Best mystery TV continuity mistakes of all time

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Monk picture

Mr. Monk and the End - Part I - S8-E15

Continuity mistake: In 3-7 "Employee of the Month", Joe Christie says he was with Monk when he got the news of Trudy's death. He said Monk had been laughing, and that he never heard him laugh again. In this episode Monk and Stottlemeyer get called to the scene of a crime, a women's clinic. In this episode there is a flashback to the exact same location years earlier and to Stottlemeyer getting the phone call about Trudy's death. He and Monk were working a case that day and Joe Christie was not present.

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Law & Order: Special Victims Unit picture

Wrath - S3-E2

Continuity mistake: Benson visits Stabler at his home to confronts him about the FBI detail he has ordered to protect her. They talk outside and then Benson is seen walking away. The next shot shows a side shot of Benson approaching him again in silence but mouthing words to him. (00:49:00)

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The Blacklist picture

The Harem (No. 102) - S4-E11

Continuity mistake: Right at the beginning of the episode a Cadillac Escalade gets stolen. The car is the newest model. The chase begins and the car is a new model right up to a scene when they crash into some other cars. That part was filmed with older model Cadillac. The damage is quite severe, but the chase continues again with the new model that has only one bit of damage - a mirror that has come apart.

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Supernatural picture

All Hell Breaks Loose: Part 1 - S2-E21

Continuity mistake: Before the Roadhouse fire, Ash and Dean are talking on the phone. Ash looks at his watch, on his left hand, it says 8:10, and has a black dial/face. As Dean and Bobby go through the rubble, Dean identifies Ash by his watch. Still on his left hand, it is now upside down, evident by the crown of the watch (used to move the hands of the watch) which previously facing his hand, is now facing his elbow. Also, the dial/face of the watch is now silver instead of black. This is a different watch, and was inadvertently put on the burnt arm upside down.

rntracee1

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Dexter picture

Dirty Harry - S4-E5

Continuity mistake: When Dexter listens to Officer Lundy's tape recording, we hear Lundy say that the Trinity killer's weight is 190 to 200 pounds. When we saw him recording that, he said 200 to 220 pounds.

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Bones picture

The Parts in the Sum of the Whole - S5-E16

Continuity mistake: In this episode, Booth and Bones are telling Sweets about their "real first case" together - the case where they actually met for the first time. During this episode, Booth, Bones, and Angela take some evidence to Caroline, and Booth introduces them both (most importantly Brennan) to Caroline. However, in season 1, episode 19, "The Man in the Morgue", (which would have taken place after this initial first meeting) when Brennan is accused of murder in New Orleans, Booth has Caroline fly to NOLA to be Brennan's lawyer, and he introduces the two of them. If they had already been introduced during the first case Booth and Brennan worked on together, they would not have needed to be introduced here; they would have already known one another.

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Sherlock picture Sherlock mistake picture

The Blind Banker - S1-E2

Continuity mistake: When Sherlock is backstage at the circus and finds the yellow spray paint, he draws a line on the mirror. In the next shot, the line he drew is completely different (and in fact is more of a squiggle). (01:07:40)

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Foyle's War picture

Enemy Fire - S3-E2

Continuity mistake: In episode 2-4 "The Funk Hole " which takes place in the fall of 1940, Andrew states to Sam that his mother died when he was eight years old. In this episode (Feb to June 1941), Foyle is looking at his wife's grave; it shows his mother died in 1932, which would have meant Andrew was born in 1924, and only 16 in 1940, far too young to be a Spitfire pilot. Also, his commanding officer states "the younger pilots look up to you, Andrew", before one of the "younger" pilots (age 19) is badly burned in a crash in Andrew's plane.

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White Collar picture

Home Invasion - S1-E11

Continuity mistake: In the scene explaining the history of the missing jade elephants, they are described as being given to ambassadors by the emperor Zhu Di of China when the Forbidden City (in China) was first opened to foreigners in 1421. When the elephants are all brought together, the representative Daichi Yoshida from the Japanese embassy comes to pick them up, describing them as "a priceless piece of our history."

Rachel Weldon

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And Then There Were None picture

Episode #1.3 - S1-E3

Continuity mistake: Vera fires the gun several times, and later tells Justice Wargrave that the gun is empty, meaning that all the cartridges in it would be spent. When the judge loads his one bullet into the chamber, he does so in a gun where all five cartridge svisible are unspent.

Twotall

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Stranger Things picture

Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: When Will is being chased by the monster and runs into his garage, he pulls down his .22 rifle hanging on a wall rack. After he loads a few rounds aiming it at the door, the monster appears behind him. After Will and the monster disappear, the scene shows his rifle is back on the wall rack in its original spot. Did Will or the monster place it back on the wall rack while Will was being abducted? (00:07:25 - 00:08:10)

Dr. Thomas

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Pretty Little Liars picture

A Person of Interest - S1-E19

Continuity mistake: On the video of Ian supposedly killing Alison, we see her arm fall to the ground with her "Alison" bracelet visible. But in a later scene where Emily watches Ian put his bag in the athletics room, we cut back to the video and Alison's arm suddenly has a sleeve covering up her bracelet. When we see the video again later in the series, her bracelet is visible again.

THGhost

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Fringe picture

Unearthed - S2-E11

Continuity mistake: Charlie, Olivia's former partner and friend in the FBI shows up in this episode during the interview with Mrs. Rusk, but Charlie was killed off by one of the shapeshifters in a previous episode, and the shapeshifter that killed Charlie was himself killed off by Olivia, who in other episodes reflected back on killing him. This episode was supposedly meant to be in season 1 as ep 21 or 22. Unknown why they didn't air it then, and decided to put it in the middle of season 2 (for no apparent reason).

Mark Sweetman

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Haven picture

301 - S3-E1

Continuity mistake: Duke is wearing an extra shirt, and his hair is longer then it was, despite continuing the scene from the end of season 2.

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Lost picture Lost mistake picture Video

Deux Ex Machina - S1-E19

Continuity mistake: When Jack speaks to Michael and Jin, as they build the raft, and then when he walks up the beach and inquires about Sawyer's trouble with his head, the backpack that Jack carries on his back is nylon, black/green with white trim. Yet, when Sawyer asks, "Sensitivity to light, that bad?" the backpack is suddenly transformed into solid black leather, of an entirely different style. Then, in following shots it jumps back and forth. (00:16:40)

Super Grover

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Criminal Minds picture Criminal Minds mistake picture

Proof - S7-E2

Continuity mistake: When Cy sneaks into the house with the key under the mat, in the bedroom he picks up the triple gold frame with two photos of Matt with Lyla and one photo of young Lyla in the blue dress in the center frame, then he holds it to his face and places it back on the right side of the dresser. However, after Cy hears Lyla coming into the house, when she sees the underwear on the bedroom floor the frame on the right side of the dresser is now a double wood frame with only one of the same photos seen earlier.

Super Grover

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