver  travel  to  Russia,  where  he  
joins  the  Bratva  in  the  pursuit  of  avenging  a  friend  from  the  
previous  season,  before  setting  up  his  return  to  Starling  City  
(as  seen  in  the  pilot);  the  present  has  Oliver  building  a  new  
team,  which  comes  under  siege  from  Prometheus.  
§ Season  6:  Oliver  must  juggle  being  Mayor  of  Star  City,  a  
vigilante,  and  a  father,  while  facing  off  with  a  Legion  of  
Doom  led  by  Cayden  James,  who's  been  tricked  into  thinking  
that  Oliver  killed  his  son.  When  James  is  defeated  halfway  
through  the  season,  Oliver  still  has  to  deal  with  Ricardo  Diaz,  
who  secretly  took  over  Star  City's  criminal  underworld  and  
bought  off  many  key  government  officials  while  everyone  was  
distracted  by  James.  
o The  Flash  (2014):  
§ Season  1:  Barry  learns  how  to  use  his  powers  and  fight  the  
metahumans,  and  the  threat  of  the  Reverse-­‐Flash,  while  Dr.  
Wells  pursues  his  own  agenda.  
§ Season  2:  Team  Flash  has  to  deal  with  the  arrival  of  
metahumans  from  Earth-­‐2,  led  by  Zoom.  
§ Season  3:  Barry  deals  with  the  fallout  from  his  creation  of  
Flashpoint,  not  least  of  which  is  the  arrival  of  Savitar.  
 § Season  4:  Barry's  escape  from  being  imprisoned  in  the  Speed  
Force  creates  a  group  of  new  metahumans,  whom  Team  Flash  
must  track  down,  while  figuring  out  how  they  fit  into  the  
machinations  of  Clifford  DeVoe/The  Thinker.  
o Legends  of  Tomorrow:  
§ Season  1:  Rip  Hunter  gathers  the  Legends  in  order  to  try  
and  avert  Vandal  Savage's  conquest  of  the  world,  while  
the  Time  Masters'  repeated  attempts  to  stop  them.  
§ Season  2:  The  Legends  find  themselves  facing  off  with  
the  Legion  of  Doom,  who  are  seeking  the  Spear  of  Destiny,  
which  would  let  them  rewrite  reality.  
§ Season  3:  The  Legends  face  off  with  the  followers  of  the  
mysterious  demon  Mallus,  who  are  creating  anachronisms  that  
threaten  time,  while  competing  with  the  new  Time  Bureau.  
o Supergirl  (2015):  
§ Season  1:  Kara  learns  the  ropes  as  a  superhero,  while  having  to  
face  off  with  the  escaped  Fort  Rozz  criminals  led  by  her  
aunt  General  Astra.  
§ Season  2:  Supergirl  and  the  DEO  are  at  war  with  the  anti-­‐
alien  terrorist  organization  CADMUS.  Later,  they  also  have  to  
deal  with  the  arrival  of  Queen  Rhea  of  Daxam.  
§ Season  3:  Kara  deals  with  the  emotional  fallout  from  the  
previous  season's  finale,  and  the  threat  of  Reign  and  the  
Worldkillers.  
• Babylon  5  (another  Myth  Arc)  
• Barney  Miller  had  several  subplot  story  arcs  running  over  several  years.  The  
most  memorable  is  Ron  Harris'  development  as  a  published  author,  which  
lasted  most  of  the  series.  
• Battlestar  Galactica  had  plenty  of  story  arcs,  particularly  in  the  first  and  
second  seasons,  which  led  to  Executive  Meddling  in  the  third  season  for  more  
standalone  episodes  so  that  new  viewers  were  not  alienated.  As  a  result,  the  
third  season  is  generally  not  as  well  liked,  and  the  fourth  and  final  season  has  
resumed  a  more  arc-­‐based  approach.  The  main  arcs  throughout  the  series  
are:  
o Finding  Earth.  
o Roslin's  Cancer.  
o Baltar's  Treachery.  
o Starbuck's  Destiny.  
o The  Identity  and  Origins  of  the  Humanoid  Cylons.  
• Surprisingly,  The  Beverly  Hillbillies  used  story  arcs  in  a  Network  Sitcom  all  
the  way  back  in  the  early  1960s.  
o Mrs.  Driesdale's  multi-­‐episode  psychotic  breakdown  after  living  next  
to  the  Clampets,  combined  with  the  Clampets'  attempts  to  "help"  her.  
o The  Clampets'  acquisition  of  an  English  Manor  and  their  subsequent  
"War  of  the  Roses"  with  their  alcoholic  neighbor.  This  was  spread  
over  several  seasons.  
 o Ellie  May's  engagement  to  a  "Naval  Frogman"  and  Granny's  belief  that  
this  means  he  turns  into  a  frog  from  the  bellybutton  down  when  he  
gets  wet.  Lasted  most  of  a  season.  
• Each  season  of  Buffy  the  Vampire  Slayer  has  an  arc  spanning  half  its  run.  
o Season  1:  The  Master's  attempts  to  escape  his  can  and  open  the  
Hellmouth.  
o Season  2:  Technically  the  fights  between  Buffy  and  Spike  count  as  an  
arc,  but  the  real  arc  doesn't  start  until  Angel  loses  his  soul  and  
becomes  Angelus  again.  
o Season  3:  The  Mayor's  plans  to  become  a  pure  demon,  and  Faith's  fall  
from  good  and  her  eventual  Face–Heel  Turn.  
o Season  4:  Buffy  adjusting  to  college  life  and  dealing  with  The  
Initiative,  whose  experiments  ultimately  lead  to  the  rise  of  Adam.  
o Season  5:  Buffy  dealing  with  Dawn's  arrival,  Joyce's  death,  and  Glory's  
plans.  
o Season  6:  Willow  dealing  with  her  addiction  to  magic,  and  Buffy  trying  
to  provide  for  Dawn  while  also  getting  tormented  by  the  Trio,  whose  
actions  ultimately  push  Willow  over  the  edge  into  Dark  Willow  mode.  
o Season  7:  The  First  Evil  attempts  to  open  the  Hellmouth,  while  Buffy  
builds  an  army  of  Potential  Slayers  to  fight  it.  
o Spinoff  Angel  also  had  several  storyarcs  per  season:  
§ Season  1  focused  on  Angel's  first  attempts  of  going  against  the  
law-­‐firm  Wolfram  &  Hart  while  also  growing  accustomed  to  his  
new  "family"  of  Cordelia,  Doyle,  and  later  Wesley.  
§ Season  2  featured  Wolfram  &  Hart  using  Angel's  old  flame  
Darla  in  a  plan  to  cause  him  to  cross  the  Despair  Event  
Horizon,  with  a  shorter  sub-­‐arc  at  the  end  featuring  the  Angel  
Investigations  team  having  to  travel  to  Lorne's  home  
dimension  to  rescue  Cordelia.  
§ Season  3  had  Angel  becoming  a  father  while  an  enemy  from  his  
past  arrived  in  the  present  day  to  try  and  get  his  final  revenge  
on  the  vampire.  
§ Season  4  focuses  on  the  now  broken  Angel  Investigations  
team  joining  up  again  to  ultimately  go  against  a  threat  that  has  
ties  with  Angel's  son.  
§ Season  5  features  the  team  now  taking  control  over  of  Wolfram  
&  Hart  while  Angel  suffers  an  internal  Heroic  BSoD  that  makes  
him  question  what  he's  fighting  for  that's  brought  upon  thanks  
to  the  arrival  of  Spike.  
• CSI  did  one  with  the  "Miniature  Killer",  so  called  because  they  would  leave  a  
perfect  scale  model  of  the  crime  scene  there,  and  which  served  as  the  set  up  
at  the  end  to  put  one  of  the  regulars  on  a  bus.  
• CSI:  Miami  did  one  between  season  4  and  5,  focusing  on  the  Mala  Noche  gang.  
• CSI:  NY  had  two  in  season  4,  the  333  Stalker  in  the  first  half  and  the  Cabbie  
Killer  in  the  second  half.  
• Dexter  has  naturally  fallen  into  this,  as  its  entire  first  season  was  an  
adaptation  of  one  novel.  Subsequent  seasons  have  each  carried  their  own  
story  arc,  which  coincides  with  the  season's  Big  Bad.  
o Season  1  focuses  on  the  hunt  for  the  ruthless  Ice  Truck  Killer,  who  is  
revealed  in  the  end  to  be  Dexter's  lost  brother  Brian  Moser.  
o Season  2  revolves  around  Dexter's  victims'  bodies  being  discovered.  
Miami  Metro  Homicide  names  the  mysterious  serial  killer  the  Bay  
Harbor  Butcher  and,  with  the  help  of  the  FBI,  begins  their  hunt  for  
him.  This  means  Dexter  needs  to  be  a  step  ahead  of  his  team  at  all  
times,  particularly  Doakes,  who  already  suspects  him.  Paralleling  the  
story  is  Dexter's  relationship  with  Lila,  his  sponsor  at  Narcotics  
Anonymous.  
o Season  3  introduces  Miguel  Prado,  who  ends  up  discovering  Dexter's  
secret.  The  next  few  episodes  explore  the  consequences  of  this  
discovery.  
o Season  4  centers  around  Dexter's  life  as  a  family  man;  fathering  
Harrison,  living  with  Rita  and  the  kids,  etcetera,  while  in  the  
meantime  Miami  is  visited  by  a  serial  killer  called  "Trinity".  Dexter  
ends  up  befriending  him  while  secretly  investigating  him.  
o Season  5  pits  Dexter  and  his  new  partner  Lumen  against  a  gang  of  
serial  rapists  led  by  motivational  speaker  Jordan  Chase.  
o Season  6  opts  for  a  religion-­‐centric  plot,  where  a  mysterious  force  
dubbed  the  Doomsday  Killer  strikes  in  Miami  and  uses  his  victims'  
bodies  to  enact  tableaus  from  the  Book  of  Revelations.  It  also  sees  
the  promotion  of  Debra  Morgan  to  the  position  of  Lieutenant,  and  
further  explores  her  relationship  with  her  brother.  
o Season  7  opens  with  Deb  having  walked  in  on  Dexter  having  killed  
Travis  Marshall.  The  rest  of  the  season  deals  with  Deb's  loyalty  to  
Dexter  being  tested.  Especially  when  her  Captain  LaGuerta  comes  
across  a  blood  slide  on  the  crime  scene  and  starts  trying  to  look  into  
the  Bay  Harbor  Butcher  again,  believing  Doakes  to  be  innocent.  
• Doctor  Who  has  a  few,  used  for  combo  DVD  sets,  when  a  clear  follow-­‐on  is  
present.  
o "The  Daleks'  Master  Plan"  -­‐  a  thirteen-­‐episode  Space  Opera  arc  
concerning  the  Daleks'  collusion  with  Mavic  Chen  to  build  a  weapon  
that  destroys  time.  Consider  that  this  aired  over  seventeen  weeks  
(with  "The  Myth  Makers",  an  unrelated  story,  happening  between  the  
first  episode  of  the  storyline,  "Mission  to  the  Unknown",  and  the  
second,  "The  Nightmare  Begins").  This  is  usually  regarded  as  one  
serial  nowadays,  but  it  happened  back  in  the  days  of  episodes  being  
titled  separately  and  can  be  broken  up  roughly  into  several  shorter  
stories  if  one  so  chooses  (one  storyline  concerning  Bret  Vyon,  another  
storyline  starting  when  the  Doctor  gets  teleported,  another  storyline  
involving  ancient  Egypt  and  the  return  of  the  Monk,  and  the  
concluding  storyline  revolving  around  the  Daleks'  inevitable  betrayal  
of  Mavic  Chen).  
o Season  8's  arc  introduced  the  Master,  who  was  a  common  villain  in  
each  serial  and  was  captured  by  UNIT  in  the  Season  Finale.  (Which  led  
to  the  season  gaining  the  Fan  Nickname  "The  Master  Season".)  
o Season  12  was  an  experiment  at  more  arc-­‐based  plotting,  as  an  
attempt  at  Revisiting  the  Roots.  This  was  done  by  having  the  Doctor  
lose  access  to  his  TARDIS  for  much  of  the  season,  instead  relying  on  
various  teleporters  or  personal  time  travel  devices  to  move  him  
about,  which  gives  a  stronger  continuity  between  stories.  On  top  of  
that,  every  story  in  the  season  takes  place  either  on  Earth  or  the  Nerva  
Beacon  orbiting  Earth,  with  the  exception  of  the  Wham  
Episode  "Genesis  of  the  Daleks".  
