# What is the worst TV show decay you've seen? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 2, 2016, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002 "2016-02-02T23:58:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/181 "2016-02-11T16:30:21Z")
Agree with **The Andy Griffith Show**. The color episodes (with out Barney) are unwatchable. My wife and I are currently binge watching **Third Rock from the Sun**. Brilliant show until you hit the final season. Then it’s just the characters doing “wacky things” for the sake of doing wacky things. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/182 "2016-02-11T16:37:10Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > **Ray Donovan** : first season was pretty good and showed some good potential. Then Jon Voight showed up. Exactly!! Man, I have rarely hated a TV persona more than Jon Voight’s character in that show. And Ray’s wife is a close second, btw. But the first season was very solid. I kept watching thru the 2nd season, but gave up after that. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/183 "2016-02-11T16:38:05Z")
> [@Soylent\_Juicy](#): > > I LOVE **Parks & Recreation** but I think they pretty much phoned in their final season. > > I didn’t even bother watching Season 9 of **Scrubs**. Season 8 ended on such a beautiful note that I didn’t want my mind poisoned. Season 9 of Scrubs was intended(and kind of is) a spin-off. It’s called Scrubs Med School or something. They wouldn’t let the creator call it a spin-off, but he did get the subtitle in the opening anyway. It’s better than you might expect. Dave Franco is hilarious on it. Think of it as season 1 to a new show. ---
**Author:** ![Yodalicious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yodalicious/32/8195_2.png) [@Yodalicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yodalicious)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/184 "2016-02-11T17:38:36Z")
I think the current winner is Castle. The first 5 season are very enjoyable. The last two or three, since Castle and Beckett got together, have gotten worse every year. Season 7 was so bad that Mommypants and I quit watching altogether. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/185 "2016-02-11T17:48:57Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > _Masterpiece Theatre_ should probably retire as an anthology series. I realize that WGBH Boston has a grant under its auspices that supports buying the mini-series from the UK (and once, Australia), but considering that A&E and BBCA now do this, \*Masterpiece Theatre \*isn’t special anymore, and really has no purpose as an anthology series. If it still had Alastair Cooke making introductions and comments, then it would well be worth it, but there’s a different person every time, never the commanding presence of Alastair Cooke, and never someone with the insight, or ever the recap for people who might have missed an episode (which, let’s face it, with DVR and On Demand doesn’t happen anymore) that Cooke had. They don’t even play the full theme anymore. > > WGBH can still bring mini-series to the US, but I think it’s time to drop the frame of the\* Masterpiece Theatre\* anthology. > > I loved _MT_ as a kid, especially a tween and teen, and the theme got me all stirred up. The truncated one they run now just deflates me. PBS is still broadcast. You can watch it without cable. So I’ll be glad for Masterpiece to continue. The bloated mess that is _Downton Abbey_ is winding down, so perhaps programming will improve… ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/186 "2016-02-11T17:54:11Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > The bloated mess that is _Downton Abbey_ is winding down, so perhaps programming will improve… And I think this final season is actually better than the previous few, although not as good as it in some sense should be. Having an end point in sight presumably helps. Another show which was never really _bad_ but which has gotten a strong second wind in its final season is **Mythbusters**. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/187 "2016-02-11T18:27:29Z")
> [@Laggard](#): > > The League Heavens yes. It took the usual long-running show dive of characters with quirks becoming solid caricatures of those quirks. Plus any excuse to shoe-horn a guest spot into an episode whether it needs it or not. Too bad it peaked and dived when it did – they could have had some fun with the NFL draft being in Chicago this year. Well, if we weren’t already burnt out on a thousand football players mumbling their way through their guest spot lines. ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/188 "2016-02-11T19:34:31Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Season 9 of Scrubs was intended(and kind of is) a spin-off. It’s called Scrubs Med School or something. They wouldn’t let the creator call it a spin-off, but he did get the subtitle in the opening anyway. > > It’s better than you might expect. Dave Franco is hilarious on it. > > Think of it as season 1 to a new show. Thank you, maybe I will give it a chance. “Under The Dome” became unwatchable about halfway through the first season. I had to actually turn it off mid-episode and delete it from my favourites. ---
**Author:** ![typoink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@typoink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typoink)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/189 "2016-02-11T19:44:07Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > Too bad it peaked and dived when it did – they could have had some fun with the NFL draft being in Chicago this year. Well, aside from the part where the only way that show could seem LESS like it’s actually set in Chicago is, well, if they stopped using the same half dozen exterior shots they’ve been using since season one. I remember one episode where they were ordering pizza…and got Pizza Hut. It’s one of the only times I’ve heard my girlfriend yell “bullshit!” at the TV. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/190 "2016-02-11T20:03:35Z")
> [@Soylent\_Juicy](#): > > “Under The Dome” became unwatchable about halfway through the first season. I had to actually turn it off mid-episode and delete it from my favourites. The decay was almost immediate. What a terrible show. I hated it right after the pilot. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/191 "2016-02-11T20:08:08Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > The decay was almost immediate. What a terrible show. I hated it right after the pilot. The book sucked, too, and I’m a HUGE King fan. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/192 "2016-02-11T20:13:05Z")
> [@Idle\_Thoughts](#): > > Speaking as someone who just started Heroes yesterday, this thread is not filling me with great confidence. Adjust your expectations. There’s a lot to enjoy about the first season, but Heroes had serious problems right from the beginning. It did certain things really well, but the problems with writing, certain characters, and pacing are there - and not only did the writing/production staff never learn from past mistakes, they sometimes made them worse. Then the second season got slammed by the writer’s strike and any chance they may have had to fix the show pretty much died. If you’re expecting a great show, you’re going to be disappointed. If you’re expecting something that’s mostly ok-ish that’s occasionally amazing, then you’re watching the right show. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/193 "2016-02-11T20:17:44Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > Adjust your expectations. > There’s a lot to enjoy about the first season, but Heroes had serious problems right from the beginning. It did certain things really well, but the problems with writing, certain characters, and pacing are there - and not only did the writing/production staff never learn from past mistakes, they sometimes made them worse. Then the second season got slammed by the writer’s strike and any chance they may have had to fix the show pretty much died. > If you’re expecting a great show, you’re going to be disappointed. If you’re expecting something that’s mostly ok-ish that’s occasionally amazing, then you’re watching the right show. I thought they made two mistakes: 1. Time travel. Never a good idea. 2. the fell in love with the villain Sylar, played by a crappy B-actor. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/194 "2016-02-11T22:12:51Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > The book sucked, too, and I’m a HUGE King fan. I liked the book, but the series was unwatchable. We called it “Under the Dumb.” ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/195 "2016-02-11T22:26:14Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > Then the second season got slammed by the writer’s strike and any chance they may have had to fix the show pretty much died. Also the way the second season started annoyed a lot of people. The show is ten years old but I’ll spoiler it for Idle’s sake. What with switching up the focus to new main characters and how whiny they were put me of the show until later in the season. > [@DrDeth](#): > > I thought they made two mistakes: > > 1. Time travel. Never a good idea. > 2. the fell in love with the villain Sylar, played by a crappy B-actor. 1. Time travel is always a good idea. 2. Who or what is “the”? ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/196 "2016-02-11T22:29:05Z")
Another vote for Glee, which went from cute light entertainment to “If they just made this show up as they went along it would be better” by the end. The only thing that would have made me watch the last season would have been nudity. _Supernatural_ was a good show in its prime but has lasted twice again too long. Plots are ridiculous, nobody ever stays dead, and everything associated with the show just seems tired. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/197 "2016-02-11T22:31:19Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > Also the way the second season started annoyed a lot of people. The show is ten years old but I’ll spoiler it for Idle’s sake. > > What with switching up the focus to new main characters and how whiny they were put me of the show until later in the season. > > 1. Time travel is always a good idea. > 2. Who or what is “the”? The missing word is “showrunners” or perhaps 'writers".:smack: Time travel always shits up any scenario. Since it can solve\* any\*thing, they keep having to put strange restriction on it. Still there are paradoxes anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/198 "2016-02-11T22:53:28Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > The book sucked, too, and I’m a HUGE King fan. Book wasn’t terrible until the end. ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/199 "2016-02-11T23:09:17Z")
Broadchurch The first season had problems, but it was really, really well done. The second season? What the hell even happened? I’d be more surprised if it wasn’t Chibnall, but christ. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002/200 "2016-02-12T10:53:14Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > Heavens yes. It took the usual long-running show dive of characters with quirks becoming solid caricatures of those quirks. Plus any excuse to shoe-horn a guest spot into an episode whether it needs it or not. > > Too bad it peaked and dived when it did – they could have had some fun with the NFL draft being in Chicago this year. Well, if we weren’t already burnt out on a thousand football players mumbling their way through their guest spot lines. You can very clearly and visibly see the decay in the [IMDB graph](http://graphtv.kevinformatics.com/tt1480684), including the godawful “Sophia is dead” episode which was an outlier even in the abysmal final season. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-tv-show-decay-youve-seen/745002.md?page=11)