History Main / OutOfOrder

** A major plot point in the 11th episode of ''PhilOfTheFuture'' depicts Phil revealing to Keely that he and his family are futuristic time travelers, despite the first nine episodes already showing her entrusted to this secret.
*** Subverted with the plot point involving Debbie Burwick revealed to be a cyborg and dying in the Halloween episode, yet in both airing and production order, she still appears in subsequent episodes before just not appearing at all in Season 2. This troper simply places that episode as the Season 1 finale for that reason.

** {{Nickelodeon}} started ''Series/PowerRangersSamurai'' with episode 3; whereas the "real" episodes 1 and 2 weren't aired until midseason as an [[OriginsEpisode origins special]]. Needless to say, a lot of people were left confused by this very odd premiere.
** Count on ''every'' holiday special to contain characters who shouldn't be there yet, or to be missing characters who should. Clash of the Red Rangers also has Serrator lurking around but not doing too much well before we properly meet him.

* In the United States and UK, ''Series/BabylonFive'' aired in largely chronological order, although even then there were ordering problems. But that's not the order the episodes were ''filmed''--usually, to keep costs down, if a set was needed for several episodes they'd film them all at once. A few countries aired the heavily arc-based show based on production order. Unlike ''Series/{{Firefly}}'', the [=DVD=]s follow the US broadcast order.

* ''UnnaturalHistory'' suffered from this, but the [[ContinuityNod Continuity Nods]] are subtle enough that it's hard to notice.

* ''Series/ICarly'': The reason that StatusQuoIsGod on the show is because Nick constantly shift episodes on their own whims. The broadcast order is practically random compared to production order.

'''NOTE: [[ExecutiveMeddling TV Tropes executives have decided that this article should not be presented in its proper order, and instead have shuffled around the example folders.]]'''

[[OutOfOrder.WesternAnimation Western Animation]] has its own page.

* In the United States dub of ''Manga/SailorMoon'', DIC aired the first episode of the Negamoon arc ''after'' the episode Queen Beryl was defeated. They were trying to hold out the 13 Doom Trees episodes to air as a Network exclusive (Sailor Moon aired in syndication back then) other countries that aired the English dub aired the episodes in the proper order. Also for continuity reasons the Doom Trees episodes are numbered after the Beryl episodes.

* ''Series/{{Glee}}'' switched the airings of "Funk" (episode 20) and Theatrically (episode 21) because the latter was themed around the ever popular LadyGaga, and FOX wanted it to air during May sweeps.

*** And for that matter, good luck trying to figure out the order of episodes after the Infamous Seizure episode was banned in the dub.

* The final two episodes of ''[[CaptainScarlet New Captain Scarlet]]'' were broadcast the wrong way round (the last episode second-to-last and the second-to-last episode last), what was annoying about this was that the Mysterons were finally defeated in the last episode [[spoiler: (or were they?)]], and the episodes where released on DVD in the broadcast order. This ultimately was the final nail in a coffin full of [[ScrewedByTheNetwork network screwing]].
** However at a Fanderson convention that took place that year the last five episodes of the series were screened long before they where aired, in order.

* ''MegaManNTWarrior'' was also aired out of order, moving the "filler" episodes to later, continuity be damned. At first it was thought to be [=KidsWB=]'s fault, but other countries who got the show from [=ShoPro=] also had it out of order; so, all fingers pointing to [=ShoPro=] for this [[hottip:*: nevertheless, [=KidsWB=] aired the already-out-of-order episodes out of order. It just wouldn't be [=KidsWB=] otherwise!]]

* Here's a pretty crazy one: When ''TokyoMewMew'' was [[{{Macekre}} turned into]] ''Mew Mew Power'', not only was [[http://mmpu.smuncensored.com/ep12.html episode 12]] aired as the premiere, [[http://mmpu.smuncensored.com/ep13.html episode 13]] was shorn of the references to 12.
* When ''Ninja Robots'' (aka the dubbed version of ''NinjaSenshiTobikage'') aired in Australia a block of about half a dozen episodes were televised out of order. This was particularly obvious because it skipped the introduction of a major character. This alternative ordering of the episodes was repeated on the DVD.

* It's said that, when DiC first aired the dub of ''Manga/SailorMoon'', they actually aired the first episode of the Wiseman saga ''after'' the episode Queen Beryl was defeated. Suddenly, the girls go from not having memories of being heroines to a romantic scene of Serena and Darien in a boat on a lake.

[[OutOfOrder.WesternAnimation Western Animation]] has it's own page.

* In ''QuantumLeap'', even the episodes themselves make Quantum Leaps. At the end of "Play It Again, Seymour", the last episode in the first season, Sam leaps into the body of a rather tasty young woman. He then has to repeat the very same leap at the end of episode 3 of the 2nd season because the story that actually features the girl isn't until episode 4, "What Price Gloria?". Meanwhile, instead of leaping into Gloria in the first episode of the second season, he leaps into the body of the husband in "Honeymoon Express", a mythology episode. [[spoiler: He has to change the future in order to stop the government abandoning the Quantum Leap project.]]