I only ever watch the first season of a 'continuity driven' TV show for this very reason.
A lesson learnt after thinking the first season of '24' was the best TV show I'd ever seen, and yet season 2 episode 1 was just an insultingly lazy setup.
(After all the twists and cliffhangers of the first season, S2 E1 kicks off with the kidnap of our heroic protangonists daughter. Yawn).
Episodic / standalone adventure stuff is still great though e.g. The Mandalorian)