o The  Key  to  Time  arc  (all  of  Season  16)  —  the  search  for  pieces  of  
a  Cosmic  Keystone.  
o The  E-­‐Space  Trilogy  ("Full  Circle",  "State  of  Decay"  and  "Warriors'  
Gate")  
o Following  directly  on  from  this  was  the  season-­‐crossing  Return  of  the  
Master  trilogy,  comprising  "The  Keeper  of  
Traken",  "Logopolis"  and  "Castrovalva",  released  as  New  
Beginnings  on  DVD  as  it  also  took  in  the  Fourth  
Doctor's  regeneration  into  the  Fifth.  
o The  Black  Guardian  Trilogy  ("Mawdryn  
Undead",  "Terminus"  and  "Enlightenment")  -­‐  involving  Turlough's  
relationship  with  the  Black  Guardian.  
o The  Trial  of  a  Time  Lord  (Season  23  —  the  first  12  episodes  consisted  
of  three  distinct  stories  with  a  common  Framing  Device,  which  took  
over  as  the  main  story  for  the  two-­‐part  Season  Finale.)  
o In  addition,  thematic  arcs  showed  up  in  the  classic  series:  season  18  
concerned  the  theme  of  entropy  and  decay,  in  preparation  for  the  
regeneration  in  the  final  episode;  each  serial  of  season  20  involved  the  
return  of  a  classic  enemy,  building  up  to  the  movie-­‐length  special  "The  
Five  Doctors".  
o Seasons  25  and  26  had  a  story  arc  of  "the  Cartmel  Masterplan",  
implying  the  Doctor  had  some  great  secret.  The  series  was  cancelled  
before  this  could  conclude,  but  some  elements  made  it  into  the  Virgin  
New  Adventures,  which  concluded  the  arc  with  Lungbarrow.  Here  it  
was  claimed  the  Doctor  might  be  the  reincarnation  of  a  mysterious  
figure  from  the  Dark  Times  of  Gallifrey.  However  there  was  also  a  
story  arc  about  Fenric,  in  "Silver  Nemesis"  the  Doctor  seems  to  be  
playing  chess  with  an  unknown  opponent,  leading  to  "The  Curse  of  
Fenric",  where  it  is  revealed  an  evil  being  from  the  Dawn  of  Time  had  
been  manipulating  the  Seventh  Doctor's  adventures.  This  involved  Arc  
Welding  with  "Dragonfire"  in  Season  24,  revealing  the  time  storm  that  
sent  Ace  to  Iceworld  was  caused  by  Fenric  so  she  would  travel  with  
the  Doctor.  
o There  was  a  loose  story  arc  from  "Destiny  of  the  
Daleks"  to  "Remembrance  of  the  Daleks"  involving  the  
 Dalek/Movellan  War  and  Davros  attempting  to  regain  power  over  the  
Daleks.  
o Similarly,  there  is  a  loose  arc  concerning  the  Cybermen  from  "The  
Moonbase"  onward,  leading  to  some  major  Continuity  Lockout  when  
the  arc  returned  with  a  vengeance  in  "Attack  of  the  Cybermen".  
o There  is  a  very  loose  story  from  "The  Deadly  Assassin"  through  to  
"The  Five  Doctors"  which  follows  the  Doctor  becoming  Lord  President  
of  Gallifrey,  his  Presidential  "career"  and  his  subsequent  (and  
deserved)  ousting  from  the  post.  
o Since  the  revival,  the  series  has  opted  for  season-­‐long  loose  arcs,  
mostly  linked  together  through  recurring  phrases  and  motifs,  though  
usually  unnoticed  and  not  really  interfering  with  the  episode's  main  
plots.  Series  6  adopted  a  tighter  arc  format,  though  the  episodic  
format  remained.  
§ Series  1:  "Bad  Wolf"  was  either  mentioned  or  written  in  the  
background  of  every  episode  apart  from  "Rose"  and  "The  
Empty  Child".  It  was  discovered  that  this  was  a  link  between  
the  Doctor  and  Rose,  written  through  time  and  space;  by  the  
time  vortex  itself.  
§ Series  2:  "Torchwood",  like  "Bad  Wolf",  was  incorporated  into  
the  Christmas  special,  and  nine  of  the  13  regular  episodes,  
unbeknown  to  the  main  characters.  It  was  discovered  in  the  
finale  that  Torchwood  was  in  fact  an  organisation  devoted  to  
anything  alien,  but  fuelled  by  their  eagerness  to  catch  the  
Doctor.  
§ Series  3:  Mr.  Saxon  was  mentioned  in  the  episodes  set  in  the  
present,  plus  "42",  once  again,  not  to  the  attention  of  the  main  
characters.  Mr.  Saxon  was  the  new,  present  Prime  Minister;  
who  is  also  one  of  the  Doctor's  greatest  enemies  —  the  Master!  
§ Series  4:  Missing  planets,  bees  disappearing,  memory  loss,  
Doctor  Donna,  building  up  to  a  Human-­‐Time  Lord  metacrisis  
between  Donna  and  the  Doctor,  Donna  being  Mind  Raped  by  
the  Doctor,  and  Davros  and  the  Daleks  building  a  reality  bomb  
out  of  27  planets.  
§ Series  5:  Based  around  the  phrase  "The  Pandorica  will  
open"/"Silence  will  fall"  from  the  very  beginning,  which  was  
spoken  as  a  warning  from  many  of  his  foes/friends.  The  
Pandorica  was  revealed  to  be  a  giant  box  designed  by  "The  
Alliance"  to  contain  the  Eleventh  Doctor..  
§ Series  6:  The  Doctor's  (ultimately  faked)  death,  the  identity  of  
River  Song,  Amy's  pregnancy,  the  Silence,  and  The  Question:  
Doctor  Who?  
§ Series  7B  (7A  is  arc-­‐free):  The  identity  of  the  Doctor's  new  
companion,  Clara  Oswald,  whom  he  met  in  different  identities  
twice  before,  and  how  it  relates  to  The  Question.  From  there,  a  
 mini-­‐arc  ensues  as  he  undoes  the  destruction  of  Gallifrey  and  
faces  his  final  death  in  two  follow-­‐up  specials.  
§ Series  8:  Clara  romances  Danny  Pink,  the  Doctor  undergoes  an  
identity  crisis  after  coming  to  terms  with  saving  the  Time  
Lords  and  receiving  a  new  cycle  of  regenerations,  and  Missy  is  
introduced  and  her  identity  is  teased;  paths  cross  when  Danny  
is  suddenly  killed.  
§ Series  9:  As  the  Doctor  faces  long-­‐term  consequences  of  huge  
decisions  —  such  as  turning  a  Viking  girl  Ashildr  into  a  virtual  
immortal  —  Clara  becomes  his  distaff  counterpart  and  he's  
determined  to  never  lose  her.  A  prophecy  about  "The  Hybrid"  
sets  up  a  tragedy  that  eventually  brings  him  back  to  
Gallifrey.  The  two  Christmas  specials  that  follow  form  a  mini-­‐
arc  setting  up  Series  10  as  the  Doctor  "completes"  his  
relationship  with  River  Song.  
§ Series  10:  The  Doctor  and  Nardole  are  undercover  at  a  
university  guarding  a  vault,  but  the  Doctor  still  takes  Bill  Potts  
on  as  a  companion.  A  mid-­‐season  mini-­‐arc  involving  alien  
Monks  sees  the  Doctor  blinded  and  reveals  that  the  vault  
contains  Missy.  The  Doctor  subsequently  tries  to  redeem  her,  
culminating  in  a  multi-­‐episode  Grand  Finale  that  starts  with  
the  return  of  the  Harold  Saxon  Master  and  the  origins  of  the  
Cybermen,  and  ends  with  a  regeneration  crisis  involving  his  
current  and  original  incarnations  while  resolving  the  question  
of  the  Twelfth  Doctor's  identity  for  good.  
§ Series  11:  The  Doctor  adjusts  to  her  new  gender  and  traveling  
with  her  new  "fam"  of  Graham,  Ryan,  and  Yaz.  The  season  
premiere  and  finale  both  feature  them  facing  off  with  the  
Stenza  warrior  Tzim-­‐Sha.  
• When  Gotham  started,  Gordon's  storyline  nominally  had  a  driving  arc  
(solving/dealing  with  the  fallout  of  the  Wayne  murders,  with  a  side  order  of  
upcoming  Mob  War),  but  for  the  most  part  episodes  were  fairly  self-­‐
contained.  This  changed  about  half  way  through  Season  1.  Then  Season  2  
started  following  up  on  Season  1's  dangling  plot  points  while  holding  its  own  
arc;  from  that  point  on,  every  Season  has  been  divided  into  two  main  arcs.  
o In  Season  2  all  the  storylines  converged  on  Theo  Galavan,  who  also  
brought  back  several  villains  from  Season  1.  The  second  half  of  Season  
2  followed  up  on  the  "possible  corruption  at  Wayne  Enterprises"  and  
"What's  really  going  on  at  Arkham  Asylum?"  plot  points,  as  well  as  
finishing  the  Start  of  Darkness  for  Riddler  and  Penguin.  
o Season  3  is  about  rounding  up  the  escaped  Arkham  patients,  Mad  
Hatter  debuting,  Penguin  running  for  mayor,  and  
Jerome's  resurrection;  the  second  half  of  the  Season  cuts  to  the  Court  
of  Owls.  
o Season  4  is  about  all  the  classic  Bat  villains  finally  stepping  into  their  
familiar  roles  while  Bruce  takes  his  first  steps  into  vigilantism.  
 o Season  5  is  an  adaptation  of  Batman:  No  Man's  Land,  with  Gordon  and  
Bruce  trying  to  protect  the  innocent  as  Gotham  is  cut  off  from  the  
outside  world  after  the  events  of  the  previous  season  finale  and  
carved  up  by  the  various  villains  and  gangs.  
• House  of  Cards  (US):  
o Season  1  focuses  on  various  political  schemes  by  Underwood  —  
manipulating  an  education  reform  bill,  supporting  Russo's  bid  for  
Governor,  etc  —  as  part  of  a  larger  plot  to  endear  himself  to  the  
President  enough  to  gain  his  nomination  as  a  replacement  Vice-­‐
President.  
o Season  2  is  primarily  driven  by  a  conflict  between  Underwood  
and  Raymond  Tusk,  as  well  as  Underwood  weakening  the  President  
enough  to  force  him  to  resign.  
o Season  3  has  President  Underwood  juggling  his  election  campaign,  his  
controversial  jobs  program,  and  a  Middle  East  power  struggle  with  
Russian  President  Petrov.  
o Season  4  has  Underwood  continuing  his  campaign,  while  also  having  
to  deal  with  Claire's  own  political  ambitions,  as  well  as  the  threat  of  a  
Islamist  terrorist  group  called  ICO.  
o Season  5  has  the  Underwoods  resorting  to  every  dirty  trick  they  can  
come  up  with  in  order  to  win  the  election,  as  well  as  to  counter  a  
journalistic  investigation  into  Frank's  past  misdeeds.  
• iCarly  has  an  arc  that  started  from  the  final  episode  of  Season  4,  titled  "iOMG"  
and  continues  in  the  first  four  episodes  of  Season  5,  dealing  with  Sam's  
feelings  for  Freddie.  Notable  in  being  one  of  the  only  examples  of  a  Kid  
Com  having  a  Story  Arc,  especially  for  the  big  two  of  Disney  
Channel  and  Nickelodeon.  
• Probably  the  oldest  one  in  television  is  I  Love  Lucy,  which  featured  several  
long-­‐running  arcs.  The  most  famous  is  Lucy's  pregnancy,  which  took  up  a  full  
season  from  her  first  learning  of  it  to  giving  birth  and  bringing  Little  Ricky  
home.  Subsequent  seasons  followed  the  Ricardos  and  Mertzes  on  long  trips  
through  Europe,  the  US,  and  a  stay  in  Hollywood.  
• The  major  story  arc  for  the  first  four  seasons  of  JAG  was  Harm’s  search  for  his  
long  lost  father,  although  it  was  latent  in  most  episodes  not  directly  
addressing  it.  
