Post by Captain Jerk on Feb 22, 2021 13:13:20 GMT -7
Hello.
For episodic shows, people often pick an episode other then the first one to get people into the show, usually because the first episode is weak or has early installment weirdness.
Dan Vs is no exception. Whether you call Dan Vs The Wolf-Man the first episode or you call Dan Vs New Mexico the first episode, either way, alot of people seem to think those aren't the best intro episodes. I've seen people give various suggestions on what is the best intro episode, so let's lay down some data points and try to figure this out.
A good intro episode should show you the series at it's most typical, the most normal of normal for the series.
So, in decreasing order of importance.
1. No continuity relevant or multi-arc episodes.
2. No episodes that introduce recurring characters that aren't common.
3. In a series this short, we should stick to Season 1.
4. Dan wins 9 times out of 10.
5. Dan and Chris are usually together for most of the episode and are the main focus.
6. Dan and Chris usually have alot of scenes driving the car together and talking, so the episode should have those.
7. Episodes usually feature a variety of locations, so the episode shouldn't be locked to one place.
8. Elise has a subplot involving her spy work that loosely connects to Dan and Chris in some way.
9. Strong villain
10. It should be good. (that should probably be higher, but Season 1 at worst is only subpar, the only solidly bad episodes are in S2 and S3)
So, let's go down the list with Season 1.
We can eliminate Dan Vs Dan and Burgerphile in step 1. Both of those are part of multipart arcs.
Step 2 eliminates Dan Vs The Animal Shelter and Elise's Parents, as they both introduce recurring characters. We can also nab Family Camping Trip for breaking both rules.
We already followed 3.
Step 4 knocks out Traffic (Dan loses) and Barber (Inconclusive mixed results), not to mention Dan having a love interest is somewhat rare so Barber's out either way.
Step 5 is VEY helpful, we can knock off a few. Even if you allowed in Animal Shelter on the prior one it would definitely get bit here since Chris being comatose is not the norm. We can also eliminate Dinner Theatre (Dan is mostly on his own), Salvation Armed Forces (Same reason), George Washington (mostly with Elise), and Fancy Restuarant (mostly with the dungeon folk). Burgerphile WOULD also qualify here if we hadn't eliminated it before.
This only leaves half the season. Wolfman, New Mexico, The Ninja, The Dentist, Canada, Baseball, The Beach, Technology, Art, The Magician, and Lemonade Stand Gang.
Magician and Lemonade Stand Gang were voted the two worst episodes of the Season, so I'm just gonna cut them now, and neither of them had major car scenes so they're lacking there. Art also doesn't have major car scenes(which are a stable in the series), and while I'd probably leave it in if that was the only issue, it ALSO has a terrible villain and that weird hobo guy, so It's not a good example.
Location diversity isn't really a problem for any of these, so we're good there.
The Ninja is really Elise centric, probably moreso then anything else int he series, and it has a version of her backstory that doesn't really get used again, so I'm jsut gonna put that here.
The Wolf-Man, New Mexico, The Dentist, Canada, Baseball, The Beach, Technology.
That is all that is left, and from here it gets a bit tricky.
Canada has alot of midrange values, but the bear stuff is weirder then the series normal, honestly alot of scenes drag, there's no strong villain(the woodsman is dead), and Elise is essentially not in it. I know some people don't LIKE Elise, that's probably why Enter suggested it, but this ain't it for me chief,
There are two main factors left to consider. How they handle Elise, and how good the villain is. Of course, there are also minor factors to consider. Let's call these the final seven.
Anyway
Elise wise, New Mexico uses the older, poorly explained 'Ninja variation" of Elise that kinda gets tossed aside, and most of the rest don't have an Elise sideplot, leaving Technology and Baseball as the finalists. But, Technology is actually significantly MORE Elise centric then most episodes, which eliminates that, so by THIS method, It's Dan Vs Baseball.
By the villain method, again, most of them have pretty weak villains except for The Dentist and Technology, and again, same time breaker as last time, The Dentist wins.
So Baseball is ahead in one method, Dentist in another, and Technology is a double runner up. What to do?
Now, I personally say Dan Vs Baseball edges out the other two. Technology is alot more Elise focused then normal, and The Dentist, along with lacking a Elise subplot, has a bit of early installment weirdness, the dentist being a blatant supervillain is a bit....much, it's more extreme then the series would normally go.
Baseball doesn't really have a villain (the Commissioner turns out to be a reasonable guy), but other then that it's pretty much perfect. Dan and Chris are together the whole episode, there are several extended car talk scenes, the comedy is solid, it's early on, it's part of the original 9 episode batch, and Elise, this episode is the DEFINITIVE Elise episode that introduces her CURRENT useage. No vague 'ninja shit', she's on a secret agent mission with her current outfit that is MOSTLY self contained, but DOES crossover with Dan and Chris.
And as for the villain issue, to be honest, Season 1 was lacking in villains alot, Dentist is almost the exception that proves the rule. It isn't until Season 2 and 3 that strong villains become the norm.
