The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word EPISODIC
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More clues leading to the result EPISODIC
- Work is copied in different sections
- Island turf acquired by grand in instalments
- Like many TV series, is copied fraudulently
- In parts, classic screening is old and dreary, primarily
- Long story about earth I told in stages
- Fragmented story going on at length about lives upset party
- Soap’s so huge
- In various parts, classic tours thus restricted by passport?
- Sporadic copies I’d revised
- Irregular code is broken with constant input
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "only fitfully observed" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case only fitfully observed = episodic.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does EPISODIC mean?
EPISODIC adjective- Relating to an episode
- Sporadic, happening infrequently and irregularly
- Made up a sequence of seemingly unconnected episodes