What long running tv shows did NOT jump the shark?

[BMalion]

The Outer Limits.

[jackdavinci]

It's debatable as to whether Lost ultimately failed as a show, but I don't think there's any obvious actual shark moment (other than the literal one).

I don't think we can count anything that happens in the last season of a show as being able to qualify as a shark moment unless it directly led to cancellation.

HIMYM isn't over but it's nearing the end and I think it has remained of pretty consistent quality, and if anything has just gotten more and more popular.

[jackdavinci]

Originally Posted by Ephemera

You think most Buffy fans would say that seasons six and seven weren't terrible? I like them personally, but I know I am in the minority.

Six had a great arc, but some cringeworthy moments. Seven had a stupid arc but some great individual episodes. It took a rewatch to figure out and recontextualize my initial impressions.

[grude]

Originally Posted by jackdavinci

It's debatable as to whether Lost ultimately failed as a show, but I don't think there's any obvious actual shark moment (other than the literal one).
.

I'd say Jacob's flashback episode was the moment when the shark was jumped.

[Corcaigh]

Originally Posted by Ethilrist

I felt that Stargate SG-1 showed a fairly consistent development throughout its ten-year run, spawning several movies & spinoff series along the way, without any particular feeling of betrayal or insensitivity I normally associate with shark-jumping efforts (except for the publishing company's end-of-credits animation showing a shark on a bicycle which jumps onto an anvil, but I don't think that counts). I haven't watched all of Atlantis or any of Universe, so I don't know how well they stack up in the long run, but if you're looking for a full-run TV series on DVD that remains consistently entertaining through to the end, I nominate SG-1.

Agreed. I know a lot of people hated the show after RDA left, but I thought it kept going quite well!

SGA in generally considered to have jumped the shark at the end of season 3 and the two final seasons were utter crap.

Originally Posted by Tibby or Not Tibby

Happy Days never jumped the shark.

I dunno, I changed channel during the commercial break

Originally Posted by drewtwo99

Did you just make that up, or is that a legitimate term for a TV show that starts weak and gets better If it's not, we totally need to start using it as such.

Not made up "grew a beard" is an actual term used frequently to describe a show that gets better.

[Namkcalb]

South Park has aged and matured like a fine wine.

[Smid]

Originally Posted by Patty O'Furniture

I don't think Friends did, although they came close in the last season when they toyed with pairing up Joey and Rachel. You know the writers are running out of ideas when they start thinking "Okay, now who hasn't slept with whom yet?"

I would say it did around season 5, when they took the two most neurotic and good characters (Chandler and Monica) and made them go out. It lost a lot there, the next few seasons were weaker, and it did recover a bit towards the end, but never as good as first few seasons...

[Smid]

Originally Posted by Ethilrist

I felt that Stargate SG-1 showed a fairly consistent development throughout its ten-year run, spawning several movies & spinoff series along the way, without any particular feeling of betrayal or insensitivity I normally associate with shark-jumping efforts (except for the publishing company's end-of-credits animation showing a shark on a bicycle which jumps onto an anvil, but I don't think that counts). I haven't watched all of Atlantis or any of Universe, so I don't know how well they stack up in the long run, but if you're looking for a full-run TV series on DVD that remains consistently entertaining through to the end, I nominate SG-1.

I always felt it kind of did when half the cast left, and the cast of Farscape joined and the Ori were brought it. But I believe that might have been to do with being suprised at not being cancelled...

[Smid]

Originally Posted by BMalion

Monty Python's Flying Circus.

Definitely jumped the shark, Cleese left and Chapmans influence ran riot, series 4 is barely watchable. Pick an episode and watch one, it will ruin your memories of Python...

[BMalion]

Originally Posted by Smid

Definitely jumped the shark, Cleese left and Chapmans influence ran riot, series 4 is barely watchable. Pick an episode and watch one, it will ruin your memories of Python...

Nope, it's different but stiil good for me.

[John DiFool]

I recall an abundance of big titty jokes, and not much else. Almost all of their "classic" sketches come from seasons 1-3.

[foolsguinea]

Originally Posted by Smid

that might have been to do with being suprised at not being cancelled...

That was a repeated issue for SG-1.