• Kamen  Rider  does  this  from  time  to  time.  
o Kamen  Rider  Double  has  three  major  arcs.  The  first  focusing  in  
introducing  the  premise  of  the  show  and  its  characters  (1-­‐18),  the  
second  arc  introduces  complications  while  intensifying  the  conflict  
(19-­‐36),  while  the  last  arc  finally  ties  up  loose  ends,  reveals  all  the  
twists,  and  closes  everything  off.  (37-­‐49)  Interestingly,  these  arcs  are  
denoted  of  when  they  begin  and  end  with  the  arrival/defeat  of  a  
general.  
o Kamen  Rider  Gaim  has  four  arcs.  Each  focusing  on  a  different  
antagonist.  The  first  arc  had  rival  dance  teams  (1-­‐11),  the  second  arc  
dealt  with  the  Mega-­‐Corp  (12-­‐23),  the  third  arc  introduced  the  rulers  
 of  the  central  antagonist  (24-­‐32)  and  the  final  arc  is  an  all-­‐out  war  
(33-­‐47).  Some  people  tend  to  break  up  the  second  arc  into  two  small  
arcs,  the  first  going  from  12  to  19  and  the  second  going  from  20  to  23.  
o Kamen  Rider  Ex-­‐Aid  also  has  four  arcs.  The  first  arc  is  about  the  effort  
of  the  Riders  to  complete  and  gain  the  original  10  Gashats  and  the  
secret  surrounding  the  mysterious  "Black  Ex-­‐Aid"  (1-­‐12).  The  second  
arc  focuses  on  the  secret  to  the  main  character's  immunity  to  the  
Bugster  Virus  and  the  arc  villain's  master  plan  (13-­‐24).  The  third  arc  
has  the  heroes  dealing  with  a  Deadly  Game  that  the  villains  has  
unleashed  upon  humanity  (25-­‐40).  The  final  arc  has  the  main  
characters  and  former  foes  joining  forces  to  finally  defeat  the  Big  
Bad(41-­‐45).  
o Kamen  Rider  Build  has  three  arcs.  The  first  arc  introduces  settings,  
main  characters  and  the  mysterious  evil  organizations  they  fight  
against  (1-­‐16).  The  second  arc  has  the  civil  war  between  the  three  
regions  of  Japan  and  the  toll  it  takes  on  the  main  characters  (17-­‐28).  
The  final  arc  finally  reveals  the  Big  Bad,  secrets  about  the  main  
characters  and  the  people  close  to  them  and  the  final  battle  against  
said  Big  Bad,  with  even  former  foes  joining  the  heroes  for  the  fight  
(29-­‐49).  
• Each  season  of  Lost  has  a  main  Story  Arc,  each  with  numerous  subplots  and  
mini-­‐arcs,  and  each  contributing  to  the  Myth  Arc  (which  can  best  be  summed  
up  by  the  question  "Why  are  these  people  on  the  Island?").  Each  
season's  Story  Arc  also  has  a  central  conflict  and/or  division:  
o Season  One  is  about  the  Losties  learning  how  to  survive  on  the  Island  
and  dividing  into  two  camps:  one  on  the  beach  and  one  at  the  caves.  
o Season  Two  is  about  finding  the  Hatch,  pushing  the  button  and  the  
psychological  effect  of  it;  the  Tailies,  another  group  of  plane  survivors,  
are  introduced.  
o Season  Three  reveals  a  lot  about  the  Others,  the  Island's  native  
inhabitants,  and  builds  towards  a  confrontation  between  them  and  
the  Losties.  
o Season  Four  is  about  the  arrival  of  the  "Freighter  Folk",  who  are  
supposedly  offering  rescue,  while  flash-­‐forwards  show  that  some  of  
the  Losties  eventually  leave  the  Island,  only  for  their  lives  to  
completely  fall  apart.  
o Season  Five  is  split  between  those  Losties  left  behind  on  the  Island,  
who  start  jumping  to  different  points  in  the  Island's  history,  and  the  
"Oceanic  6",  who  set  about  returning  to  the  Island.  
o Season  Six  is  about  Jacob  and  the  Man  in  Black  recruiting  the  Losties  
for  a  final  conflict,  and  finding  out  the  true  purpose  of  the  Island.  
• Marvel  Cinematic  Universe:  
o Agent  Carter  
§ Season  1  has  Carter  running  a  secret  investigation  to  prove  
that  Howard  Stark  has  been  framed  for  treason,  uncovering  in  
 the  process  a  conspiracy  by  Russian  intelligence  program  
Leviathan.  
§ Season  2  sees  Carter  and  company  head  out  to  California  to  
investigate  mysterious  deaths,  entangling  them  in  the  
machinations  of  the  Council  of  Nine  and  Whitney  Frost,  as  well  
as  with  the  mysterious  substance  known  as  Zero  Matter.  
o Agents  of  S.H.I.E.L.D.  
§ Season  1  has  a  storyline  that  cleverly  evolves  over  the  course  
of  the  season:  Initially,  it's  about  Coulson's  team  investigating  
and  combating  the  machinations  of  Project  Centipede,  but  
about  halfway  through,  the  group  is  all  captured,  save  for  
their  mysterious  leader,  The  Clairvoyant.  The  series  then  
becomes  increasingly  about  the  hunt  for  the  Clairvoyant,  until  
near  the  end  of  the  season,  when  he's  revealed  to  be  one  
of  HYDRA's  moles  in  SHIELD.  After  this,  the  remainder  of  the  
season  is  dedicated  to  the  Civil  War  between  the  loyal  SHIELD  
agents  and  their  HYDRA  counterparts.  
§ Season  2  is  divided  into  two  main  storylines,  connected  by  
the  shocking  events  of  the  midseason  point.  The  first  half  has  
Coulson's  ragtag  SHIELD  waging  war  against  HYDRA,  fighting  
them  and  Skye's  father,  "the  Doctor"  for  control  of  the  Diviner;  
the  second  half  has  them  drawn  into  conflict  with  both  Robert  
Gonzales'  "real"  SHIELD  organization  and  the  Inhumans  led  by  
Jiaying  (Skye's  mother).  
§ Season  3  is  entirely  about  SHIELD  dealing  with  the  global  
outbreak  of  Inhumans  gaining  powers.  In  the  first  half,  this  
means  facing  off  with  HYDRA  and  new  rival  agency  the  ATCU.  
This  results  in  the  arrival  on  Earth  of  the  season's  true  Big  Bad,  
Hive,  who  seeks  to  turn  all  humans  into  Inhumans  that  he  can  
control.  
§ Season  4  is  broken  up  into  three  "pods",  which  are  self-­‐
contained  but  linked  through  the  Darkhold:  The  Ghost  Rider  
arc  (episodes  1-­‐8)  features  SHIELD  investigating  the  titular  
entity,  and  his  connections  to  the  titular  book  and  a  group  of  
ghost-­‐like  beings.  In  the  LMD  arc  (episodes  9-­‐15),  SHIELD  ally  
Holden  Radcliffe  (having  read  the  Darkhold  at  the  end  of  the  
previous  arc)  goes  full  Mad  Scientist  and  becomes  determined  
to  use  the  Darkhold  to  create  the  Framework,  a  "perfect"  
virtual  world  free  of  regret;  to  aid  this,  he  kidnaps  and  replaces  
several  SHIELD  agents  with  Life  Model  Decoys.  And  finally,  in  
the  Agents  of  HYDRA  arc  (episodes  16-­‐22),  Daisy  and  Simmons  
enter  the  Framework  in  order  to  save  the  rest  of  the  team,  only  
to  find  that  Radcliffe's  robot  assistant  AIDA  has  usurped  
control  and  turned  it  into  a  Villain  World  run  by  HYDRA;  this  is  
all  part  of  a  larger  plan  to  use  the  Darkhold  to  make  herself  
human.  
 § Season  5  has  a  single  overarching  plot  which  is  divided  into  
two  connected  but  separate  stories  in  each  half  of  the  season.  
In  the  first  half,  the  SHIELD  team  find  themselves  in  a  Bad  
Future  where  Earth  has  been  shattered,  and  what's  left  of  
humanity  is  crammed  into  a  space  station  where  they're  
enslaved  by  the  Kree,  and  must  find  a  way  back  to  the  present.  
In  the  back  half,  the  team  does  manage  to  return,  and  must,  
while  on  the  run  from  a  rogue  General  formerly  aligned  with  
HYDRA,  find  a  way  to  change  the  events  leading  to  that  future.  
• Two  of  the  same  writers  behind  LOST  created  Once  Upon  a  Time,  which  
follows  the  exact  same  structure  of  arcs  and  mini-­‐arcs  per  season  
contributing  to  the  overall  Myth  Arc.  
o Season  One  follows  Regina  the  Evil  Queen  casting  the  Dark  Curse  and  
sending  fairy  tale  characters  to  a  town  called  Storybrooke  in  the  real  
world,  where  they  remain  trapped  and  without  the  memories  of  who  
they  really  are,  and  how  it's  the  destiny  of  Snow  White  and  Prince  
Charming's  daughter,  Emma  Swan,  to  be  "the  Savior"  and  break  the  
curse.  The  mini-­‐arcs  are  Emma  accepting  her  role  as  mother  to  her  
newfound  son  Henry  and  her  place  in  Storybrooke,  ultimately  
becoming  sheriff  after  the  old  one  is  killed  (episodes  1-­‐9);  an  
amnesiac  Snow  and  Charming  having  an  affair  that  creates  trouble  
with  the  wife  Charming  has  in  Storybrooke,  who  then  goes  missing  
leaving  Snow  the  prime  suspect  (episodes  10-­‐18);  and  Emma  being  
made  to  believe  in  her  true  identity  and  destiny  by  both  a  mysterious  
writer  named  August  and  Rumpelstiltskin,  the  mastermind  behind  
everything  (episodes  19-­‐22).  
o Season  Two  follows  how  all  the  people  of  Storybrooke  cope  with  the  
curse  being  broken  and  their  memories  restored  but  still  being  
trapped  in  the  real  world,  which  now  has  magic  in  it  thanks  to  the  
machinations  of  Rumpelstiltskin.  And  magic  always  comes  at  a  
price.  The  mini-­‐arcs  are  Emma  and  Snow  being  transported  to  the  
Enchanted  Forest  and  teaming  up  with  Sleeping  Beauty  and  Mulan  to  
find  a  way  back  to  Storybrooke,  which  Charming  is  now  in  charge  of  
(episodes  23-­‐31);  Emma  helping  Rumpelstiltskin  finally  find  his  long-­‐
lost  son  Baelfire  while  Regina's  even  wickeder  mother  Cora  plots  to  
obtain  ultimate  power  (episodes  32-­‐38);  and  two  anti-­‐magic  zealots  
from  the  real  world  infiltrating  Storybrooke  in  order  to  destroy  it  
(episodes  39-­‐44).  
o The  first  half  of  Season  Three  follows  Emma,  Snow,  Charming,  Regina,  
Rumpelstiltskin,  and  Captain  Hook  traveling  to  Neverland  to  save  
Henry  from  Peter  Pan,  who  enacts  dark  and  twisted  schemes  on  all  of  
them  that  forces  a  character  study  of  who  they  really  are  inside.  
o The  second  half  of  Season  Three  has  the  residents  of  Storybrooke  
having  to  deal  with  their  missing  memories  from  a  year  banished  back  
to  their  world,  which  turns  out  to  be  part  of  a  plot  by  Regina's  half-­‐
sister  Zelena,  the  Wicked  Witch  of  the  West.  
 o The  first  half  of  Season  Four  has  Emma  dealing  with  the  arrival  in  
Storybrooke  of  both  Elsa  and  Ingrid  the  Snow  Queen,  as  well  as  
learning  to  properly  control  her  growing  powers.  Meanwhile,  
Rumpelstiltskin  falls  back  into  evil,  and  tries  to  free  his  power  from  its  
limitations  by  use  of  the  Sorcerer's  Hat.  
o A  tertiary  storyline  from  the  first  half,  Regina's  search  for  the  Author  
in  order  to  find  her  happy  ending,  dominates  the  second  half  of  
Season  Four,  as  it  becomes  a  race  against  Rumpelstiltskin  and  the  
Queens  of  Darkness  and  Zelena,  who  want  to  use  the  Author  to  get  
their  own  happy  endings,  at  the  heroes'  expense.  And  then  there's  also  
the  matter  of  Lily,  Maleficent's  daughter,  who  was  banished  to  the  real  
world  due  to  Snow  and  Charming's  actions.  
o The  first  half  of  Season  Five  deals  with  the  fallout  from  Emma  
becoming  the  Dark  One,  as  well  as  the  heroes'  missing  time  from  the  
six  weeks  they  spent  in  Camelot  (explored  through  flashbacks).  
o The  second  half  of  Season  Five  sees  the  heroes  traveling  to  The  
Underworld  in  order  to  rescue  Hook,  leading  to  them  confronting  
figures  from  their  pasts.  They  then  work  to  help  these  people  find  and  
complete  their  unfinished  business,  so  that  they  can  move  on,  all  while  
Hades  tries  to  stop  them.  
o Season  Six  is  devoted  to  Emma  coming  to  terms  with  her  duty  as  the  
Savior  when  she  learns  she  is  doomed  to  die  in  a  confrontation  with  a  
mysterious  stranger.  Regina  must  confront  the  now-­‐separate  
embodiment  of  her  Evil  Queen  nature  along  the  way.  
o Season  Seven,  a  Retool,  is  about  the  now-­‐adult  Henry  being  brought  to  
the  neighborhood  of  Hyperion  Heights  in  Seattle  by  
his  forgotten  daughter  Lucy  to  break  a  new  curse.  
