  "very special episode" is an advertising term originally used in american television promos to refer to an episode of a sitcom or drama series that deals with a serious or controversial social issue.tropiano, michael and stephanie tropiano. the prime time closet. hal leonard, 2002. 232. isbn 1-55783-557-8. the usage of the term peaked in the 1980s.nussbaum, emily. (2003-04-13). "when episodes could still be very special", the new york times. retrieved on 13 january 2009.ben silverman."a very special episode of... when sitcoms get serious", msn tv. retrieved on 13 january 2009 (internet archive) ==usage== the "very special episode" is occasionally billed as "an episode your family can't afford to miss," again dramatizing the importance of the episode by insinuating that the issues presented in the program represent mandatory viewing for the responsible parent and child. often the "very special episode" concept concerns a moral issue. the term was generally used in reference to sitcoms as a way of highlighting that the normally light hearted show would be dealing with a more serious topic. during these episodes, the laugh track was absent, or, in the alternative, the live studio audience present during the taping of the show rarely responded with laughter. sometimes, as with the 1990s nbc sitcom blossom, the network wanted to find a way to warn viewers that the upcoming episode will be about a serious issue without directly putting a "parental advisory" message. television websites such as television without pity and jumptheshark.com deride the phrase. in an episode of friends, chandler bing (matthew perry) mocked the ubiquitous nbc commercials that popularized the phrase ("a very special blossom"); perry himself appeared in "a very special episode" of growing pains earlier in his career, playing carol seaver (tracey gold)'s teenage boyfriend who dies of injuries sustained in a car accident after a night of underage drinking. diff'rent strokes featured some very special episodes that involved child molestation, pedophilia, hitchhiking, kidnapping, epileptic seizure, bullies, racism, bulimia, drunk driving and drug abuse. the sitcom seinfeld, famously "about nothing," was also diametrically opposed to very special episodes. the on-set motto among writers a
ClichA(c)s Comedy-drama Television_episodes_by_genre Television_terminology