Smallville; about the time it actually stopped being set in Smallville; though season 9 and now the first part of 10 have saved it somewhat.
Friends; after Monica and Chandler’s wedding really ran out of steam and purpose.
Smallville; about the time it actually stopped being set in Smallville; though season 9 and now the first part of 10 have saved it somewhat.
Friends; after Monica and Chandler’s wedding really ran out of steam and purpose.
The Simpsons
I would say (don’t hit me!) Dr. Who, several times. I fully believe it is a great show, but it’s ran out of gas many times, and been saved by the fact that it ran on and so eventually got recharged over time. C’est la vie.
The Simpsons
Law and Order
All reality shows
The Office, US
The Office, US
The Office, US
Just about all successful American shows. (Any current ones that have not yet gone on too long, will do so eventually.)
Love American Style
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman
Three’s Company
Agreed.
I think it’s true that a high proportion of network shows go on too long, simply because the producers know that people will keep watching out of hope or loyalty even after the show starts to go downhill. And as long as people are watching, advertisers will buy time. I’d actually be interested to see if there’s an economic study or model charting TV show revenues against (some measure of) the declining quality of the show.
But some clearly try audience patience more than others. Some that come to mind for me are:
ER
Law and Order (all franchises)
CSI (ditto)
And, much as i hate to say it because it was, in its prime, one of the best shows ever on television:
NYPD Blue
I watched NYPD Blue right to the end, and continued to enjoy it, but it could have stopped a couple of seasons earlier without losing anything, and it also would have avoided some of the silly stuff from the last couple of years.
Had Buffy the Vampire Slayer ended in season 5 it would have ended on an extremely high note. The last two seasons include a handful of episodes that manage to save them from oblivion but for me things had peaked in season 5.
Odesio
In the last couple years of running, the writing went to hand in a hell basket, then the final blow, Duchovny left the show…
The X-Files
The X-files is a classic case of this.
Hello, simulpost buddy.
Gene Rroddenberry’s Andromeda. Should have ended when Wolfe left as head writer
Earth: Final Conflict. Should have ended after the first season, when Boon left.
ER: Should have ended when Dr. Green died.
Roseanne: Should have ended before they won the lottery . . . or a lot sooner.
All in the Family: Should have ended when Edith died.
ST:Voyager: Should have ended before Janeway and Paris turned into giant slugs and mated. (or actually, before the pilot)
More votes for The Simpsons (should have stopped after Season 8) and The X Files (Series finale should have been Mulder finding out what happened to his sister. His motivation thoughout the series was solving the mystery of Samantha’s abduction, so once he knew the truth, what else was there? 2 1/2 seasons of convoluted nonsense)
Star Trek - shouldn’t have continued without Roddenberry. We got some real turds like “Spock’s Brain” and “The Way to Eden”, which are ok on a camp level.
QFT.
QF double truth.
This was only on a year and a half. How long do you think it should have been on?
Dennis the Menace. Jay North in little kid style overalls with a slingshot and beard stubble doesn’t make a convincing Dennis.
This reminds me of the “Oh, That Rusty!” skit on SCTV. Martin Short plays just such an overgrown child character.
At the latest, I thought MASH should’ve hung it up sometime around when Radar left.