• Only  Fools  and  Horses:  First  done  due  to  Real  Life  Writes  the  Plot  in  series  4,  
the  first  three  episodes  of  which  saw  Grandad's  death  and  Uncle  Albert's  
introduction  to  the  family.  The  show  started  doing  full  story  arcs  after  the  
the  Retool,  with  series  6  encompassing  Rodney  and  Cassandra's  relationship  
and  marriage,  series  7  featuring  the  troubles  of  the  same  relationship  
alongside  Raquel's  re-­‐introduction  and  subsequent  pregnancy,  and  the  1996  
and  2001-­‐2003  trilogies  both  containing  their  own  Story  Arcs.  
• The  Outer  Limits  (1995):  Even  though  it  is  an  anthology  series,  several  
episodes  are  linked  to  form  an  overall  story  arc.  
o Innobotics  Corporation  Arc:  includes  the  episodes  "Valerie  23",  "Mary  
25",  "In  Our  Own  Image"  and  "Resurrection"  in  chronological  order.  It  
deals  with  robots  created  by  the  Innobotics  Corporation  with  Valerie  
23  and  Mary  25  being  direct  sequels.  It's  possible  that  "In  Our  Own  
Image"  and  "Resurrection"  take  place  in  an  alternate  universe  or  
alternate  timeline.  
o Major  John  Skokes  of  Earth  Defense  Arc:  consists  of  "Quality  of  Mercy"  
and  its  direct  sequel  "The  Light  Brigade"  which  deal  with  humanity's  
war  against  an  alien  foe.  
 o Theresa  Givens  Arc:  follows  the  time  traveling  adventures  of  Doctor  
Theresa  Givens,  consisting  of  "A  Stitch  In  Time"  and  "Final  Appeal"  
o Genetic  Rejection  Syndrome  Arc:  includes  "Unnatural  Selection"  
which  deals  with  a  couple  deciding  to  have  a  child  with  genetic  
enhancements  despite  the  risk  of  it  contracting  the  syndrome  turns  
them  into  mutated  psychopaths  and  "Criminal  Nature"  takes  place  
roughly  a  decade  later  when  all  the  GRS  sufferers  have  grown  up.  
o The  New  Masters:  in  "The  Camp",  the  last  of  the  world's  humans  are  
kept  by  the  android  guards,  simply  because  the  guards  are  following  
the  last  orders  they  received.  Several  humans  escape  and  their  story  is  
continued  in  "Promised  Land"  where  they  must  interact  with  aliens  
still  on  Earth.  
o Geneticist  Dr.  Martin  Nodel  Arc:  "Double  Helix"  and  "The  Origin  of  
Species"  involve  Ultraterrestrials  who  seeded  Earth  with  their  DNA  60  
million  years  ago.  
o The  Eastern  Coalition-­‐Free  Alliance  Cold  War  Arc:  starting  in  "Phobos  
Rising"  the  world  has  been  divided  once  again  into  east  and  west  
leading  to  the  colonization  of  Ganymede  in  "The  Human  Factor"  and  is  
concluded  in  "Human  Trials".  
o Kimble  and  Gerard  Arc:  starting  in  "Ripper"  and  ending  in  "Better  
Luck  Next  Time"",  it  follows  to  aliens  who  over  the  centuries  have  
been  in  a  friendly  rivalry  possessing  and  murdering  humans  for  sport.  
o Time  Traveler  Nicholas  Prentice  Arc:  the  episodes  "Tribunal",  
"Gettysburg"  and  "Time  to  Time"  follow  the  adventures  of  Nicholas  
Prentice  and  his  travels  through  time.  
o USAS  Arc:  "The  Joining",  "The  Vessel"  and  "In  the  Blood"  all  involve  
the  USAS.  
• The  canonical  British  TV  show  with  a  Story  Arc  is  The  Prisoner  (1967),  which  
was  created  from  the  get-­‐go  with  a  beginning,  middle  and  end,  and  is  also  
used  as  an  example  of  the  TV  Novel.  
• Each  season  of  Round  the  Twist  has  a  different  arc.  The  first  two  seasons  
contained  different  ghost  stories,  for  Season  3  it  was  a  Viking  Love  Book,  and  
Season  five  concerned  a  mysterious  knight  from  Atlantis.  
• Seinfeld,  despite  being  a  "show  about  nothing",  did  have  a  few  plotlines  that  
ran  in  the  background  of  several  seasons:  Kramer  writing  and  publishing  a  
coffee  table  book  (about  coffee  tables),  Jerry  and  George  writing  a  TV  pilot,  
George's  engagement  to  Susan,  etc.  
• Sherlock:  
o Series  1  has  Sherlock  investigating  Moriarty's  criminal  empire.  
o Series  2  has  Sherlock  and  John  becoming  celebrities,  
Sherlock  mellowing,  and  the  eventual  confrontation  between  Morirty  
and  Sherlock.  
o Series  3  has  Mary  Morstan,  Charles  Augustus  Magnussen,  and  
Sherlock  and  John's  friendship  becoming  closer  than  ever.  
o Series  4  has  Moriarty's  apparent  return,  Mary's  death  and  its  affects  
on  Sherlock  and  John,  and  the  third  Holmes  sibling.  
• Star  Trek:  Deep  Space  Nine  has  several,  featuring  battles  against  the  Maquis,  
the  Jem'Hadar,  and  finally  the  Dominion  as  a  whole.  The  characters  also  grew  
and  changed  over  time  far  more  than  in  any  of  the  previous  shows.  Most  of  
the  characters  are  very  different  by  the  end  of  S7  to  how  they  were  in  S1.  
• Star  Trek:  Voyager  found  a  middle  ground  between  DS9's  arc  driven  plots  
and  characters  and  TNG/TOS's  more  episodic  formats,  though  this  was  more  
through  network  pressure  than  creative  choice.  There  were  only  a  few  
narrative  story  arcs,  such  as  the  early  integration  of  the  Maquis  crew  with  the  
Voyager  crew  and  the  ongoing  conflicts  with  the  Kazon.  Though  character  
growth  could  be  inconsistent,  the  Doctor  and  Seven  of  Nine  are  regarded  as  
being  some  of  the  most  developed  characters  in  all  of  Star  Trek  due  to  their  
arcs.  
• Previously  episodic  in  format,  Star  Trek:  Enterprise  introduced  an  epic  story  
arc  with  the  Xindi  war  in  season  three,  before  settling  into  a  series  of  loosely-­‐
related  smaller  story  arcs  in  season  four.  
• Supernatural  has  one  every  season  so  far,  generally  building  on  the  previous  
arc  and  moving  toward  the  series'  overall  Myth  Arc.  
o Season  One  has  the  boys'  search  for  their  father,  and  the  demon  that  
killed  their  mother  by  extension.  
o Season  Two  is  essentially  the  same  as  the  first  season,  save  for  the  fact  
that  they  Brothers  Winchester  are  now  searching  solely  for  the  
Yellow-­‐Eyed  Demon,  who  has  now  killed  John  as  well.  
o Season  Three  deals  with  the  repercussions  of  Dean's  deal  with  the  
Crossroads  Demon,  Sam's  attempts  to  get  Dean  out  of  this  deal,  and  
the  rise  of  Lilith  later  in  the  season.  
o Season  Four  begins  to  really  wrestle  with  the  Myth  Arc,  with  the  
boys  trying  to  prevent  Lilith  from  breaking  the  66  Seals  and  the  rise  of  
Lucifer,  and  introducing  angels,  Dean's  own  destiny  and  Sam's  
growing  demon  powers.  
o Season  Five  is,  so  far,  all  about  preventing  the  Apocalypse  now  that  
Lucifer  has  risen,  Sam  and  Dean's  destinies  as  the  true  vessels  for  
Lucifer  and  Michael,  and  to  a  smaller  extent,  rebuilding  the  brothers'  
relationship.  
o Season  Six  has  multiple  interconnected  plot  lines:  the  loss  and  return  
of  Sam's  soul  (and  in  turn,  the  potential  return  of  his  memories  of  
Hell),  the  civil  war  in  Heaven,  Crowley's  search  for  Purgatory,  and  the  
coming  of  the  Mother  of  All  to  Earth.  
o Season  Seven  deals  with  the  fallout  from  Castiel  opening  Purgatory  at  
the  end  of  the  previous  season,  primarily  the  release  of  
the  Leviathans  and  their  plans  to  Take  Over  the  World.  
o Season  Eight  deals  with  an  attempt  at  closing  the  gates  of  Hell  forever.  
o Season  Nine  has  multiple  plot  lines  dealing  with  the  fallout  from  the  
previous  season  —  Dean  trying  to  save  Sam's  life  and  the  
consequences,  Castiel  dealing  with  the  loss  (and  eventual  regaining)  
of  his  grace,  the  civil  war  among  the  angels  cast  out  of  Heaven,  
 Metatron  acting  to  secure  his  place  as  new  ruler  of  Heaven,  and  the  
power  struggle  between  Crowley  and  Abbadon  for  control  of  Hell.  
o Season  Ten  is  dominated  by  Sam  trying  desperately  to  save  Dean  from  
the  Mark  of  Cain,  while  Crowley  has  to  deal  with  the  machinations  
of  his  mother  Rowena.  
o Season  Eleven  is  built  entirely  around  the  conflict  with  the  Darkness.  
o Season  Twelve  has  two  main  storylines.  One  is  the  Winchesters  
reluctantly  working  with,  and  later  coming  into  conflict  with,  
the  British  Men  of  Letters.  The  other  is  them  having  to  deal  with  
Lucifer  walking  the  Earth  again,  leading  to  him  conceiving  
a  Nephilim  child  that  may  destroy  the  world  if  born.  
o Season  Thirteen  is  focused  on  the  Winchesters  trying  to  teach  the  
Nephilim,  Jack,  how  to  exist  in  the  world  without  threatening  it,  while  
protecting  him  from  Heaven  and  Hell,  both  of  whom  want  him  for  
their  own  goals,  and  hoping  to  use  his  power  to  rescue  Mary  from  the  
apocalyptic  Alternate  Universe  discovered  in  the  previous  season's  
finale.  
o Season  Fourteen  has  the  Winchesters  and  their  allies  having  to  deal  
with  the  aftermath  of  Alternate!Michael  possessing  Dean  in  the  
previous  season  finale  and  attempting  to  conquer  the  prime  universe.  
Meanwhile,  there's  also  the  matter  of  Lucifer's  former  host,  Nick,  who  
is  revealed  to  be  psychotic  even  after  being  freed.  
• Veep:  
o Season  1:  Selina's  attempts  to  pass  the  "clean  jobs"  bill,  and  the  
political  fallout  when  it  falls  through.  
o Season  2:  The  hostage  crisis  in  Uzbekistan  and  the  resulting  
Presidential  scandal.  
o Season  3:  Selina  running  for  President.  
o Season  4:  Selina  as  interim  President  while  campaigning  for  her  own  
election,  trying  to  pass  her  "families  first"  bill,  and  the  scandal  when  it  
falls  apart.  
o Season  5:  Team  Selina  trying  desperately  to  engineer  a  win  in  the  
election  tiebreaker  vote  in  Congress.  
o Season  6:  Team  Selina  deal  with  life  post-­‐Presidency,  with  Selina  
trying  to  publish  her  memories  and  open  a  Presidential  library.  
• Weeds  contains  over-­‐arcing  storylines,  although  they  aren't  necessarily  
clearly-­‐defined  between  seasons,  and  they  sometimes  aren't  so  much  
resolved  as  they  are  escaped  from.  This  gives  it  a  quality  of  drifting  from  
situation  to  situation  that  fits  its  stoner  subject  matter,  while  characters  from  
unresolved  plotlines  sometimes  resurface  later.  