[WarmNPrickly]

Originally Posted by John DiFool

I would have quit watching (by the above point) if they had NOT resolved the Daphne/Niles thing satisfactorily, instead of continually toying with the relationship, almost coming clean with it all on several occasions (worst one: when Daphne thought Niles was talking about someone else, and not her, when she eavesdropped on one of his phone conversations-or something, and he all-too-obligingly allowed her to continue thinking so). I guess that would have been an inverse-shark-jumping-by-reasons-of-stagnation-and-disrespecting-your-audience.

This is IMO one of the most difficult pieces of long running show. The romantic tension is a main subject line of the show, but leaving it unresolved for too long frustrates some viewers. I think that the tension should never be resolved. Every time a show resolves it, it goes down hill.

[Fear Itself]

Originally Posted by WarmNPrickly

This is IMO one of the most difficult pieces of long running show. The romantic tension is a main subject line of the show, but leaving it unresolved for too long frustrates some viewers. I think that the tension should never be resolved. Every time a show resolves it, it goes down hill.

Are there any long running shows (at least 3-4 seasons) that never resolved a sexual tension relationship?

[johnpost]

Originally Posted by Fear Itself

Are there any long running shows (at least 3-4 seasons) that never resolved a sexual tension relationship?

The Avengers (1960s) with various females sort of.

[billfish678]

Did Marlin Perkins every have poor ole Jim wrestle a shark on any episode of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom ?

[SecretaryofEvil]

I agree with including Breaking Bad. The fourth season was just as strong as the first.

I also agree with Star Trek DS9. The later seasons of DS9, once the Dominion War gets going, are better than some of the early seasons.

I'm going to disagree with the people who want to include the Sopranos. I loved the early seasons, but I found the last two seasons almost unwatchable.

[runner pat]

Originally Posted by SecretaryofEvil

I'm going to disagree with the people who want to include the Sopranos. I loved the early seasons, but I found the last two seasons almost unwatchable.

But they still ended the series on a high note.

d&r

[Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor]

Originally Posted by Namkcalb

South Park has aged and matured like a fine wine.

No, like fine cheese.


Fine cheese, that has been cut.

[oreally]

er FYI "Jump the Shark" doesn't mean "went downhill."

"Jump the Shark" means using some kind of "gimmick" to boost declining ratings, the phrase made famous by Happy Days where Fonzie literally jumped over a shark tank as they visited Hollywood. gag.

Anyway, what came to mind for me, including many already mentioned - just trying to sum up IMO:

MASH
Mary Tyler Moore
Simpsons
Bonanza
Gunsmoke
Dick Van Dyke
Andy Griffith
(Really almost anything from about 1970 on down as I don't think such a concept entered their minds back then.)

Frasier is the one series I think that did this and it made it work. And the show kept its quality for the most part IMO, although I agree it took a slight dip after that and I never liked the idea of those 2 finally getting together. Not believable.

And I agree Friends is the all-time winner on this one, though I had already started losing interest as it catered more and more to a teeny bopper crowd with all the "relationship drama" :double gag:

[Olentzero]

What about House? My girlfriend is on a re-watch kick and we're into season 6; while the medical mysteries obviously aren't going to change from one show to another, the plot arcs with the team never got too absurd or unbelievable - and the resolution of the sexual tension between House and Cuddy was, I gotta admit, pretty damned spectacular.

Any takers?

[MyFootsZZZ]

I don't think The Larry Sanders Show ever really 'Jumped'. I think it's last season was it's best.

I miss the show so much.

[John DiFool]

Actually it does-in the case of Happy Days the shark-jumping in question merely served to confirm the show's already-in-progress decline.

[lost4life]

Originally Posted by oreally

er FYI "Jump the Shark" doesn't mean "went downhill."

"Jump the Shark" means using some kind of "gimmick" to boost declining ratings, the phrase made famous by Happy Days where Fonzie literally jumped over a shark tank as they visited Hollywood. gag.

Anyway, what came to mind for me, including many already mentioned - just trying to sum up IMO:

MASH
Mary Tyler Moore
Simpsons
Bonanza
Gunsmoke
Dick Van Dyke
Andy Griffith
(Really almost anything from about 1970 on down as I don't think such a concept entered their minds back then.)

Frasier is the one series I think that did this and it made it work. And the show kept its quality for the most part IMO, although I agree it took a slight dip after that and I never liked the idea of those 2 finally getting together. Not believable.