Hence, Baseball is the best introduction episode of the series. It simply wins overall by logic.
For episodic shows, people often pick an episode other then the first one to get people into the show, usually because the first episode is weak or has early installment weirdness.
Dan Vs is no exception. Whether you call Dan Vs The Wolf-Man the first episode or you call Dan Vs New Mexico the first episode, either way, alot of people seem to think those aren't the best intro episodes. I've seen people give various suggestions on what is the best intro episode, so let's lay down some data points and try to figure this out.
A good intro episode should show you the series at it's most typical, the most normal of normal for the series.
So, in decreasing order of importance.
1. No continuity relevant or multi-arc episodes.
2. No episodes that introduce recurring characters that aren't common.
3. In a series this short, we should stick to Season 1.
4. Dan wins 9 times out of 10.
5. Dan and Chris are usually together for most of the episode and are the main focus.
6. Dan and Chris usually have alot of scenes driving the car together and talking, so the episode should have those.
7. Episodes usually feature a variety of locations, so the episode shouldn't be locked to one place.
8. Elise has a subplot involving her spy work that loosely connects to Dan and Chris in some way.
9. Strong villain
10. It should be good. (that should probably be higher, but Season 1 at worst is only subpar, the only solidly bad episodes are in S2 and S3)
So, let's go down the list with Season 1.
We can eliminate Dan Vs Dan and Burgerphile in step 1. Both of those are part of multipart arcs.
Step 2 eliminates Dan Vs The Animal Shelter and Elise's Parents, as they both introduce recurring characters. We can also nab Family Camping Trip for breaking both rules.
We already followed 3.
Step 4 knocks out Traffic (Dan loses) and Barber (Inconclusive mixed results), not to mention Dan having a love interest is somewhat rare so Barber's out either way.
Step 5 is VEY helpful, we can knock off a few. Even if you allowed in Animal Shelter on the prior one it would definitely get bit here since Chris being comatose is not the norm. We can also eliminate Dinner Theatre (Dan is mostly on his own), Salvation Armed Forces (Same reason), George Washington (mostly with Elise), and Fancy Restuarant (mostly with the dungeon folk). Burgerphile WOULD also qualify here if we hadn't eliminated it before.
This only leaves half the season. Wolfman, New Mexico, The Ninja, The Dentist, Canada, Baseball, The Beach, Technology, Art, The Magician, and Lemonade Stand Gang.
Magician and Lemonade Stand Gang were voted the two worst episodes of the Season, so I'm just gonna cut them now, and neither of them had major car scenes so they're lacking there. Art also doesn't have major car scenes(which are a stable in the series), and while I'd probably leave it in if that was the only issue, it ALSO has a terrible villain and that weird hobo guy, so It's not a good example.
Location diversity isn't really a problem for any of these, so we're good there.
The Ninja is really Elise centric, probably moreso then anything else int he series, and it has a version of her backstory that doesn't really get used again, so I'm jsut gonna put that here.
The Wolf-Man, New Mexico, The Dentist, Canada, Baseball, The Beach, Technology.
That is all that is left, and from here it gets a bit tricky.
Canada has alot of midrange values, but the bear stuff is weirder then the series normal, honestly alot of scenes drag, there's no strong villain(the woodsman is dead), and Elise is essentially not in it. I know some people don't LIKE Elise, that's probably why Enter suggested it, but this ain't it for me chief,
There are two main factors left to consider. How they handle Elise, and how good the villain is. Of course, there are also minor factors to consider. Let's call these the final seven.
Anyway
Elise wise, New Mexico uses the older, poorly explained 'Ninja variation" of Elise that kinda gets tossed aside, and most of the rest don't have an Elise sideplot, leaving Technology and Baseball as the finalists. But, Technology is actually significantly MORE Elise centric then most episodes, which eliminates that, so by THIS method, It's Dan Vs Baseball.
By the villain method, again, most of them have pretty weak villains except for The Dentist and Technology, and again, same time breaker as last time, The Dentist wins.
So Baseball is ahead in one method, Dentist in another, and Technology is a double runner up. What to do?
Now, I personally say Dan Vs Baseball edges out the other two. Technology is alot more Elise focused then normal, and The Dentist, along with lacking a Elise subplot, has a bit of early installment weirdness, the dentist being a blatant supervillain is a bit....much, it's more extreme then the series would normally go.
Baseball doesn't really have a villain (the Commissioner turns out to be a reasonable guy), but other then that it's pretty much perfect. Dan and Chris are together the whole episode, there are several extended car talk scenes, the comedy is solid, it's early on, it's part of the original 9 episode batch, and Elise, this episode is the DEFINITIVE Elise episode that introduces her CURRENT useage. No vague 'ninja shit', she's on a secret agent mission with her current outfit that is MOSTLY self contained, but DOES crossover with Dan and Chris.
And as for the villain issue, to be honest, Season 1 was lacking in villains alot, Dentist is almost the exception that proves the rule. It isn't until Season 2 and 3 that strong villains become the norm.
Hence, Baseball is the best introduction episode of the series. It simply wins overall by logic.