• The  West  Wing  had  plenty  of  story  arcs,  though  they  didn't  always  break  
down  along  the  lines  of  a  season  (for  example,  the  arc  about  Bartlet  being  
investigated  by  Congress  for  hiding  his  multiple  sclerosis  began  late  in  
season  2  and  carried  on  into  the  first  half  of  season  3,  and  the  re-­‐election  arc  
stretched  from  late  season  3  to  early  season  4).  Even  the  Democratic  party's  
primary  (for  more  on  what  that  is,  see  here)  to  nominate  their  candidate  to  
 succeed  Bartlet  was  an  arc  stretching  across  the  second  half  of  the  
penultimate  season.  The  final  season  was  mostly  one  long  arc  about  the  
election  of  the  next  president,  though  that  season  did  have  a  few  other  arcs  
as  well.  
• Each  season  of  White  Collar  revolve  around  a  specific  overarching  storyline  
that  continues  from  the  previous  one:  
o Season  1:  Neal's  search  for  Kate  and  the  music  box  that  would  lead  to  
her.  
o Season  2:  The  mystery  of  Kate's  music  box,  and  its  connection  
to  Vincent  Adler.  
o Season  3:  Vincent  Adler's  U-­‐boat  treasure  that  the  box  hid,  Matthew  
Keller's  return,  and  Neal's  commutation.  
• In  any  given  season,  The  Wire  tends  to  have  half-­‐a-­‐dozen  story  arcs  at  one  
time.  At  least.  And  they  are  all  awesome.  
• Wizards  of  Waverly  Place  is  known  for  its  many  story  arcs.  Each  season  had  
quite  a  few  of  them,  most  of  them  running  concurrently.  
o Season  2:  The  "Wizards  vs.  Vampires"  arc,  which  dealt  with  Justin's  
relationship  with  Juliet  and  her  parents.  
o Season  3:  The  "Chronicles  of  Moises"  arc,  which  dealt  with  Justin  
becoming  a  monster  hunter,  and  Max  releasing  his  conscience.  This  
arc  ended  with  Juliet  being  captured  by  the  mummy.  The  next  arc  in  
Season  3  was  the  "Wizards  vs.  Werewolves"  saga,  which  detailed  
Alex's  growing  relationship  with  Mason,  and  eventually  tied  itself  with  
the  "Chronicles  of  Moises"  arc.  The  "Stevie"  arc  followed,  and  dealt  
with  Stevie's  arrival  in  New  York  and  her  wizard  revolution.  The  
"Wizards  Exposed"  arc  came  next,  where  the  Russo's  are  captured  and  
taken  to  a  government  facility.  
o Season  4:  The  beginning  of  Season  4  continued  the  "Wizards  Exposed"  
arc,  which  ended  with  Alex  and  Justin  having  to  start  over  in  the  
wizard  competition,  and  Alex  deciding  to  get  back  in  so  she  could  be  
with  Mason.  The  next  arc  was  the  "Maxine"  arc,  where  Max  was  
transformed  into  a  little  girl  named  Maxine.  It  began  with  "Three  
Maxes  and  a  Little  Lady",  and  concluded  with  "Back  To  Max".  The  
"Maxine"  arc  ran  concurrently  with  the  next  major  arc,  the  "Wizards  
vs.  Angels"  saga,  which  dealt  with  the  Angels  of  Darkness.  The  last  
major  arc  was  the  "Apartment  13B"  arc,  starting  with  "Wizards  of  
Apartment  13B"  and  ending  with  "Wizards  vs.  Everything".  The  last  
arc  merges  the  "Wizards  vs.  Angels"  arc  with  the  "Wizards  vs.  
Werewolves"  arc.  
• The  X-­‐Files  (see  Myth  Arc)  
• Disney's  Zorro,  which  ran  in  the  late  1950s  was  organized  into  arc  stories,  
rather  than  simply  being  episodic.  Each  episode  set  up  a  new  set  of  troubles  
that  Zorro  would  have  to  deal  with  in  the  next  episode  in  logical,  linear  
fashion.  
       Newspaper  Comics    
 • Beetle  Bailey  doesn't  usually  have  much  continuity,  but  over  the  decades,  
there  have  been  a  handful  of  arcs  connecting  the  strips  (actual  longer  stories  
for  albums  notwithstanding),  including  at  least  "Beetle  arrives  at  college,"  
"Beetle  joins  the  army,"  "Beetle  goes  home  on  holiday  alone,"  "Beetle  goes  
home  on  holiday  with  Sarge,"  "Beetle  goes  on  holiday  at  home  with  Sarge  and  
Otto,"  "Zero  goes  on  holiday  home  with  Beetle  and  Sarge,"  and  "Sarge  briefly  
tries  to  leave  the  army  but  comes  back."  
• Calvin  and  Hobbes  has  several,  some  of  them  connecting  into  larger  arcs,  like  
the  ones  involving  different  uses  of  the  same  invention  (all  of  which  
inventions  tend  to  be  the  same  cardboard  box  in  different  positions  anyway).  
• Garfield  had  weeks-­‐long  story  arcs  throughout  the  1980s;  some  had  him  
winding  up  far  from  home  and  trying  to  get  back  while  others  would  put  him  
in  an  increasingly  ludicrous  situation  (i.e.  getting  caught  in  a  window  shade,  
which  escalates  into  him,  Jon,  Odie,  and  other  people  trapped  in  it).  
         Video  Games      
• Several  games  with  multiple  playable  characters  provide  a  complete  
campaign  for  each  of  them,  in  which  not  only  there  might  be  unique  
storylines,  but  also  aspects  that  are  beneficial  to  the  gameplay  (i.e.  the  
character  has  special  abilities  or  weapons  that  have  to  be  exploited  to  tackle  
their  corresponding  levels  or  chapters).  Jet  Force  Gemini,  for  instance,  has  
Juno's,  Vela's  and  Lupus'  routes,  followed  by  a  quest  to  repair  an  ancient  ship,  
and  then  the  Final  Boss  battle.  
• Resident  Evil:  
o Resident  Evil  2:  Leon's  and  Claire's  campaigns.  
o Resident  Evil  6:  Leon's,  Chris's  and  Jake's  campaigns,  followed  by  Ada's  
campaign  which  is  available  after  all  others  are  completed.  
o In  Resident  Evil  4,  there  are  two  characters  and  each  has  a  campaign  as  
well,  but  the  second  character's  (Ada)  is  more  of  an  Another  Side,  
Another  Story  variation,  available  after  beating  Leon's  campaign  
(itself  divided  into  three  arcs  based  on  the  major  locales  of  the  setting:  
Village,  castle  and  military  island,  in  that  order).  
o The  whole  series  can  be  fit  into  a  series  of  arcs:  Beginning  (Zero,  1),  
the  Fall  of  Raccoon  City  (2,  3,  and  both  Outbreak  games),  the  Fall  of  
Umbrella  (Code  Veronica,  Survivor,  Dead  Aim,  and  the  last  scenario  
of  Umbrella  Chronicles),  the  Fall  of  Wesker  (4  and  5),  the  FBC  
Interludes  (Revelations  and  Revelations  2),  and  the  Family  (6  and  
ongoing)  
• Sonic  the  Hedgehog:  
o Sonic  2  and  Sonic  3,  and  Sonic  &  Knuckles  were  also  part  of  a  Story  
Arc  called  the  "Death  Egg  Saga",  as  the  games  deal  with  Sonic's  
attempts  to  stop  Dr.  Eggman  from  launching  the  Death  Egg.  Sonic  the  
Hedgehog  4  is  a  continuation  of  the  "Death  Egg  Saga",  since  Eggman  
launches  the  Death  Egg  mk  II  in  Episode  II.  
o There  is  a  three-­‐game  Story  Arc  dealing  with  Shadow.  It  started  
in  Sonic  Adventure  2,  continued  in  Sonic  Heroes,  and  resolved  
in  Shadow  the  Hedgehog.  
 o An  in-­‐game  example  is  the  character-­‐based  arcs  in  Sonic  the  Hedgehog  
(2006),  which  has  Sonic's,  Shadow's  and  Silver's  routes,  followed  by  
Last  Story  which  is  only  playable  when  all  others  are  completed.  
• In  City  of  Heroes  series  of  missions  are  actually  referred  to  as  story  arcs,  
another  way  to  capture  the  feel  of  comic  books.  
• Each  of  the  original  games  in  the  When  They  Cry  series  are  their  own  arc.  
Later  remakes  tend  to  have  multiple  arcs  in  one  game  though.  
• The  King  of  Fighters  splits  up  its  ongoing,  sometimes  confusing  plot  into  arcs,  
each  with  rotating  protagonist  duties.  '94  was  a  stand-­‐alone  title  meant  to  
kick  off  this  Mascot  Fighter,  but  is  now  commonly  referred  to  as  
"The  Rugal  Saga."  '95  simultaneously  ends  this  story  with  Rugal's  Karmic  
Death  via  Superpower  Meltdownand  begins  "The  Orochi  Saga",  which  
climaxes  in  '97  when  Kyo  Kusanagi  literally  punches  out  Orochi  with  help  
from  Iori  Yagami  and  Chizuru  Kagura.  '99-­‐2001  was  "The  NESTS  Chronicles",  
chronicling  an  evil  cartel's  plans  for  world  domination  using  the  DNA  of  a  
captured  Kyo  to  create  human  bioweapons.  One  of  these  "Kyo  
clones"  note    is  K',  a  stoic  Knight  In  Sour  Armor  who  ends  NESTS'  ambitions  by  
defeating  their  top-­‐ranked  executives.  2003  started  "The  Tales  of  Ash",  
detailing  Ash  Crimson,  a  enigmatic  man  who  uses  others  for  his  own  
purposes,  and  Those  From  the  Past,  a  mysterious  cult  intent  
on  unsealing  Orochi.  XIII  seems  to  be  the  conclusion  for  this  part  of  the  story,  
as  Ash,  a  Guile  Hero,  enacts  a  time-­‐rewriting  Heroic  Sacrifice  to  stop  Those  
From  the  Past  and  their  leader  Saiki.  Fans  can  generally  expect  a  new  arc  to  
pick  up  if  the  last  title  was  a  Dream  Match  Game.  
• The  Kirby  series  had  a  Story  Arc  nicknamed  the  "Dark  Matter  Trilogy"  
consisting  of  Kirby's  Dream  Land  2,  Kirby's  Dream  Land  3,  and  Kirby  64:  The  
Crystal  Shards  because  all  three  deal  with  Kirby  and  his  animal  friends  
dealing  with  the  threat  of  Dark  Matter  on  Pop  Star  and  its  solar  system.  These  
games  were  not  produced  by  Masahiro  Sakurai  but  Shinichi  Shimomura.  This  
is  noticeable  because  all  three  share  a  puzzle-­‐solving  structure  instead  of  the  
more  combat-­‐oriented  structure  of  the  other  games.  
• Xenoblade  has  four  story  arcs.  The  first  one  is  the  Xord  arc,  where  the  heroes  
first  leave  their  attacked  hometown  and  have  their  first  encounter  with  a  
talking  Face  Mechon.  The  second  arc,  the  Prison  Island  arc,  continues  their  
search  for  Metal  Face,  the  Mechon  that  destroyed  their  hometown,  climaxing  
with  a  battle  at  the  titular  Prison  Island.  The  third  is  the  Egil  arc,  when  the  
heroes  infiltrate  Mechonis  to  fight  against  Egil,  the  leader  of  the  Mechon.  
After  the  Mechonis  Core  event,  the  final  arc  is  the  Zanza  arc,  where  the  
Monado/Zanza  takes  over  Bionis  and  threatens  to  destroy  everything.  
• The  Castlevania  series  is  often  organized  into  two-­‐part  arcs  which  take  place  
during  one  generation  of  Belmont.  For  example,  Castlevania/its  remakes  
and  Castlevania  II:  Simon's  Quest  consist  the  story  of  Simon's  attacks  
on  Dracula,  and  the  Sorrow  duology  is  an  arc  that  deals  with  Soma  Cruz  and  
his  attempts  to  escape  his  supposed  destiny  as  the  reincarnation  of  Dracula.  
• The  Silent  Hill  series  has  the  Harry  Mason  /  Alessa  Gillespie  story  arc  in  Silent  
Hill,  3,  and  Origins  (a  prequel).  
