Best TV plot holes of 1997

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Jonathan Creek picture

The Sinner and the Sandman - S5-E2

Plot hole: Ian Avery-Cooper loses his lottery ticket which is immediately picked up and appropriated by Leonard Corbyn. However, Avery-Cooper immediately reports the loss to the shopkeeper who sold him the ticket. All lottery sales staff are trained in what to do under these circumstances, because it happens a lot - they cancel the lost ticket and issue a new one. Since Avery-Cooper used the same numbers every week this would not pose a problem, but even if he didn't the ticket would be recorded on the seller's computers and could be precisely reconstructed. This would be even easier since Avery-Cooper reports the loss within a minute of it happening and we see that he has the receipt for the sale in his hand. Corbyn's stolen ticket would be worthless and Avery-Cooper would be able to claim his rightful winnings. If nothing else Ian could have simply bought another ticket with the same numbers.

PEDAUNT

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Ally McBeal picture

Boy Next Door - S3-E16

Plot hole: Throughout the show it is reported several times that Billy and Ally met when they were both eight years old in a park by sniffing each other's bottoms. However, when Billy is buried in season 3 his tombstone reads, 1968-2000, making him 32 years old. Ally is only 29 and does not turn 30 until later in that season which would at the very least, put them 2 years apart. (00:41:15)

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Buffy The Vampire Slayer picture

What's My Line? (1) - S2-E9

Plot hole: If Spike and his gang only take a few hours to break through the door to Ford's club in 'Lie To Me' (which we are told is six feet of solid steel), why can't Angel break through a thin wire door that visibly shakes every time he hits it, given the same amount of time? (00:38:05)

Shay

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King of the Hill picture

Returning Japanese (1) - S6-E21

Plot hole: In this episode, Hank meets his paternal half brother. They look alike. However, we saw in an earlier episode that Hank's facial structure takes after his mother, not his father. Since they are paternal half brothers, then the Japanese brother cannot look like Hank since he has a different mother.

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Stargate SG-1 picture

Family - S2-E8

Plot hole: Huge plot error: Apophis and Clorell (Skara) should not have survived the explosion in Season 2, Episode 1 (when they attack Earth with two ships). In "Family" they explain that Apophis and Clorell survived by escaping through the stargate aboard Clorell's ship moments after Daniel Jackson did the same. However, when Daniel Jackson escapes through it, Apophis and Clorell are not even on the right ship, and there is 1 second left on the C4 timer when Daniel escapes. They actually show Daniel Jackson escape, and then cut to Apophis and Clorell still aboard their ship. So apparently, Apophis was able to "ring" from his ship over to Clorell's ship, make it to the stargate room, dial an address, and escape through the stargate all within literally 1 second. Is this guy related to The Flash?

AutofireDev

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: That's not what happened or what was said. Daniel suggested Apophis and Klorel used the rings after he did, not that they used the Stargate after him. In "The Serpent's Lair", we see Apophis and Klorel use the rings BEFORE Daniel uses the Stargate. But we don't actually know how much time is meant to be left on the C-4 when they use the rings. They ended up using the Stargate before Daniel did and they never cut to them on board after Daniel escapes.

Bishop73

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Power Rangers Turbo picture

Shift Into Turbo: Part I - S1-E1

Plot hole: Divatox and co. live in a submarine in Angel Grove lake. In "Hogday Afternoon", Angel Grove lake was drained to about 30ft at the deepest. The lake would have to be several hundred feet deep for a large submarine to hide there.

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Recess picture

The Trial - S1-E16

Plot hole: Whenever Gretchin calls Mikey up to the stand to explain what he saw, he says that he had followed Spinelli and Randall to the wooden fence, where he Saw Randall on his knees in front of Spinelli, begging for forgiveness, then Mikey began running to the other side to stop Spinelli from pummeling Randall with the "rock" but didn't make it in time. We then later find out that Spinelli had actually rescued Ms. Finster's cat out of a tree and Randall hit himself with the rock out of spite. But it is impossible that Spinelli could have given up on hurting Randall, climbed up a tree, rescued a cat, climbed down, handed the cat back to Ms. Finster, gotten praise from Ms. Finster, then have Randall attempt to pick up a big rock, then get a smaller one and hit himself with it in under 3 seconds (the duration of how long Mikey ran before he heard Randall's scream).

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The Weird Al Show picture

Time Machine - S1-E5

Plot hole: After Al guests knocked out by the Russian dancer, he is woken up by his friends. However, according to the series events before this, Terri Garr should have found him first.

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Midsomer Murders picture

Show generally

Plot hole: In the Pudding Club episode, when they visit the secret room, all the candles are lit even though no-one is in there.

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Kindaichi shônen no jiken bo picture

Hida Mechanical Mansion Murder Case: File 1 - S1-E18

Plot hole: At the beginning of the episode, Kindaichi and his friends have an encounter with the mysterious figure that will be murdered later (allegedly). Three episodes later the identity of this mysterious figure is revealed, creating an impossibility when you consider who played that role. (00:03:10)

Sammo

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Trial & Retribution picture

Tracks: Part 1 - S11-E9

Plot hole: When Mike Walker is out looking for his son Connor calls Satch and asks, "What's up with Mike?". She couldn't know that there was anything up with him, she left before he heard his son was missing. Had she called Walker on his cell, he would have explained what was going on, as he was very eager to tell her. Obviously a set-up so that Satch could tell her that the boy was missing.

littlestar

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The New Batman Adventures picture

Beware the Creeper - S2-E10

Plot hole: During Ryder's report, as Bruce and company watch it on TV, the camera suddenly zooms in on Joker standing on a catwalk above Ryder, and none of the crew, especially not the camera man who caught the villain, makes a comment about this. They may have thought the Joker (or rather an impersonator) was perhaps a surprise gag in the show, but since this is supposed to be a serious documentary report, it is still strange that they wouldn't point it out.

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Lexx picture

I Worship His Shadow - S1-E1

Plot hole: As the first prisoner is being pulled towards the organ cutter, you see on the wall the exact shape of the body organs for the brain, lungs, heart, liver, stomach, kidneys and testicles/ovaries that serve as guides and a track for tiny saw blades to come out and cut into the person's body to harvest these organs. The problem is these are in a fixed position, which might work for some people. However people are different sizes, shapes, and heights and most wouldn't match up to these blade guides. So a good majority of the people they cut apart to harvest organs out of wouldn't even give them good ones as the blades would cut into the organs and ruin them. (00:25:20)

Quantom X

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Daria picture

The New Kid - S2-E7

Plot hole: In the season two episode 'The New Kid,' Daria and Jane are discussing The New Kid in gym class when a girl takes a nasty spill from a trampoline. Later, Daria and The New Kid are heard remarking about photos taken of that particular fall despite there having been no photographers present.

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