More recent TV shows that "jumped the shark"

[srblue5]

Y'all know the expression "jumping the shark"? Originated with Happy Days and the Fonz literally jumping a shark, indicating a point when a TV series is no longer relevant and resorts to gimmicks or ridiculous plot elements/etc? (Anyone who knows TV better than I do can probably explain this better than I.)

Any shows in the 2000s-beyond era that jumped the shark for you?

The main recent one that comes to mind for me is the US version of The Office. Loved it and faithfully watched it from Seasons 2-5. Spoiler alert: The "Stress Relief" episode where Stanley has a heart attack during Dwight's ill-advised fire drill was the beginning of the end for me. It quickly lost lustre for me after that, especially with some of the new characters added afterward (e.g. Jo, Gabe). I stopped tuning in shortly after, although I did return for Michael Scott's last episodes -- watched his goodbye episode while at work at a campus information desk and had to choke back the tears while explaining to someone how to get to the Engineering building.

 

[Dismalhead]

I've got two, I think both ended around 2006.

I used to watch Charmed with my daughters. It jumped the shark when they lost Julien McMahon to Nip/Tuck.

That '70s Show jumped the shark when they fired Lisa Robin Kelly and the kids graduated high school.

 

[buster poser]

Dexter after about four episodes
Game of Thrones in its final season
US Office from its inception. I just couldn't get past the shot-for-shot, joke-for-joke cribbing from the original.

 

[Tommy Biggs]

Killing Eve. Maybe after the first season?

 

[Flat6Driver]

Dexter after about four episodes
Game of Thrones in its final season
US Office from its inception. I just couldn't get past the shot-for-shot, joke-for-joke cribbing from the original.

The british version of everything is always better. If if I never saw it or knew it existed.

 

[pypa]

Most shows jump the shark after the protagonists hook up. I think Who's the Boss was accused of egregious shark jumpery when Tony and Angela got together. Or Friends when Monica got together with (read castrated) Chandler.

I think another death knell for Sitcoms is when they believe the main character is no longer cute enough and they need to bring in a cuter reincarnate. Examples include when Raven Simone upstaged Rudy in the Cosby Show (too soon?!) or Sam took out Arnold in Diff'rent Strokes (although, some may argue that it Diff'rent jumped when they got rid of Adelaide who was straight out of a Far Side comic strip).

Facts of Life hurdled the hammerhead several times. First when they whittled down the cast to 4 (the show was really about Boots all along). Then next when George Clooney entered, and finally when Cloris Leachman had to take over. But in an unprecedented turn, they renamed the show to Golden Girls and it had a brilliant run for another decade.

In the 90's, it was generally accepted that Heather Locklear was in fact herself a shark and that any show she came on to save would eventually jump her (eg Melrose Place).


I do think that the "snarky but vaguely hot wife + doofus husband + precocious kid" sitcom as a genre has jumped the shark. Thanks, Everybody Loves Raymond for that.


Most Netflix series jump the shark after Season 1 (e.g. The Crown, Stranger Things, The one with Kevin Spacey (too soon?)) I can't think of a counter example.

 

[buster poser]

The british version of everything is always better. If if I never saw it or knew it existed.

Fellow flat 6 driver here.

I'm a weirdo and grew up on the bigger Brit comedies from Python and Towers in the 70s through to the 80s' Young Ones/Bottom/Comic Strip and my humor still leans heavily that way. That said, there is some real crap on over there too, same as us. Gervais's send up of those types of shows in Extras was pretty great

 

[nickmsmith]

Dexter after about four episodes
Game of Thrones in its final season
US Office from its inception. I just couldn't get past the shot-for-shot, joke-for-joke cribbing from the original.

Office USA stopped the note-for-note ripoff after the first season. It got infinitely better after its first season, when it became its own thing. I do agree.. the exact ripoff thing was a bad look, luckily it didn't last long. By season 2, it was a different animal entirely.

It did jump the shark once Steve Carell left, though.

Game of thrones, exactly. I think it started the season before that, but it was forgiven because fans were looking forward to the grand finale.

 

[nickmsmith]

Walking Dead has been an extended jumping of the shark, since season 1. S1 was GREAT television.. everything after that has paled. I can't believe it's still on the air.

Not many shows can keep the quality up for a decade+. Married With Children, Scrubs, Roseanne, a ton of great television shows declined horribly in their last season or more.

Cartoons seem to keep their edge.. maybe because the cast doesn't feel like superstars, and they don't visibly age. King of the Hill was great from Episode 1 until the very last.

