Best crime TV mistakes of all time

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Get Smart picture

Mr. Big - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: When Max is phoning the Chief to let him know the mission's been accomplished, he takes the oars out of the oarlocks before opening his shoephone. The oars change from being out of the oarlocks in the closeups to still being in the water in the long shots for the rest of the episode. (00:23:50 - 00:24:30)

Captain Defenestrator

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New Tricks picture

God's Waiting Room - S4-E2

Continuity mistake: When Brian and Gerry are chasing Kelly, Kelly's jacket is only zipped up at the bottom at the start of the chase, but when the camera angle changes it is zipped all the way up for the rest of the chase.

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Traffic: The Miniseries picture

Part One - S1-E1

Visible crew/equipment: Towards the beginning, when the Taliban steps on the landmine, you see the DEA agent getting hit with dirt and blood. In the center of the shot, you can see a few drops of blood stick to the camera lens. Incredibly easy to notice, so I'm not sure how this one slipped through.

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The Grid picture

Episode #3 - S1-E3

Audio problem: When Muhammad is meeting with the group of Al-Quaeda leaders in the desert, the movements of his mouth do not match what he is saying in the foreign language.

Steph_Jared

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Training Day picture

Trigger Time - S1-E3

Continuity mistake: During the shoot-out near the end, the bullet holes in the pillars Frank and Kyle hide behind change and also disappear at various times. In one shot we see 2 holes when Kyle steps out to shoot, then when he ducks back when fired upon, the 2 holes are gone.

Bishop73

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Harrow picture

Alea Iacta Est - S3-E8

Revealing mistake: When Harrow and Nicholls are in what is supposed to be Queensland Police Headquarters, a window is visible with logos for Radio National and Triple J behind them. This shows that the scene was recorded at the offices of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. (00:31:04)

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Kung Fu: The Legend Continues picture

Show generally

Continuity mistake: In an earlier season Caine takes a young Peter to a place in the temple and explains that his mother is buried there. However in the series finale he shows adult Peter a picture that someone took months ago and Caine tells Peter that the woman is his mother and he's going to find her.

Madison Kimura

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The ABC Murders picture

Episode #1.1 - S1-E1

Factual error: This is set in 1933. When the killer comes back to his lodgings in episode 1, Lily on the stairs is humming "Somewhere over the rainbow", which was written for The Wizard of Oz in 1939. She also happens to wear bright red shoes, which feels like yet another Wizard of Oz reference. Interesting enough, the subtitles say that she is humming a different song, "Night and day" which she openly sings throughout the series and was already a hit in 1932. (00:44:10)

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Rillington Place picture

Show generally

Factual error: With two exceptions, all the policemen shown in both 1949 and 1953 are wearing the old-fashioned tunics with high, closed collars. The Metropolitan Police adopted the more modern open-necked tunic with collar and tie in 1948, and this is shown worn by the policeman who visits Christie and by the officer who arrests him.

Necrothesp

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The Sweeney picture

Hearts and Minds - S4-E11

Continuity mistake: During the car chase when the camera is inside the Sweeney Granada, a green Fiat can be seen driving in the other direction. The shot immediately changes to outside the car and the Fiat has gone.

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Ozark picture

Blue Cat - S1-E2

Continuity mistake: Right before Wendy sends the email that her husband is dead, a can of shaving cream can be seen on the right side of the sink. After hearing her husband come into the hotel, she knocks over the can of shaving cream, which is now on the left side. (00:47:05)

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Unforgotten picture

Season 1 generally

Plot hole: The car was tracked down by finding the original car key on Jimmy's body. If he had stolen the car from the original owner, how did he come to have the original car key?

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Life on Mars (US) picture

Show generally

Factual error: The camera starts out-of-focus looking down a crowded sidewalk full of background actors in period clothes and hairstyles (1973). As the camera racks into focus, Sam is walking toward the camera with many awnings visible in the background - a large blue one reads "24 Hr ATM". Though versions were invented prior to 1973, they didn't come into wide usage until the mid-to-late-80's and certainly weren't available in East Village bodegas at the time of this episode.

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Ray Donovan picture

Snowflake - S2-E9

Continuity mistake: Bunchy is serving burgers. Picks up ketchup in his left hand and mustard in the right. Camera pans from a different angle and he is putting back the mustard and picking up the ketchup that he already had. (00:28:11)

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Happy Valley picture

Episode #1.6 - S1-E6

Continuity mistake: The district commander wears the rank insignia of a chief superintendent up until the final episode, when he suddenly appears with the insignia of the lower rank of superintendent.

Necrothesp

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NCIS: Los Angeles picture NCIS: Los Angeles mistake picture

Talion - S7-E24

Visible crew/equipment: In the rec hall, when Kensi feigns sickness while posing as a cadet the gunman jumps off the stage, and as Kensi bends over the small rectangular bulge of her mic pack can be seen at her back. (00:30:25)

Super Grover

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Batman: The Animated Series picture

Heart of Ice - S1-E3

Other mistake: When Batman is watching the security footage of Victor Fries' accident, at first Fries is addressing the camera directly which follows him and pans according to his movements and Ferris Boyle interrupting him, which would suggest a second person was in the room with a handheld camera. But after Ferris Boyle enters the room and orders Fries' experiment terminated, there are several cuts from various angles in the room suggesting surveillance cameras. The surveillance style footage also often conveniently cuts to the face of whichever person happens to be speaking or will cut to a certain angle in order to put emphasis on the action, all of which would require multiple mounted cameras and purposeful editing by either Boyle or one of his subordinates, which would be completely illogical since they don't want anyone to see the footage in the first place. (00:12:20 - 00:13:55)

Phaneron

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