The loss of the well established characters signalled another noticeable change in direction for "E Street". The producers were busy developing a massive new storyline to keep viewers watching and they came up with a story to top everything that had happened before; this was "E Street"s most iconic story arc, the notorious 'Mr Bad' – a sadistic serial killer disguised as the community karate instructor. As the aforementioned original characters left, the twists and turns of Stephen and his evil alter-ego covered the losses, and the mid and latter part of the 1991 season was completely dominated by this convoluted plot. Forrest Redlich explained on a DVD release of these episodes in 2007 how the storyline was developed, and those actors wishing to leave during this era of "E Street" became a victim of 'Mr Bad' and were duly killed off: