But more so than that, there is a qualitative distinction, not just a quantitative one, to the question of what kind of TV we\u2019re watching. We as viewers bring a different set of expectations to a serialized prime-time drama than we do to episodic storytelling of the sort found in the various CSIs, NCISes, and Law & Orders littering the landscape of the past three decades. And that\u2019s to say nothing of what we expect from soap operas, with their all-cliffhanger-all-the-time structures and lather-rinse-repeat plotting. We don\u2019t ask for endings from the last type, just as all we need from a procedural is the ability to enjoy a complete story in one sitting, no prior or subsequent info necessary, as though every episode floated outside of time and space, occasional character beats notwithstanding.