And I agree Friends is the all-time winner on this one, though I had already started losing interest as it catered more and more to a teeny bopper crowd with all the "relationship drama" :double gag:

This is what I was thinking. AFAIK, Jumping the Shark doesn't mean the show started sucking, it means they changed things up in a horrible way to improve ratings. Like, if Seinfeld adopted a smart mouthed kid who was always getting into trouble.
A show can be lousy and not jump the shark.

[bup]

Originally Posted by oreally

"Jump the Shark" means using some kind of "gimmick" to boost declining ratings, the phrase made famous by Happy Days where Fonzie literally jumped over a shark tank as they visited Hollywood. gag.

According to the dearly departed jumptheshark.com, it's an umbrella term that marks the point when a series changes on an unfixable downhill course - not necessarily caused by a gimmick, and not necessarily caused by declining ratings.

(Really almost anything from about 1970 on down as I don't think such a concept entered their minds back then.)

Admittedly Ted McGinley was too young to go around spreading his magic, but off the top of my head:

Andy Griffith jumped hard when Barney left.
The Flintstones trotted out the Great Gazoo.
Lucy and Desi moved to the suburbs.
Mr. Ed and Wilbur became spies.
Batman brought out Batgirl.

[Intergalactic Gladiator]

Originally Posted by bup

Batman brought out Batgirl.

I don't see this as a jump the shark moment.

[Greekfreak]

Cheers was consistently excellent until the end. Not so its contemporaries like The Cosby Show or Roseanne, which was awful in the last two or three seasons it ran.

Frasier almost jumped the shark when Niles and Daphne got married--there's definitely a dip in quality in the last two seasons, but not so much that I'd say it ruined the show.

Six Feet Under was as close to seamless television as I think I'll ever see.

Cold Case was consistently great. Ditto for NYPD Blue, a show that weathered MANY cast changes.

[ianzin]

The Shield never jumped the shark, and the final 4 or 5 episodes rank with the best that television drama has ever offered.

[Justin_Bailey]

Originally Posted by Greekfreak

Six Feet Under was as close to seamless television as I think I'll ever see.

How's life in 2002?

[JackieLikesVariety]

I Love Lucy never jumped, NYC or Connecticut.

[Amateur Barbarian]

Originally Posted by billfish678

Deadwood and The Wire would also have my vote.

Season three of Deadwood was one long shark jump. IMVHO. Thirteen eps to nowhere.

[ZipperJJ]

Everybody Loves Raymond? I've only caught a handful of episodes via rerun but it has always seemed consistent. The only thing different was Robert getting married.

Can anyone comment on Leave It To Beaver?

[kunilou]

Originally Posted by ZipperJJ

Can anyone comment on Leave It To Beaver?

Season 5, Episode 16 Beaver the Bunny. In real life, Jerry Mathers was 13 when the episode was filmed -- too old to put any kid in a bunny suit.

(Before anyone asks, Peter Billingsley was 11 when he did A Christmas Story.)

[kayT]

Ally McBeal?
I agree with NYPD Blue.

[James Otto Sweet Heart]

I think that Reba's show could have stuck around for about two and a half more seasons.

God bless you and her always!!!

Holly

[Zebra]

Gunsmoke


And is shave the head the same as grew a beard? I'm thinking DS9.

I would say Star Trek, the entire thing, jumped the shark with 7 of 9.

[gatorslap]

Kids in the Hall never jumped.

Originally Posted by WarmNPrickly

This is IMO one of the most difficult pieces of long running show. The romantic tension is a main subject line of the show, but leaving it unresolved for too long frustrates some viewers. I think that the tension should never be resolved. Every time a show resolves it, it goes down hill.

I don't think That 70's Show went downhill when the sexual tension between Eric and Donna was resolved. It still jumped the shark, but not until much later.

[Gerald II]

Never Jumped the Shark:

ST:TNG: I was never a big fan of SF or even Star Trek but I always enjoyed watching new episodes of this show.

Cheers: Yeah, I guess the Diane era was better because everything was newer back then, for example I had no idea that Frasier was originally Diane's fiancee. But I always like the reruns, even when Woody was running for political office.

Nightcourt [?]: Haven't seen all the episodes, but I've seen the different seasons and they all seem pretty insane in a good way.

Southpark: love this show.

DID jump the shark:

Seinfeld: Seinfeld said he wanted to end on a good note but the show started getting bad when the main writer left. All of a sudden the characters became less and less likable and the social faux pas begin to feel forced. There was still some great stuff here and there but I only enjoy the Larry David written reruns.