• In  Earthbound,  the  game  has  two  main  goals:  Enhance  Ness's  power  by  
finding  eight  melodies  and  shattering  a  "nightmare  rock,"  then  defeat  Giygas.  
However,  Giygas  causes  many  sub-­‐plots  that  break  into  two  major  story  arcs.  
The  first  is  the  Eagleland  arc,  which  has  four  sub-­‐arcs  and  mainly  deals  with  
the  illusion  device  known  as  the  Mani  Mani  Statue  and  the  growing  threat  of  
one  of  its  victims,  Pokey/Porky  Minch.  After  destroying  the  Mani  Mani  Statue  
and  the  Clumsy  Robot,  the  bodyguard  of  the  Statue's  last  victim  Geldegarde  
Monotoli,  there  is  a  small  interlude  involving  obtaining  the  fourth  melody  
which  leads  to  the  Summers-­‐Scaraba-­‐Deep  Darkness  arc,  involving  the  
mysteries  presented  about  a  pyramid  in  Scaraba  and  a  swamp  called  Deep  
Darkness,  which  is  revealed  to  guard  the  last  two  melodies.  After  all  eight  
melodies  are  gathered,  one  small,  last  story  arc  begins:  the  completion  of  the  
original  two  goals  given,  which  is  accomplished  by  defeating  Ness's  
Nightmare  inside  his  mind  and  then  defeating  Giygas  and  Porky  after  
travelling  to  the  past.  
• In  Ōkami,  the  game  is  neatly  divided  into  three  story  arcs:  The  Orochi  story  
arc  regarding  the  release  of  Orochi  and  the  terror  he  tries  to  release  upon  the  
world,  the  Capital  Arc  regarding  a  strange  mist  covering  the  capital  and  the  
threats  of  the  Water  Dragon  terrorizing  the  seas  and  the  Dark  Lord  that  
seems  to  be  the  mastermind  behind  everything,  and  the  Kamui  Arc,  which  
takes  place  on  the  northern,  frozen  mountains  of  Nippon.  Several  mini-­‐arcs  
take  place  as  different  plot  points  are  solved  so  there's  nothing  undisclosed  
by  the  end  of  the  story:  The  backstory  of  Issun  and  his  hometown,  the  threat  
of  two  twin  demons  in  the  shape  of  mechanical  owls  that  plan  to  freeze  the  
land  of  Kamui  over,  the  true  backstory  of  the  first  arc  and,  finally,  the  
appearance  of  The  Very  Definitely  Final  Dungeon  and  every  aspect  related  to  
it  (its  origin,  the  fate  of  its  former  inhabitants,  and  the  nature  of  the  True  
Final  Boss  in  the  form  of  Yami,  the  Lord  of  Darkness).  
• Some  The  Legend  of  Zelda  titles  start  with  a  story  arc  that  involves  exploring  
a  trio  of  dungeons  to  find  Plot  Coupon  tools  that  may  help  Link  defeat  Ganon,  
or  another  villain,  the  easy  way.  When  plans  don't  work  as  intended  or  
something  unexpected  happens,  then  Link  has  to  reconsider  his  plans  and  
then  it's  when  he  tries  to  do  what  it  takes  to  defeat  the  Big  Bad  the  hard,  but  
more  effective  way.  The  games  that  follow  this  pattern  are  A  Link  to  the  
Past,  Ocarina  of  Time,  The  Wind  Waker,  Twilight  Princess,  Phantom  
Hourglass  and  A  Link  Between  Worlds.  Skyward  Sword  follows  a  similar  
pattern,  except  the  unexpected  twist  comes  before  he  even  attempts  to  get  rid  
of  the  villain  (during  the  first  third  of  the  game,  his  only  objective  is  to  find  
Zelda;  in  the  second,  he  seeks  to  create  the  Master  Sword  just  to  manage  to  
reunite  with  Zelda  again);  only  after  six  dungeons,  eight  boss  battles  and  lots  
of  adventuring,  it's  when  he  finally  starts  a  new  quest  (long  on  its  own)  to  get  
rid  of  the  Big  Bad  once  and  for  all.  
• Kingdom  Hearts  has  8  whole  games,  from  the  original  to  the  long-­‐
anticipated  Kingdom  Hearts  III,  forming  what  Tetsuya  Nomura  refers  to  as  
the  "Xehanort  Saga"  or  "Seeker  of  Darkness  Chronicle."  Also,  Kingdom  
Hearts,  Kingdom  Hearts:  Chain  of  Memories  and  Kingdom  Hearts  II  in  of  
 themselves  form  a  story  arc  of  Sora,  Donald  and  Goofy  attempting  to  save  the  
universe  while  seeking  to  reunite  with  their  friends  (Riku,  Kairi  and  King  
Mickey).  
• Kid  Icarus:  Uprising  is  split  into  multiple  arcs.  It  starts  with  the  Medusa  arc,  
which  spans  the  first  nine  chapters.  But  then  the  game  pulls  a  Your  Princess  
Is  in  Another  Castle!  and  Hades  shows  up,  and  Viridi  a  chapter  later.  Those  
four  chapters  deal  with  the  three-­‐way  war  of  the  gods.  Then  we  get  three  
chapters  of  an  alien  invasion.  Then  the  Chaos  Kin  throws  the  story  off  the  
rails,  and  that  arc  lasts  for  five  chapters.  After  a  one  chapter  arc  of  getting  Pit  
back  into  shape,  it  takes  one  more  three  chapter  arc  for  him  to  get  the  
necessary  equipment  to  take  down  Hades  once  and  for  all.  
• The  Descent  trilogy  has  a  continuous  arc,  each  sequel  directly  continuing  
from  the  previous  game.  
• In  Megadimension  Neptunia  VII,  the  game  is  split  into  three  parts  that  are  all  
connected  together.  It  starts  out  with  the  Zero  Dimension  arc  which  deals  
with  the  new  Zero  dimension,  and  then  that  gets  solved  and  goes  to  the  
second  arc,  the  Golden  Third  arc,  where  each  CPU  becomes  a  protagonist  of  
their  own  and  tries  to  figure  out  what  has  been  happening  to  their  own  
nations  and  who  is  behind  all  of  the  mess.  Finally,  the  third  arc,  the  Heart  
Dimension  arc,  focuses  on  the  character  who  was  from  the  first  arc  figuring  
out  who  she  is  and  the  main  villain  is  introduced  in  the  story.  
• The  first  two  generations  of  Pokémon  featured  a  story  arc  revolving  around  
the  rise  and  fall  of  Team  Rocket,  a  terrorist  organization  that  exploited  
Pokémon  for  profit.  Though  this  arc  concluded  with  Team  Rocket's  second  
dissolution  by  Archer,  one  final  thread  was  let  loose  by  a  Unovan  grunt  that  
attempted  to  shut  down  the  Kanto  Power  Plant  before  returning  to  his  home  
region  to  reform  Team  Rocket  again;  this  thread  (and  by  extent,  the  Team  
Rocket  arc)  would  finally  be  tied  up  in  Pokémon  Black  and  White,  which  
revealed  that  the  grunt  ended  up  falling  in  love  and  abandoning  the  last  
vestige  of  Team  Rocket  to  start  a  family.  
• While  most  Monster  Hunter  games  have  a  single  story  through  the  quests  and  
rank  chapters,  the  G  expansions  (Monster  Hunter  G  /  Freedom,  Freedom  
Unite,  3  Ultimate,  4  Ultimate  and  Generations  Ultimate)  have  at  least  two:  The  
original  story  of  the  games  they're  expanding  upon,  and  their  own  arc  that  is  
spanned  through  the  added  High  Rank  quests.  For  example,  3  Ultimate  starts  
with  the  original  story  of  Tri  about  finding  and  defeating  Lagiacrus  to  get  rid  
of  the  earthquakes  (and  later  Ceadeus  when  it  is  revealed  to  be  the  true  
responsible),  then  continues  with  the  quest  for  the  Ultimate  Mask  and  how  to  
give  back  its  power;  4  Ultimatestarts  with  the  original  story  of  4  about  
chasing  Gore  Magala  and  stopping  its  spread  of  the  Frenzy  Virus  (for  which  
Gore's  evolved  form,  Shagaru  Magala,  has  to  be  defeated  as  well),  then  adds  
the  new  story  of  Dundorma  and  its  hunters  continuously  stopping  the  attacks  
of  Kushala  Daora.  And  so  on.  
• The  massive  The  Elder  Scrolls  V:  Skyrim  Game  Mod  project,  Beyond  Skyrim,  
has  announced  that  the  different  storylines  will  be  structured  as  such,  with  
each  different  region  of  their  rendition  of  Tamriel  featuring  a  main  quest  line  
 of  their  own,  though  the  different  main  quest  lines  might  occasionally  
acknowledge  the  others  with  a  reference  here  and  there.  
• The  chronology  of  Metroid  is  divided  into  four  arcs:  The  original  story  where  
Samus  storms  the  base  of  the  Space  Pirates  in  Zebes  (Metroid  1  /  Zero  
Mission),  the  Phazon  incident  (the  Metroid  Prime  Trilogy  sub-­‐series),  the  
story  where  Samus  has  to  exterminate  all  Metroids  except  the  one  she  spared  
and  then  rescue  it  from  the  Pirates  (Return  of  Samus  /  Samus  
Returns  and  Super  Metroid),  and  the  story  telling  the  consequences  of  the  
Metroids'  near-­‐extinction  plus  the  dubious  ethics  of  the  Galactic  Federation  
(Other  Mand  Fusion).  
       Webcomics    
• The  Bug  Pond  has  the  Masquerade  Mayhem  story  arc.  
• Both  Dragon  City  and  Jix  both  started  off  as  a  gag-­‐a-­‐day  strips,  despite  
having  an  ongoing  story,  but  both  became  arc  based.  This  is  because  the  
writer  has  a  hard  time  writing  jokes  without  having  a  story  in  place  to  joke  
about.  
• Girl  Genius:  
o The  webcomic  has  overarching  arcs  that  have  not  concluded  after  14  
years  (finding  out  what  happened  to  the  Other  and  defeating  her),  
arcs  that  have  only  just  started  to  wrap  up  but  have  left  more  
questions  (the  apparition  in  the  first  few  pages)  and  arcs  that  seem  
like  they're  going  to  take  a  while  to  wrap  up  but  have  only  just  begun  
(the  timestop),  location-­‐based  arcs  that  generally  take  a  year  to  three  
(Beetleburg,  Castle  Wulfenbach,  the  circus,  Sturmhalten,  
Mechanicsburg  pre-­‐Castle,  Castle  Heterodyne,  Mechanicsburg  post-­‐
Castle,  the  train,  Paris,  and  underground  in  Paris),  and  smaller  arcs  
within  each  of  those  that  focus  on  solving  a  particular  problem  (the  Si  
Vales  Valeo  arc,  fighting  the  wasps).  Then  there's  the  radio  theater  
breaks  and  the  short  stories.  
o The  first  page  of  Girl  Genius  was  posted  in  2002,  and  it  has  updated  
three  times  per  week  ever  since.  The  fourteenth  volume  began  in  
2014  and  is  entitled  Act  Two:  Book  One.  It's  going  to  go  on  for  a  
while.  
• Everything  except  filler  in  El  Goonish  Shive.  Also  has  a  Myth  Arc,  though  it  has  
spent  the  past  few  years  lurking  in  the  background.  
• Grim  Trigger  is  separated  into  arcs,  and  each  arc  has  its  own  cover  and  music  
sequence  that  plays  in  the  beginning  of  the  book.  
• In  the  tradition  of  old-­‐style  Newspaper  Comics  serials  (the  author/narrator  
has  mentioned  a  fondness  for  Lee  Falk's  catchphrase,  "Next—New  
Adventure!"),  the  story  arcs  in  The  Inexplicable  Adventures  of  Bob!  each  have  
a  clear  beginning  and  ending,  usually  with  a  couple  of  stand-­‐alone  strips  in  
between  arcs.  These  arcs  run  for  months,  although  they  usually  only  cover  a  
day  or  two  in-­‐universe.  
• Living  with  Insanity  used  to  be  a  comic  strip  with  the  occasional  story  arc,  but  
now  is  mostly  story  arcs.  
 • The  Packrat  had  only  one  Story  Arc  so  far,  and  that  was  the  time  travel  story  
from  January  2011  to  February  2012.  
