Examples of "shmuck bait" in television shows? This is where it seems like something major is going to happen, but then the very next episode is like, "Never mind, but maybe later."

The original post: /r/television by /u/SourceofDubiousPosts on 2025-03-13 21:12:49.

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And sometimes there’s no “maybe later.” It’s just “never mind.”

I believe it was the writer Tom Schnauz, of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul fame, who coined this term. “Shmuck bait” was something they tried to avoid in the writer’s rooms for both shows.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, especially since the somewhat wobbly Severance season 2 has recycled the same end-of-episode cliffhanger a few times, suggesting an event is about to take place and then the next episode forestalls or back-pedals said event.

What are your standout examples of this sort of thing in TV?

One I’ve always found amusing is one of the LOST cliffhangers from season 3, wherein Jack talks to Ana-Lucia about building an army. I’ve seen some people argue that this proposed plot thread isn’t entirely dropped, because it does set the stage for a few small things. But the very specific idea of Jack training an army is certainly not something the show ever ended up pursuing.