Continuity is the key. You hit the nail on the head. The best series have continuing stories that keep growing and coming full circle episodes, or even seasons, later. Twin Peaks did that, and today Boston Public is one of the only ones doing it again. I'll always be an Eastern Time woman.
Nothing packs that original of a punch today.
Or Christopher Guest. No matter how late I got home, I had to watch the tape of each new episode the night it aired. If you practiced, I bet you could, too. But that revelation doesn't surprise me. On a personal note, I just ate half a jar of pinto bean dip.