• You'd  be  hard  pressed  to  find  a  Sluggy  Freelance  strip  that  doesn't  lead  up  to  
or  follow  up  on  another  strip.  Most  of  them  do  both.  Even  if  you  counted  sub-­‐
chapters  (technically  called  stories,  so  calling  them  arcs  as  well  is  a  bit  
redundant)  or  even  chapters  for  "episodes",  there  are  still  storylines  arcing  
over  those,  up  to  Myth  Arc  level.  Even  the  Filler  Strips  often  come  in  series  
(of  stories,  not  just  strips):  The  Return  of  Stick-­‐Figure  Week!  
• Stand  Still,  Stay  Silent:  The  first  arc/adventure  took  a  couple  months  short  of  
five  years  to  be  completed,  and  is  to  be  followed  by  a  second  one.  
       Web  Original    
• Animated  Critic  is  an  unusual  case  as  most  review  blogs  don't  have  ongoing  
story  arcs.  Currently  he  has  3  
o The  Kevin  Arc  in  which  a  mysterious  being  named  Kevin  comes  on  to  
the  blog  and  starts  to  form  a  friendship  with  Evan.  This  one  has  been  
completed.  
o Revenge  From  The  Past  Arc  in  which  a  person  from  Evan's  past  vows  
revenge  on  him.  This  one  is  still  ongoing.  
o The  Ghist  Boy  Arc  in  which  Evan  gets  a  mysterious  box  from  his  
grandma  and  meets  the  ghost  of  a  boy  who  could  be  related  to  him.  
• Board  James  has  one  in  season  3  which  was  propelled  by  the  season  2  Dream  
Phone  episode.  
• The  web  fiction  serial  Dimension  Heroes  has  an  ongoing  story  arc,  broken  up  
into  several  smaller  books.  
• The  Epic  Tales  series  Shadow  Hawk  has  an  ongoing  arc  about  Shadow  Hawk  
wanting  to  get  revenge  on  the  Shapeshifter,  who  killed  his  father.  It  also  has  a  
subplot  arc  about  how  he  got  a  girl  pregnant  in  the  first  story.  
• The  website  Neopets  has  featured  several,  called  plots.  Some  plots  still  
remain  as  webcomics  on  the  site.  
• Each  'chapter'  of  The  Mad  Scientist  Wars  is  usually  a  self  contained  storyline-­‐  
but  as  the  gae  has  been  going  on,  more  and  more  storylines  will  run  
somewhat  through  other  chapter.  For  instance,  'Chic's  Family'  has  been  going  
on  since  the  Mad  Sci  Con  chapter.  
• Atop  the  Fourth  Wall  has  had  these  ever  since  Mechakara's  introduction.  
• The  Nostalgia  Critic's  had  a  long-­‐running,  slightly  Yo  Yo  Plot  Point  one  about  
his  love/hate  relationship  with  his  job.  
• The  Nostalgia  Chick's  had  a  few,  the  most  obvious  being  the  Dark  Nella  Saga.  
• Demo  Reel  had  Donnie's  Dark  and  Troubled  Past,  a  SWAG  leader  wanting  to  
destroy  the  production  team  and  general  learning-­‐from-­‐your-­‐mistakes.  
• Although  the  setting  in  We  Are  Our  Avatars  is  easily  changed  with  some  
effective  roleplaying,  some  longer  arcs  have  been  implemented.  After  the  
move  to  Role-­‐playing,  there's  always  been  one.  
o Also,  an  Alternate  Universe  resolution  to  the  final  conflict  of  Magical  
Girl  Lyrical  Nanoha  Striker  S  tied  in  to  Mapi's  Mega  Crossover  fanfic.  
o A  truly  epic  arc  concerning  vampires,  which  began  with  the  
introduction  of  an  Alternate  Universe  Future  Badass  version  of  
 Flandre  Scarlet  and  came  to  its  conclusion  with  the  defeat  of  none  
other  than  The  Lord  of  Evil,  Dracula  himself.  The  more  over-­‐arcing  
Are  machines  sentient?  arc,  began  with  the  freeing  of  Dee  and  her  
sister  Bit.  
o One  of  the  largest  involved  Father's  attempts  to  remake  the  
multiverse,  and  destroy  the  Fourth  Wall.  
o Anyone  who  wants  to  can  usually  kick  off  an  arc,  and  several  plots  
sometimes  run  at  once.  Fortunately,  this  doesn't  seem  to  have  become  
too  confusing.  
• Pokemon  Digimon  Mon  Wars  is  divided  into  three  arcs  so  far;  
o Orange  Islands  Arc:  Based  on  the  Filler  Arc  and  Pokemon  2000  from  
the  Pokémon  anime  
o Myotismon  Arc:  A  variation  of  Myotismon's  invasion  of  Tokyo,  but  
instead  on  a  large  chunk  of  kanto  
o Dark  Masters  Arc:  Current  arc,  with  the  Dark  Masters  merging  the  
digital  world  with  Johto  and  Orre  into  Spiral  Mountain  
• We  Are  All  Pokémon  Trainers  has  numerous  arcs  brought  into  several  sagas:  
o J-­‐Team  Assemble  Saga:  The  assemblage  of  the  J-­‐Team  and  its  
codification  as  a  concept,  consisting  of  the  Sinnoh,  PMD-­‐1,  Unova-­‐1,  
Ranger,  and  Gold  Conference  Arcs.  
o Upheaval  Saga:  The  AU  Arc.  
o Aftershock  Saga:  Dealing  with  the  aftermath  of  the  AU  and  consisting  
of  the  OI,  Hoenn,  and  Infinity  Keystone  and  Kanjoh-­‐1  arcs.  
o Paths  Saga:  The  PMD-­‐R  and  Kanjoh-­‐2  arcs,  taking  place  partially  
concurrently.  
o Cipher  Saga:  The  J-­‐Team's  fight  against  Cipher,  consisting  of  the  
Unova-­‐2,  Holonquest,  and  Orre  arcs.  
• RWBY  goes  through  several  short  arcs  each  season,  with  a  larger  arc  always  
on  the  backburner  that  comes  into  play  for  the  season  finale.  Season  1  had  
the  Beacon  initiation  ritual  (episodes  1-­‐8),  Ruby  and  Weiss's  rivalry  (9-­‐10),  
Jaune's  bully  problems  (11-­‐14),  and  Blake  running  away  because  her  team  
finds  out  she's  a  Faunus  (15-­‐16),  with  the  overall  arc  being  Roman  
Torchwick's  mysterious  crime  spree.  Season  2  had  Team  RWBY  hunting  
down  Roman  (episodes  1-­‐4),  the  Beacon  Dance  and  Blake's  health  problems  
(5-­‐7),  and  the  team's  mission  to  Mountain  Glenn  (8-­‐12),  with  the  overall  arc  
being  Cinder's  infiltration  of  Beacon.  
       Western  Animation    
• At  first  glance,  Adventure  Time  appears  to  deal  almost  exclusively  in  goofy  
one-­‐off  episodes  —  but  within  that  format  are  multiple  complex  arcs.  Many  
relate  to  the  origins/histories  of  Ooo  and  its  different  inhabitants,  but  their  
ongoing  relationships  and  possible  destinies  have  become  more  dominant  
since  the  end  of  season  three  (which  introduced  the  show's  first  real  villain,  
the  Lich).  The  show  also  makes  prominent  use  of  returning  buses,  and  just  
about  everything  is  guaranteed  to  become  a  Rewatch  Bonus  at  some  point.  
• American  Dad!  has  several:  
 o The  infamous  "Golden  Turd"  saga,  which  was  seen  in  "Homeland  
Insecurity",  "Failure  is  Not  a  Factory-­‐Installed  Option"  and  
"Blagsnarst:  A  Love  Story".  
o Then  there's  the  arc  about  Hayley's  relationship  with  Reginald  the  
koala.  
o Another  began  when  Roger  tricked  Jeff  into  being  carried  off  into  
space  at  the  end  of  "Naked  to  the  Limit,  One  More  Time",  which  led  to  
Hayley  coming  to  terms  with  his  loss  in  "Spelling  Bee  My  Baby"  and  
"The  Missing  Kink"  before  we  focus  on  Jeff's  attempts  to  return  to  
Earth  in  "Lost  in  Space"  and  "The  Longest  Distance  Relationship".  He  
finally  returns  in  "Holy  Shit!  Jeff's's  Back!".  
• Avatar:  The  Last  Airbender's  Myth  Arc  is  divided  by  three  seasons,  which  are  
titled  "books".  Book  1  is  Water,  Book  2  is  Earth,  and  Book  3  is  Fire.  As  the  
names  suggest,  each  arc  deals  heavily  with  Aang  mastering  the  elements  
involved.  Also,  while  Book  1  was  more  or  less  one  whole  arc,  each  half  of  
Book  2  and  Book  3  could  be  divided  into  arcs:  the  Earthbending  Training  arc,  
the  Ba  Sing  Se  arc,  the  pre-­‐Solar  Eclipse  Invasion  arc,  and  the  pre-­‐Sozin's  
Comet  /  Firebending  Training  arc.  
• Though  Batman:  The  Brave  and  the  Bold  mostly  uses  stand  alone  stories,  they  
do  occasionally  throw  in  hints  of  story  arcs,  such  as  Equinox,  the  Starro  story  
arc  and  the  arrival  of  Darkseid.  
• The  Deep  has  the  Nekton  family  searching  for  a  sunken  city  known  as  
Lemuria.  
• Defenders  of  the  Earth  has  three  five-­‐part  story  arcs  among  its  sixty-­‐five  
episodes:  
o In  the  "Book  of  Enigmas"  arc,  Kshin  finds  a  mysterious  Book  (whose  
pages  constantly  change)  in  Mandrake's  library.  Over  the  next  few  
episodes,  the  Book  helps  Kshin  to  solve  a  number  of  mysteries,  before  
it  is  eventually  revealed  that  it  is  really  a  being  from  another  
dimension  who  was  turned  into  the  Book  and  banished  to  Earth.  
o In  the  "Prince  Kro-­‐Tan"  arc,  Ming  is  overthrown  by  his  own  son,  who  
"moleculises"  his  father  and  seizes  power  for  himself.  But  Kro-­‐Tan  is  
unaware  that  he  is  being  manipulated  by  Suramong,  a  former  
Overlord  of  Mongo,  who  needs  Ming's  molecules  in  order  to  regain  his  
full  power.  In  the  end,  the  only  way  the  Defenders  can  stop  Suramong  
is  to  reconstitute  Ming.  
o In  the  "Necklace  of  Oros"  arc,  Graviton,  an  evil  being  from  another  
universe,  manipulates  Jedda  into  taking  the  Necklace  he  once  used  to  
rule  his  universe  from  the  treasure  room  in  the  Skull  Cave,  where  it  
has  lain  since  a  rebel  from  Graviton's  universe  entrusted  it  to  the  first  
Phantom.  Over  the  next  few  episodes,  the  Defenders  fight  to  protect  
Jedda  from  Graviton.  But  Ming  also  wants  the  Necklace,  as  does  
Hadea,  the  Queen  of  the  Netherworld,  and  Jedda  eventually  decides  
the  Necklace's  powers  are  too  great.  
• The  first  season  of  the  Dilbert  animated  series  had  a  story  arc  regarding  the  
company's  new  flagship  product:  The  Gruntmaster  3000.  It  covered  things  
 such  as  producing,  marketing,  and  site-­‐testing.  The  story  was  frequently  
broken  up  with  non-­‐arc  episodes.  
• Exo  Squad  had  not  only  the  primary  story  arc  (the  struggle  between  the  
Terrans  and  the  Neo  Sapiens),  but  it  was  also  broken  into  smaller  four  or  five  
episode  long  mini  arcs,  with  the  action  typically  focusing  on  a  particular  
theater  of  the  war.  On  the  DVD  release,  each  mini-­‐arc  gets  its  own  name  in  
addition  to  the  episode  titles.  
• In  Family  Guy,  Peter's  cut-­‐away-­‐battles  with  the  giant  chicken  eventually  
form  an  arc,  of  sorts.  
o In  the  most  recent  season,  a  three-­‐week  story  arc  was  made  that  
centered  around  Brian  getting  kicked  out  of  the  house  and  forced  to  
live  on  his  own  after  he  writes  a  racist  comment  on  Twitter  and  
becomes  the  most  hated  person  in  town.  
• The  Flintstones:  The  third  season  had  an  arc  involving  Fred  and  Wilma  having  
a  baby  duaghter  and  adjusting  to  parenthood.  
