Breaking the fourth wall

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"Breaking the fourth wall" is a term that refers to a point where a character acknowledges that he or she is in a cartoon or TV Show. This term is different from an aside, where a character will seemingly detach for a moment to say something to the audience, then continue on as if nothing had happened. Common ways of breaking the fourth wall include:

  • Refering to events that happened in "that episode."
  • Stopping someone from performing an act of violence/swearing, with a comment along the lines of "This is a kids show."
  • Responding to a character who is not there, e.g. the Narrator.

These are the three most common events, but others may include something to do with getting people to buy mercandise of the subject in question. Breaking the fourth wall is often used as a comedic element in parodies.

Team Rocket is usually the ones who break the fourth wall in the show.

Episodes where the fourth wall is broken