Frasier: For me it started going downhill when the radio station got bought out but the final nail was when Daphne was engaged to that really short guy only to make Niles look like a more believable love interest. Once they got together both characters lost something. When Daphne's family moved in that was worse.

Simpsons: When Guest-Starring-Celebrities as themselves kept happening. I liked it better when celebrities voiced new characters. Like Michael Jackson voicing an obese mental patient who THINKS he's Michael Jackson, or Niles voicing Sideshow Bob's younger brother.

[Fear Itself]

Originally Posted by gatorslap

I don't think That 70's Show went downhill when the sexual tension between Eric and Donna was resolved. It still jumped the shark, but not until much later.

When Red had a heart attack. Not necessarily because of the heart attack, but at about the same time, all the story lines went piriform.

[ftg]

Originally Posted by kayT

Ally McBeal?

A canonical case of shark jumping. She suddenly has a teenage daughter she didn't know about.

[Koxinga]

I think Star Trek: STTNG came close a few times in a few of the Brent Spiner Showcase Episodes. And, frankly, I stopped watching after Lor was shown leading some group of rogue band of Borg; I didn't stick around to learn what the hell that was all about. But it recovered for the most part, perhaps.

[Gerald II]

That's funny because I stopped watching after the season finale "All Good Things..." not because it was bad but because I thought that was theseries finale.

Then I saw it was still on and watched the Borg/Lor season finale. Then I really did think that was the series finale.

[Santos L Halper]

Originally Posted by Gerald II

That's funny because I stopped watching after the season finale "All Good Things..." not because it was bad but because I thought that was theseries finale.

Then I saw it was still on and watched the Borg/Lor season finale. Then I really did think that was the series finale.

Huh? 'All good things...' was the series finale. The show ran seven seasons and the Borg/Lor episode (called 'Descent') was the season six finale.

[Gerald II]

Originally Posted by Santos L Halper

Huh? 'All good things...' was the series finale. The show ran seven seasons and the Borg/Lor episode (called 'Descent') was the season six finale.

Ah, okay. I got it backwards. I thought "Descent" was the series finale and stopped watching. I think it was also because ST: Deep Space Nine started and I thought that meant Next Generation was ending. Only much later did I see commercials for new episodes like the one with Data wearing a mask and being possessed by a mythic deity.

"All Good Things..." was a great send off for that series.

[Scupper]

Originally Posted by Colaveare

Battleship Galactica (2005)

Battlestar

Originally Posted by Colaveare

Doctor Who (2005)
Though I am still unsure about current season. 50/50 depending on second part that is restarting soon.

I'm pretty sure DW is Shark-Jump-Proof. There have been some truly, monumentally stupid episodes of that show and it just keeps on chugging, no matter how many times they dilute the Weeping Angels.

I guess nanobots and love CAN pretty much fix anything.*




*Except that pesky Dalek/Cybermen infestation. Guys are more persistent than bedbugs.

[koeeoaddi]

China Beach never went off the rails that I can remember.

[Lamia]

Originally Posted by Fear Itself

Are there any long running shows (at least 3-4 seasons) that never resolved a sexual tension relationship?

A couple of years ago I had a thread on a similar topic: "Will they or won't they" couples...who didn't

[Zebra]

Originally Posted by Colaveare

Battleship Galactica (2005)

BSG jumped Shark Week. So many shark jumps in that series.

All Along the Watchtower. (a song from 5000 years in the future?)

The "Guest star of the week who dies at the end of the episode" part was pretty annoying. Introduced some good ideas that were never thought of again.

Starbuck well they totally screwed that pooch.


The biggest shark jump was the "movie" that they had between seasons with the back story of the Pegasus. My god that was bad.

[oft wears hats]

American Dad started out a bit shaky but came into its own after the first few episodes. It's been quite consistently entertaining ever since.

However, the latest season isn't as strong as some of the earlier ones, and some characters are definitely starting to get that exaggerated feel that often happens in a comedy show that runs too long. It could be putting on the water skis, but it hasn't quite yet.

I think it's got a much higher quality to length ratio than Family Guy, which definitely jumped the shark, though I couldn't tell you exactly when.

[Johnny Bravo]

Originally Posted by Gedd

Any takers on Monk? It had some ups and downs but seemed pretty good over all to me.

I'll second Monk. Not only did I find it consistently entertaining throughout, but I found the final episode to be very satisfying.