TV shows and mini-series that have a defined story

One of the primary reasons I like anime is that most of the shows are serialized. Some take it too far and stretch stupid shit over multiple episodes (DBZ being the most famous example), or have filler episode that totally break the arc you're in and frustrate you if you're watching week-to-week (or, worse, filler arcs that are multiple episodes long). But anime has a ton of excellent series that fit here.

Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood
Princess Tutu
Trigun
Cowboy Bebop+the movie to finish it off
Legend of Galactic Heroes

Those are all finished, with basically no filler, and are all really good and draw you in.

Also for shows that haven't been mentioned, Twin Peaks, though it is unfinished, is very much in this vein. Nothing makes sense if you don't watch each episode and it actually helps a lot to go back and rewatch it from the beginning when you get to the end.

Cowboy Bebop is not serialized. There is a thin arch that spans the serie, but mostly each episode is it's own story.

Szlia_sl said:

Cowboy Bebop is not serialized. There is a thin arch that spans the serie, but mostly each episode is it's own story.

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It has an overarching story that slowly builds in each episode and finishes with the movie. Granted not every episode is solely dedicated to it, there is also a certain amount of fleshing out the world, character back story, etc., but I consider those part of being a serial. So long as each episode in some way builds the story, characters, and world till you get to the end and realize you needed every episode to understand everything that happened.

Trigun, my favorite anime.

Nowhere Man with Bruce Greenwood.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112104/

Only lasted a year on that shitty UPN network. Was really good and one of my favorite shows at the time. I know they have the full show on IPT with freeleech.

Szlia_sl said:

This is a good show, but it's mostly episodic (hustle of the week).

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It had good closure at each season, and the story always carried over. Villains returned, allies came and went. Even the main characters moved around. The series finale might be right up there in my top 5. Even the British press covered up the ending by claiming a certain character would NOT return. They fooled me.

Nothing beats TNG's finale though.

You're not wrong about it being episodic rather than serial. Just wanted to explain why I put it in there.