Wikipedia:WikiProject Television/Episode lists/structure

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This page describes the recommended layout for list of episodes pages.

Contents

[edit] Article title

In keeping with Wikipedia:Naming conventions, an article featuring a list of episodes should be named:

List of Example Television Show episodes

If the main article is Name of TV Show (TV show), it may not be necessary to include (TV show), unless the alternative show articles also have their own episode lists.

Examples:

[edit] Page introduction

At the top of the page note that the article is a list and that there is a main article for the show (with {{Main|Show Title}} or a similar message). In the intro also note things like:

  • If the show is in progress, or if not all episodes are listed
  • If the episode order could be unfamiliar (such as in some edited re-broadcasts)
  • The original network the show aired on, as well as any major significant networks of re-broadcast (try to limit this to original networks and networks in English speaking nations).
  • The start and end dates of the original broadcast, such as TV Show aired from March 2 1998 to March 7 2000.
  • etc

Mention details about the series, airing, production, DVD releases and related works in the intro section.

Add [[Category:Lists of genre television series episodes|Show name]] to the bottom of the article.

[edit] Episode titles

Episode titles are placed in quotation marks. All words are capitalized except for prepositions less than five characters long. For help with prepositions see here

"Insert Name of Episode Here"
"Lay Off the Beef" (Off is part of a two word verb in this sentence)
"The Day Before the Day After Tomorrow" (Before and After are prepositions of 5 or more characters)

[edit] Television show titles

Television show titles are placed in italics. The same capitalization rules apply.

[edit] Linking

In general, episode titles should NOT be linked unless an article has already been created or a significant proportion of the episodes (>30%) already have articles, so it is likely that pages will eventually be created for the rest. However, if a Wikipedian wishes to encourage users to write articles for a few significant episodes, these episodes may be linked to demonstrate there is a desire for articles to be written for them.

Multipart episodes should have only one article. Thus, if two episodes have the same title, with the exception of (Part I) and (Part II) as a suffix, both links should point to the same episode.

"Two Part Episode" (Part I)
"Two Part Episode" (Part II)

If two-part episodes have different titles, editors should use their discretion in naming and linking. For example, the Stargate: Atlantis episodes "The Storm" and "The Eye" were highly connected, so one article (at "The Storm"/"The Eye") was created. On the other hand, the Star Trek: Enterprise episodes "The Expanse" and "The Xindi" had very dissimilar plots, so two different articles were created.

[edit] Tables

See {{Episode list}} and Template talk:Episode list for information on how to build such a table with a template for easy data entry and formatting.

When a list of episodes includes details such as original air dates and summaries they should then be formatted in a table.

Different tables should be used for each season of the television show. Each season should have a heading with the title, "Season X: (YEAR)" (for UK television: "Series X: (YEAR)"). The table itself should contain at least three columns. The headers of these columns should be "Title", "Original air-date", "Production code" and/or "#" (episode number). Episode numbers are subject to debate try to find out what the accepted standard for this particular series is e.g.. South Park only makes sense when listed in broadcast order rather than production order as one episode references itself as the 100th episode and another references a previous episode, these references are only true when the series is ordered by broadcast dates.

Depending on the depth of information one wishes to included in the episode list page, more columns may be added. These can include a "Screenshot" column with a small (400 x 300 pixels) screenshot from the episode (Set to display at 100 to 150 pixel width). There can be an additional column for data that applies to that episode (e.g.. Stardates).

More columns than this could create clutter, and the "Fictional Date" and "Screenshot" columns are optional for this reason. However, other possible columns for inclusion where appropriate (e.g. a show that only ran a few seasons or whose viewership was a very important) include a column for Nielsen ratings and a column for viewership figures (in millions).

Any important information (e.g. a show changing broadcast stations or episodes from one season being held off until the next season) should follow the table that they relate to.

Usually, all the information described above is presented in one row. Often, below this a new row spanning all of the columns (expect "Screenshot") may be created to give a short synopsis of the episode in question. Such synopses should be brief and should not reveal any plot details beyond what is necessary.

The table should use a percentage width (90 to 100 percent) and preferably have colored dividers between each episode.

[edit] Standard table


==Season 1: 1997-1998==
{| class="wikitable" width="98%"
|-
! width="100"| Screenshot !! Title !! width="120"|Original air-date !! width="60"|Production code !! width="25"|#
|-
|colspan="5" bgcolor="#FFBFBF"| <!-- Putting in a nice space between episodes -->
|-
|rowspan="2"| [[Image:SouthPark101.gif|100px]] || "[[Cartman Gets an Anal Probe]]" || [[August 13]], [[1997]] ||align="center"| 101 ||align="center"| 1
|-
|colspan="4"| Space aliens implant a transmitter in Cartman and abduct Kyle's brother.
|-
|colspan="5" bgcolor="#FFBFBF"| <!-- Putting in a nice space between episodes -->
|-
|rowspan="2"| [[Image:SouthPark102.gif|100px]] || "[[Weight Gain 4000]]" || [[August 20]], [[1997]] ||align="center"| 102 ||align="center"| 2
|-
|colspan="4"| Cartman tries to bulk up using "Weight Gain 4000". Mr. Garrison attempts to assassinate [[Kathie Lee Gifford]].
|-
|colspan="5" bgcolor="#FFBFBF"| <!-- Putting in a nice space between episodes -->
|}

Thus creates:

Screenshot Title Original air-date Production code #
"Cartman Gets an Anal Probe" August 13, 1997 101 1
Space aliens implant a transmitter in Cartman and abduct Kyle's brother.
"Weight Gain 4000" August 20, 1997 102 2
Cartman tries to bulk up using "Weight Gain 4000". Mr. Garrison attempts to assassinate Kathie Lee Gifford.

For good examples of the format described above, see: