Fans claim that the TV show’s titles are outdated. Are they right?

What happens when Smallville leaving small town life behind for the bright lights of Metropolis? Or when a boy Boy meets world will grow up and become a grown man walking down the aisle? These are curious cases of TV shows outgrowing their titles, and TV fans are citing examples of this phenomenon on Reddit.

“Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. it was about, well, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. But then SHIELD disbanded, so the characters aren’t really agents of anything,” said user AporiaParadox, recalling one of the first Marvel TV shows.

User jrm1693, meanwhile, by name New girl As an example, it can be explained that in the second season of this sitcom, Zooey Deschanel’s character “is not really the new girl, but an integral part of the friendship group in the attic.”

Aardvark said Newbie fits the bill, adding, “Can’t be a rookie for seven seasons.”

And Paddyjuddy noted that “it won’t take long.” 100 to satisfy this (criterion),” given the many deaths in this series.

HBO

Rnilf suggested Vice Presidentwriting that Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s character was not the Vice President in recent seasons, but “definitely had a fun, desperate Vice President vibe the whole time.”

Efficient_Paper raised the case City of Cougarsa title that the show’s creator and cast regretted. “(It) stopped being about Courteney Cox’s character dating younger men about six or seven episodes into the show’s six seasons,” a Reddit user wrote. “At one point they considered changing the name of the show, but instead decided to make a joke about it in the intro.”

And other Reddit users quote Additionallyin which Ricky Gervais’s character goes from being an extra to the most popular TV star, and Jane the Virginin which Gina Rodriguez’s protagonist ends up having sex.

The TV Tropes website has many more examples of what it calls “artifact naming”. For example, several of Desperate Housewives» characters become divorced who have jobs outside the home, Motherlandhis plot goes abroad, and Nanny ends up quitting her job as a nanny.

However, as AporiaParadox and TV Tropes point out, the 1980s British sitcom Yes, minister prevented the “Artifact Name” phenomenon by rebranding to Yes, Prime Minister after Jim Hacker (Paul Eddington) is promoted from Secretary of the Department of Administration to Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.