Where did the 3 episode rule originate from?

Where did the 3 episode rule originate from?

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pilot episodes of anything are generally shit and it's likely episode 2 will follow on from episode 1's shitty mini-plot as well

typically thats an hour of watch time, personally i usually do 5 or 6

People didn't have 60 anime to watch a season.

Back when there weren't 80 billion animes weren't released every season.

some random dude.

Watch Animegataris, they explain it.

Get researching user.

A number of shows take 1-2 episodes to actually "start", and a lot of shows are split into small arcs of 3 episodes to divide into 12 or 24 respectably, so it likely naturally came about and someone coined the term unaware of the actual reason why.

Humans often like to use 3 as an arbitrary small number. See tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RuleOfThree

It originates from almost every show now being only 12 eps, it was 25% of the show before.

>animes

Nowhere. It's an arbitrary limit set and followed only by newshitters. Anyone who's watched anime for more than a few years can tell if a show's worth watching within the first episode.

>b-but shows take a while to start!
Fuck off plebs. If the first episode is poorly-directed, with rock-bottom production values, lazy characters, and stuffed with cliches, you don't need 3 episodes to tell it's going to be a piece of shit.

It's from Buddha's 3 strikes

I also wouldn't be surprised if the 3 episode rule was a meme made to shut up people who insisted you watched the whole thing.
>"No dude, trust me, there's a real big turning point on episode 57."
>"Gave it the three episode test. No go."
>"Guess I can't shame you for that."

That only happens 80% of the time

Princess Principal, Kemono Friends, Girls und Panzer, etc need a 3 episode rule

wrong

madoka

This user is right, you can't always generalize anime, if you do that you will miss some great shows.

>What is Gintama

name a SINGLE good show that had a shit first ep

Sorry, my bad. Animeses.

Did you actively dislike these anime when you finished the first episode? Or were you somewhere in the middle? I've personally never actively disliked a series then came around back to liking it.

Why is Mitsuki so best

I always thought it was Madoka that popularized that idea since it took 3 episodes for it to really start getting good and then everyone just applied it to so many shows afterwards.

>Implying all shows take a WYSIWYG approach from the get go

There are way too many shows that start strong and lose direction along the way. I do agree that you can tell if it's your kind of show even within the first few minutes, but that's assuming you have a taste to begin with.

There are also shows that take extreme shifts in tone, or those that really do need to take the time because there is a lot to establish in order to get moving. I usually wait for the first 2-3 eps to air and then read discussions to hear some more opinions.

There's also the issue of your expectations from the show and the mood you're in when you start watching it. You might be bored with a show because you wanted something more compelling, when in actuality you should've paid more attention to the small details and be in a "research" state of mind instead of a passive viewer.

>Am I fitting yet?
see Also Steins;Gate, Berserk, Lucky star, ...

I know we were bitching a few years ago that things were bad, but how come the last couple years have been so unbearably shitty on Sup Forums? It isn't even Sup Forums or election shit, the people who post here are just overwhelmingly new to the point that it's diluting the board culture beyond the point of no return

Sup Forums Died with our lord and saviour Lelouch.

Definitely needed to see that 3rd episode. The first one really put me off. The second one was not captivating enough despite the witch barrier, but the third episode was unexpected.

Ironically Animegatari is one anime I would have dropped if I didn't decide to give it the 3 episodes rules. Now it's one of my most anticipated anime of the season.
Said that, I think there should also be an exception for those anime you can't even get to watch the whole first episode, like that unwatchable puke-inducing anime of a few seasons back (Headshaker/Eyeshaker, the name of it was something like that).

DBS. Mods should have moved the whole anime to /trash/.

I thought Sup Forums hated tripfags?

Hand Shakers

>There are also shows that take extreme shifts in tone
It's happening so often it's wearing thin, desu

Steins gate was fine from the first ep. It's been a while since I watched it but I don't remember anything terrible that turned me off of it.

Lucky Star is moeshit. You know from the first episode whether you'll like it or not. In fact, you know before you even watch it whether you'll like it or not. It's moeshit.

Haven't watched the berserk anime but manga follows a similar trend. If a manga stars off shit, it's not going to magically become better. Granted manga does get more leeway since it's much easier to power through 3 chapters than 3 episodes.