 

[marc2211]

The Big Bang Theory.

 

[buster poser]

Office USA stopped the note-for-note ripoff after the first season. It got infinitely better after its first season, when it became its own thing. I do agree.. the exact ripoff thing was a bad look, luckily it didn't last long. By season 2, it was a different animal entirely.

It did jump the shark once Steve Carell left, though.

Game of thrones, exactly. I think it started the season before that, but it was forgiven because fans were looking forward to the grand finale.

Fair enough on US Office... I came back to it a couple of times and it still didn't work for me fully, but no points off there. Millions of people loved it, and I am definitely in the out group there.

Totally agree on GoT... you're right, it did start the season prior, and there were hints of them speeding (sloppily) to various resolutions. I was legit angry after it was over.

Another that made me angry... X-Files. When Duchovny left but Scully took a phone call from him or something... good god. No disrespect to the great Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish, but those were hard to watch.

 

[dlew919]

Breaking bad when *Spoilers*


Mike walks Walt in to the factory to kill him and Walt talks him out of it. Rubbish. Mike was too rich, too jaded, and too tired to fall for it. Show should have ended there. I struggled through the last episodes just to have Walt have his Peter sellers on the party moment at the end.

 

[Joshtheguitarguy]

Family guy.

 

[Sconnie]

I have really enjoyed the schadenfreude for Game of Thrones fans after spending an entire decade highly invested in a TV show only to have it all ruined in one fell swoop. Priceless.

I really enjoy the quarter-hour block of Adult Swim's irreverent shows, so little invested but high payoff when they land. So I guess my contribution here would be every single one of their shows that they try to bump up to the half-hour block, the entire show will be ruined because of that change. Metalocalypse is the unfortunate easy example of this.

 

[KirbyBarba]

The Andy Griffith show after Barney left and they went to color.

 

[nickmsmith]

Fair enough on US Office... I came back to it a couple of times and it still didn't work for me fully, but no points off there. Millions of people loved it, and I am definitely in the out group there.

Totally agree on GoT... you're right, it did start the season prior, and there were hints of them speeding (sloppily) to various resolutions. I was legit angry after it was over.

Another that made me angry... X-Files. When Duchovny left but Scully took a phone call from him or something... good god. No disrespect to the great Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish, but those were hard to watch.

yep. I was a big GOT fan. I've never seen a show go from almost universally loved to universally reviled in the matter of a month or so. I really have no desire to ever sit through it again. I'm surprised they're going ahead with spinoff type shows. GoT is over, for sure.

 

[buster poser]

I have really enjoyed the schadenfreude for Game of Thrones fans after spending an entire decade highly invested in a TV show only to have it all ruined in one fell swoop. Priceless.

What's funny is I didn't watch more than the first episode until season four. I got laid off, and for four weeks I job searched in the morning, and watched 2-3 GOTs after lunch. I never got super invested in it (unlike the missus who was down from day one), just not a big fantasy guy, but it was a really good show for a time there and they blew it in spectacular fashion. Like going to see the Stones and after a career-spanning set they come out and encore with Wonderful Christmastime and We Built this City.

 

[Sconnie]

What's funny is I didn't watch more than the first episode until season four. I got laid off, and for four weeks I job searched in the morning, and watched 2-3 GOTs after lunch. I never got super invested in it (unlike the missus who was down from day one), just not a big fantasy guy, but it was a really good show for a time there and they blew it in spectacular fashion. Like going to see the Stones and after a career-spanning set they come out and encore with Wonderful Christmastime and We Built this City.

I totally hear ya. I often pluck certain eras out of shows I like, cause when they're good they're good. I'm not even sure GOT jumped the shark since it was right at the end that they blew it.

And wow what you just described is pretty depressing... yikes

 

[buster poser]

I totally hear ya. I often pluck certain eras out of shows I like, cause when they're good they're good. I'm not even sure GOT jumped the shark since it was right at the end that they blew it.

And wow what you just described is pretty depressing... yikes

Most definitely; Simpsons and Sopranos definitely fit there for me. I wish I could do it with GOT, but the whole show was about that build to the end. Mostly I was mad that I let my wife finally convince me to watch it, I did like it, and then they did THAT.

I did think it was hilarious that people were so upset they were actually writing letters/petitions to the showrunners and Martin or showing up to conventions and going off on the actors there, or on twitter. Like I was ticked off, but to the same degree that an expected package was late. People demanding they rewrite the last season = heavy lols. Take a step back folks.

 

[Chandlerman]

Always Sunny has been in serious decline in the last few seasons.