• Gargoyles  had  a  subtle  arc  about  Brooklyn's  coming  of  age  that  became  a  
flaring  beacon  of  story  awesomeness  in  the  episode,  "Kingdom,"  when  you  
realize  this  is  what  the  previous  Brooklyn  stories  have  been  building  toward.  
Also,  there  are  multi-­‐episode  arcs  that  are  more  blatant,  most  infamously  the  
"Avalon  World  Tour".  
• Gravity  Falls  has  its  second  season  consist  of  three  story  arcs.  The  first  eleven  
episodes  have  the  twins  attempting  to  discover  the  identity  of  the  Author  
of  the  Journals.  The  next  six  episodes  deal  with  the  aftermath  of  that  story  
arc's  conclusion  as  Dipper  and  the  Author  must  prevent  Bill  Cipher  from  
gaining  access  to  a  dimensional  rift  that  would  allow  him  to  connect  our  
world  with  his  own.  And  the  final  three  episodes  of  the  series,  collectively  
titled  Weirdmageddon,  have  the  main  characters  attempt  to  save  the  world  
after  Bill  successfully  gets  the  aforementioned  rift.  
• Green  Lantern:  The  Animated  Series  had  about  two  major  story  arcs.  The  first  
thirteen  episodes  dealt  with  the  Interceptor's  efforts  to  stop  the  Red  Lanterns  
led  by  Atrocitus  from  crossing  into  Guardian  Space  and  waging  total  war.  The  
second  arc  had  the  heroes  pitted  against  the  Anti-­‐Monitor,  until  Aya  pulled  
a  Face–Heel  Turn  halfway  through  and  took  over  as  the  Aya-­‐Monitor  for  the  
remainder  of  the  series.  
• Inspector  Gadget's  second  season  switched  format  from  stand-­‐alone  episodes  
to  three-­‐part  arcs,  usually  involving  Arc  Villains  who  continually  evaded  
justice.  
• Iron  Man:  Armored  Adventures,  in  addition  to  its  main  Myth  Arc,  features  
other  story  arcs,  usually  following  a  specific  character  over  the  course  of  the  
show  (for  example,  the  Living  Laser's  origin  and  him  figuring  out  what  to  do  
with  his  new  powers  and  then  his  eventual  downfall).  These  story  arcs  also  
end  up  combining  and  become  more  narrow  as  the  show  goes  on  (The  Living  
Laser  story  arc  ends  up  fusing  with  the  A.I.M  story  arc  later  on).  
• Jackie  Chan  Adventures  and  its  seasonal  arcs.  
o Season  One:  The  search  for  Shendu's  talismans.  
o Season  Two:  Defeating  Shendu's  demon  siblings.  
 o Season  Three:  Finding  the  animals  with  the  talismans'  powers.  
o Season  Four:  Finding  the  Shadowkhan  masks.  
o Season  Five:  The  search  for  the  chi  of  the  demon  sorcerers.  
• Justice  League  Unlimited  had  one  in  the  second  season,  dealing  with  the  fight  
between  the  League  and  Project  Cadmus,  and  another  in  the  third  season  
focusing  on  the  Secret  Society/Legion  of  Doom.  
• My  Little  Pony:  Friendship  Is  Magic:  
o The  first  season  has  a  loose  arc  about  the  Mane  Six  preparing  for  the  
Grand  Galloping  Gala,  culminating  in  them  attending  it  in  the  season  
finale.  It's  only  mentioned  in  about  three  or  four  episodes  total  in  the  
season,  but  that's  still  more  acknowledged  continuity  than  the  show  
normally  has.  
o Season  3  begins  featuring  an  arc  concerning  the  Equestria  Games  
that's  continued  into  the  fourth  season,  with  a  few  episodes  featuring  
the  cast  preparing  for  it.  
o At  the  end  of  the  Season  4  premiere,  the  Mane  Six  receive  a  
mysterious  box  from  the  Tree  of  Harmony  after  giving  up  the  
Elements  of  Harmony  with  six  keyholes  in  it.  Then,  over  the  course  of  
the  season,  each  of  them  minus  Twilight  has  at  least  one  focus  episode  
that  ends  with  them  receiving  a  gift  that  gives  off  a  rainbow  glow.  The  
season  finale  reveals  that  these  are  the  keys  in  disguise,  with  Twilight  
receiving  hers  just  in  time  to  open  the  box  and  use  its  
contents  (the  Rainbow  Power)  to  defeat  the  finale's  Big  Bad,  Lord  
Tirek.  
o Season  7  tells  the  various  legends  of  the  "Pillars  of  [Old]  Equestria",  
the  Precursor  Hero  group  to  the  Elements  of  Harmony.  It  culminates  
in  the  season  finale  where  the  heroes  investigate  why  they  
disappeared  from  Equestria.  
o Season  8  is  almost  entirely  built  around  the  Mane  Six  opening  and  
running  a  School  of  Friendship.  Even  episodes  not  directly  involved  in  
this  tend  to  still  reference  it  in  some  way.  
• Scooby-­‐Doo:  
o The  13  Ghosts  of  Scooby-­‐Doo  has  Scooby,  Shaggy,  Daphne,  Scrappy  and  
newcomer  Flim  Flam  charged  with  returning  13  ghosts  to  a  chest  of  
demons,  unfortunately  it  ended  prematurely  after  only  thirteen  
episodes  and  only  11  ghosts  returned.  
o Scooby-­‐Doo!  Mystery  Incorporated  has  the  gang  unraveling  the  
mystery  of  a  cursed  treasure  and  has  since  uncovered  the  
whereabouts  of  the  previous  Mystery  Inc.  gang.  
• The  Secret  Saturdays  has  this:  
o Season  One:  The  Kur  Stone  Puzzle  
o Season  Two:  Finding  Kur  
o Season  Three:  Zak  IS  Kur  
• The  second  season  of  Sonic  Sat  AM  started  off  more  continuity-­‐based  to  begin  
with,  then  kicked  into  full-­‐on,  development-­‐a-­‐week  arc  mode  with  the  launch  
of  the  Doomsday  Project.  
• South  Park  has  had  several  story  arcs  along  with  multi-­‐part  episodes.  
o Season  3  brought  a  three-­‐part  story  arc  often  called  "The  Meteor  
Shower  Trilogy",  in  which  each  episode  was  a  separate  story  about  
different  members  of  the  main  cast  which  all  take  place  on  the  same  
night.  
o A  three-­‐part  mini-­‐arc  in  Season  4  involved  Mr.  Garrison  coming  out  of  
the  closet.  
o An  arc  lasting  through  the  entirety  of  Season  6  involved  the  absence  of  
Kenny  after  he  was  (temporarily)  Killed  Off  for  Real  the  previous  
season,  and  the  boys'  attempts  to  replace  him.  
o Season  19  has  the  town  attempting  to  gentrify  itself,  contrasting  the  
noble,  politically-­‐correct  posturing  of  its  residents  with  their  still-­‐
clueless  and  selfish  mindsets.  
o Season  20  is  an  attack  on  the  Nostalgia  Filter  trope  and  presents  the  
destructive  effects  of  unchecked  nostalgia  (referencing  both  and  the  
backwards-­‐facing  fervor  that  fueled  Donald  Trump's  presidential  
campaign  and  overabundance  of  sequels  and  reboots  in  The  New  
'10s).  
• The  Spectacular  Spider-­‐Man  has  four  story  arcs  per  season  (with  one  arc  
having  four  episodes  and  the  rest  having  three).  Each  episode  in  an  arc  has  
a  Theme  Naming  title.  
• Spider-­‐Man  (1981)  had  a  story  arc,  stretched  across  five  episodes,  
surrounding  Doctor  Doom's  attempts  to  conquer  the  world  and  the  
developing  situation  in  his  home  country  of  Latveria.  
• Though  his  higher-­‐ups  demanded  a  strictly  Merchandise-­‐Driven  series,  story  
editor  John  Semper  managed  to  "sneak  in"  overarching  storylines  and  
development  into  Spider-­‐Man:  The  Animated  Series.  Naming  each  season  and  
referring  to  episodes  as  "chapters"  probably  didn't  hurt.  By  the  time  they  
realized  what  he  had  done,  and  despite  limited  animation  and  extremely  
restrictive  censorship,  the  show  had  become  the  #1  cartoon  in  America.  
Nonetheless,  they  still  didn't  let  him  join  in  on  the  Spider-­‐Man  
Unlimited  spinoff,  which  was  primarily  stand-­‐alone  format  and  petered  out  
after  barely  reaching  13  episodes.  
• Star  vs.  the  Forces  of  Evil  has  an  arc  about  a  Government  Conspiracy  to  hide  
the  existence  of  Queen  Eclipsa's  illegitimate,  half-­‐monster  daughter,  who  
grew  up  to  become  Miss  Heinous,  as  well  as  Heinous'  rediscovery  of  her  
monstrous  heritage  and  plot  to  take  over  Mewni.  
• Star  Wars:  The  Clone  Wars  has  many  arcs,  the  most  prominent  being  the  
Mandalore/Shadow  Conspiracy  saga,  involving  among  other  things  the  
return  of  Darth  Maul,  who  had  been  presumed  dead.  
• Steven  Universe  often  premieres  new  episodes  in  week-­‐long  events  called  
"Steven  Bombs"  that  form  mini-­‐arcs  that  either  concern  the  
overarching  Myth  Arc  or  character  relationships,  such  as  the  first  one  dealing  
with  the  oncoming  approach  of  Homeworld  Gems  or  the  third  one  dealing  
with  a  loss  of  trust  within  the  team  after  it's  discovered  that  Pearl  has  been  
manipulating  Garnet.  
 • Each  Teen  Titans  season  has  an  overarching  plotline,  related  to  one  of  the  
core  characters:  
o Season  One  focuses  on  Robin,  with  Slade  as  the  Big  Bad;  the  story  is  
mostly  about  how  the  two  characters  are  and  aren't  Not  So  Different.  
o Season  Two  focuses  on  Beast  Boy  and  more  so  on  Sixth  Ranger  
Traitor  Terra,  who  is  manipulated  by  Slade  to  become  The  Mole  and  
ultimately  The  Dragon.  
o Season  Three  deals  with  Cyborg  and  his  escalating  enmity  
with  Brother  Blood,  who  has  stolen  and  abused  Cyborg's  own  
technology.  
o Season  Four  is  about  Raven  and  her  attempts  to  avert  her  destiny-­‐  
opening  a  portal  to  allow  her  demonic  father  Trigon  the  chance  to  
escape  his  can  and  conquer  the  universe.  
o Season  Five  focuses  on  the  team  as  a  whole  and  their  efforts  to  
stop  the  Brotherhood  of  Evil  from  wiping  out  a  generation  of  
superheroes.  
• Each  season  of  the  Total  Drama  series  is  essentially  this,  with  a  different  cast  
lineup,  elimination  order,  and  winner  in  each  one.  
• Transformers:  
o Beast  Wars  had  arcs  a-­‐plenty.  The  first  season  often  leaving  a  viewer  
wondering  What  Happened  to  the  Mouse?,  until,  several  episodes  
later,  just  when  they'd  almost  forgotten,  it  was  revealed.  The  second  
and  third  seasons,  however,  are  more  serialized.  Skip  an  episode,  and  
you'll  miss  at  least  one  thing  that's  worth  knowing  later.  You  won't  be  
left  completely  hanging,  but  you  won't  get  what's  going  on  as  well  as  a  
more  devoted  viewer,  either.  
o Beast  Machines  has  some  of  the  strongest  continuity  of  any  cartoon  
ever  aired.  The  whole  thing  is  a  series  of  Arcs.  
o Transformers  Animated  follows  arc  structure  as  well,  with  Season  1  
focusing  on  Megatron's  attempts  to  rebuild  his  body  (with  his  
eventual  success  covered  in  the  finale),  and  Season  2  dealing  with  the  
Decepticons'  plot  to  build  a  space  bridge  to  Cybertron.  Season  3  is  a  
bit  more  fluid,  possibly  because  a  lot  of  loose  ends  are  getting  tied  up.  
• The  first  season  of  Tangled:  The  Series  consists  of  an  overarching  arc  where  
Rapunzel  has  to  solve  a  mystery  of  strange  rock  spires  popping  out  of  
nowhere,  and  the  reappearance  of  her  long,  golden  hair.  
• The  X-­‐Men  cartoon  of  the  90s  did  this  as  well,  going  through  a  number  of  arcs  
that  were  featured  in  the  comic  books,  including  the  Phoenix  and  Dark  
Phoenix  sagas.