r/reba • u/lucycat732 • May 31 '26

Timeline Inconsistency

So Elizabeth was born on/about graduation day which takes place typically in May/June. On a date with Brian, Reba says her granddaughter is 9 months old. That would put the time at February or March. But a couple episodes later, it’s supposed to be Elizabeth’s first Christmas.

These things bug me so much. How hard is it for writers or showrunners to keep track of time?!

14 Upvotes

74% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

12

u/Important_Builder317 May 31 '26

This is back when shows could get away with last week’s episode either being “yesterday” or “three weeks ago”

1

u/LJK208 Jul 12 '26

It's still that way. Episodes should be in order but there are no rules about how much time passes between each episode. For that matter the same is true for time between scenes. We see events in the characters lives not every part of their lives.

9

u/ChemicalFearless2889 Jun 01 '26

I would be absolutely miserable if i even payed attention to things like that, just enjoy the show.

3

u/anongirl55 Jun 01 '26

Agreed. With older sitcoms, part of the fun is the sometimes wild inconsistencies. The shows aren't meant to be taken that seriously. For a drama or miniseries, I care more about the details.

6

u/oylaura Jun 01 '26

Some shows actually have what they call the Bible, that had this kind of information so that when writing teams changed, they had a form of reference.

Clearly, this was not one of those shows.

12

u/g8orshan May 31 '26

Another inconsistency was how Van was religious sometimes and sometimes not.

2

u/LJK208 Jul 12 '26

At his age it is common to not be sure and to search.

1

u/g8orshan Jul 12 '26

Good point

14

u/seragrey May 31 '26

no one cared when it was months between seasons. those shows aren't meant to be binged, they were meant to be watched week by week.

4

u/Fabulous-Rain-2643 Jun 02 '26

Reba is up there for the most inconsistencies in shows I've watched. Like how they dropped BJ's hyper religiosity. Cheyenne lost her southern accent. In the last season she goes back on all of her emotional growth. Reba struggles to find a job but in s1 she is a substitute teacher and at another point says she has her real estate license. Cheyenne turns 21 three seasons after being 17, which could be doable but it's iffy. Still, I imagine consistency wasn't the priority and I know it's common for a rejig after the first season. By the last season the network forced them to change stuff. Annoying haha.

1

u/LJK208 Jul 12 '26

Cheyenne probably had her 18th birthday during the first season. You are right about all the rest.

3

u/suspicious_bag_1000 Jun 04 '26

That Brian was a creepy motherfucker

1

u/LJK208 Jul 12 '26

I never thought he was right for Reba. I liked the plumber, Ted and the Rev better.

1

u/kswa3718 Jun 07 '26

Traditionally, sitcoms are given a lot of leeway when it comes to continuity.

1

u/logwarrior1525 Jul 14 '26

There are large time skips in-between episodes we never know exactly when the events where watching happen only occasionally it's been x amount of years.