The only people who need 3 episodes to determine whether the show is worth watching are plebs.

The real Lelouch.

Yeah that one.

>Steins gate was fine from the first ep.
You should rewatch Steins;Gate
>Lucky Star is moeshit.
Yeah so what? Not all the moeshit out there is good.

oh by the way I thought you mean the old berserk anime. The new CG berserk anime is total shit, and it's a perfect example why you don't need 3 episodes

I mean the old one obviosuly, the new one is a good example of instadrop but that's because the unbearable 3D.

Episode 1 of GuP had a bad innitial reation and many anons dropped it because of how horrendous it was written.

Still nothing could compare to how KF went from a pile of trash into a museum quality

It should be noted that only judging the series for its first episode would be foolish, as there are shows that actually have troll first episodes, or first episodes that do not have the same atmosphere as the rest of the series.
Take for example Tower of Druaga. The first episode came off as trolltastic, different in feel from most of the show. You can also consider Ga-Rei Zero Yomi ;_;. If people fell for the bait that is the first episode, people wouldn't lean about Kagura, and Yomi's backstory leading to the first episode.

> Episode 1 of GuP had a bad innitial reation
That zoom out to the ship reveal, though. That had me hooked.

It came from common sense.

3 episodes gives you a good understanding of what the show is about and how it progresses.

ga-rei zero had a good first episode. It had good direction, strong production values, and excellent pacing. Having a trolltastic ending (or twist ending) is not the same as having a shitty first episode.

I am now going to call anime, "animes" just to spite you, you big baby.

Madoka

It's from the rule that if you go on three dates and it doesn't work out it's done.

ironic that most people are dropping this after it's 3rd episode.

Especially since the end-of-the-world twist is coming in the 4th episode. Not that it's going to save the show, but at least they're subverting cliches.

3rd episode was almost unwatchable in how bad it was.

I get what you're saying but your presentation is so pretentious and condescending with shitty buzzwords that I'm inclined to just disagree with you.

In some cases the third episode saves the anime.

This only applies to generic seasonal haremshit, which are shit 90% of the time anyway so you wouldn't give them the time of the day based on summaries alone.

Actual shows with mildly interesting premises need the 3 episode rule in order to judge whether they're worth watching or not.

>shitty buzzwords
sorry if my vocabulary is too advanced for you pleb

The best art in anime since Inuyasha.

>buzzwords
>too advanced
Nice joke.
you are joking, right?

>Princess Principal,
Dude what? The first two episodes are the best ones.

One is a chance.
Two is a coincidence.
Three is a pattern.

Good way of putting it.

most likely just "third time's the charm" and every other idiom that involves 3

Actually, most people can tell if an anime is going to be good based upon mere gut feeling alone, or when looking at the promotional art and staff.

Excuse me, but I was on-board with Children of the Whales since I saw the trailer.

>All these people still trying to come up with ideas of why the 3 episode rule is just a meme

If any of you actually read some of the replies already here before posting, you would either find someone has already said exactly what you are going to say, or someone has debunked your opinion completely.

it was interesting from the first second, with the only negative thing is the constant yelling of the MC, but that's bearable. the 3rd episode was a tone shift that you could expect, since lykos is a military defect. I didn't think it would be that brutal, but it wouldn't have stayed an innocent kids' adventure, not with the amount of dark layers hidden there.

Madoka is exactly what I mean when I say you have to be in a certain state of mind for certain shows. I've tried watching the show with a friend a couple years back and we went through half a series with a strong feeling of "nothing is happening here". Last summer I attempted to watch the movies, but I was in a completely different state of mind, and that changed the entire experience. I've binge watched the 2 (+rebellion but w/e) and it was amazing.

Having a rule to stick to can be helpful for some people.
It gives the opportunity to people who shy away from genres to branch out into a new genre they might otherwise not like.
Honestly that itself is a big problem with people new to watching anime.
They form the idea that they inherently dislike all (for example) romance or SoL anime based on their experience in that genre with western TV shows/movies, when it can be a completely different experience in anime.
As for OP it's probably just because there are common idioms regarding threes.
Third time's the charm.
Good/Bad things come in threes.
And spending an hour watching a show is usually a good amount of time to tell you if you want to keep watching or not.
If you're unsure, watch more and see how it goes.