Shows that went on too long.

[ROC]

I do the reverse because honestly, I want to bitch on TV.

I don't like the fact that Scrubs has went on this long because I really hate a show that's went on so long that I once had a tangible connection to continue to go on and on and on with me having no feelings of whether it stays or not. I don't have that connection anymore, what does it matter? To tell the truth, it probably should've ended somewhere during the Liz Banks/JD story arc.

Friends is obvious, too, of course. Even NewsRadio, which I'll rave to the death, was painful after Hartman's passing, which you get the sense that while they were trying, Hartman was such a valuable piece to that show that Jon Lovitz, while funny, is no comedic comparison to. Not to mention, of course there's the fact that in season 5, they finally seemed to succumb to a lot of the tampering that NBC had been trying to do with it.

[Jimmy]

I'll disagree on Friends. While some series wern't quite as good as others, I really enjoyed all ten series - and I wouldn't have even one of them cut. Friends had a perfect ending episode and it's one of my favourite series of all time. Out of interest, ROC, when do you think it should've been cut?

[probablyoliver]

I'd say Friends had a massive dip in quality somewhere around Season 7 (with the cracks starting to show a little earlier), but it more then made up for it by picking the quality right back up for the tenth season. I wouldn't say it went on too long because even at its weakest it had some great moments, but I can definitely see why someone would think it slightly overstayed it's welcome.

For me it's Frasier. Anything after Daphne and Niles getting together is almost painful to watch.

[ROC]

I'll disagree on Friends. While some series wern't quite as good as others, I really enjoyed all ten series - and I wouldn't have even one of them cut. Friends had a perfect ending episode and it's one of my favourite series of all time. Out of interest, ROC, when do you think it should've been cut?

About the time the whole Joey/Rachel/Ross triangle got into full bore, really. I'm still kind of annoyed that it became a punchline how Ross made her pregnant in the first place (lol, somehow one of the guys broke out of the condom and was resilient). And while the show wasn't downright horrid, it went from being sitcom that attempted to address slight issues of reality (post-college friends, some making it in the world, some not) to a show that was more how the gang can act like their archetypes this week. And yeah, sitcoms do have characters that act like their archetypes and live in a non-reality just by nature of being a sitcom, but after a while, it's a bit enough.

[EddieRuckus]

For me it's That 70's Show. There were some great laughs and moments in the last few seasons, but it wasn't as great as the first 4 or 5. Really sucked when Topher left.

[Timmoru Suzuki]

The Simpsons. It hasn't been good in the slightest since Season Ten. It's a little upsetting to look back on just how good a show it was around the Season 4/5/6 mark then watch a new episode.

I think I agree with Split about Friends. Sure, later on the characters DID become more and more archetypal, and there were occasional dips in quality, but overall I kept laughing until the end.

[stokeriño]

Babylon 5 should never have had a fifth season. Going 'back' and carrying on after the season 4 finale was just silly.

[Asuka's Gonna Kill You]

Never Friends, I actually thought it got BETTER as time went by. While I enjoyed the first season or two, I honestly loved the later series compared to the beginning of it all. I just felt like they managed to push out the rest of the seasons brilliantly and somehow make certain things fresh. Am I also one of the few people who actually loved the Joey/Rachel stuff? While I always knew Ross/Rachel were meant for each other, at one point I really wanted to see Joey/Rachel actually work, but knew it never really could.

I'd agree on The Simpsons, simply because I feel it's got to a point where it's unwatchable for me. The show just seemed to change dramatically, from the drawings to parts of the voice overs, it almost makes me cringe watching the newer episodes. Fantastic in it's days and in a way I see why it's ran as long as it has, but I just cant bare to watch it any more.

[Benji]

Friends isn't consistent, but it's always funny, all ten seasons had great and poor moments, but it's the only show in my DVD collection that I can throw on ANY season at ANY time and enjoy no matter what episodes are on.

Simpsons and Scrubs are my big two, there's something intangible that's missing from them now, call it "spirit", the latest Scrubs season showed promise again but it still didn't feel the same.

[efwa4life]

The Drew Carey Show went on way too long. After Kate left and Winfred Lauder got bought out by that stupid .com company, it all went to hell in a handbasket.

[MGW]

While I love most of it to death, Only Fools & Horses went too far. The final three were great, and it should have ended there, but it was brought back, and it was a step too far IMO.

Friends didnt go on too long, it just went a bit sucky for series 7 and 8. And I think Simpsons has picked up again in the last season or so, I think its got its edge back, but that may just be me.

[NobBe Nobbs]

Only Fools should have ended after Del and Rodney became millionaires, I've always thought. There was just no need to take it all away from them.

[apsham]

I'll just step in to say fuck you to anyone who has said or will say The Simpsons.

Thank you.

And good night.

[Emperor Fuckshit]

By being conceived of and casted, "Friends" outstayed its welcome.

"The Simpsons" is an obvious and good choice, no matter how vigorously ApSham will fuck me as a result of my naming it. I don't think it's possible necessarily to mark an exact beginning of the decline or a time when the show went from being essentially worthwhile to essentially useless, but there were a number of slowly-realised, negative changes which eventually robbed the show of any of its merit.

Part of its decline had to do simply with the show's success. As it built up a wide fanbase and an extensive canon, the show became besieged with a tendency towards smug, pleased-with-itself self-referentiality. It also became increasingly difficult to take the show seriously as a satirical force as it plastered the visages of its characters all over any tatty merchandise it could get a hold of and, perhaps even more seriously, got into bed with the Fox network. The attempts to explain such moves away via regular on-screen references to these phenomena didn't really do much to sweeten the pill -- as some music critic commented in relation to a later Pistols album, shamelessness isn't a virtue. The show's growing mainstream fame also enabled the producers to rope in whichever big-name guest star they felt like at every turn, frequently without any regard for the appropriateness of the casting decision. Obviously, some of the choices led to fantastic running narratives (Kelsey Grammar most obviously), but most seemed to be just a way of contriving some kind of spectacle around otherwise unremarkable episodes (Tony Blair, Ricky Gervais, probably countless others).

Ultimately, it seems that -- particularly under Ian Maxtone-Graham -- the show's writers just felt that they could do no wrong. The "Itchy and Scratchy and Poochie Show" episode consists of basically a twenty minute tirade against the show's fanbase, and is one of the absolute nadirs for OFF. The "animated sit-com" feel -- complete with subtle narratives, consistent and nuanced characterisation and big, booming trad gags -- was slowly eliminated in favour of a non-sequiturish "show me the funny" style which perhaps reflected a desire to "keep up with" shows like "South Park" and "Family Guy". A lot of people point to the "Homer's Enemy" episode as a point at which any attempts by the show's writers to glean pathos from situations involving the family were basically exhausted -- Homer, at that point, was an obnoxious jerk who deserved whatever he got.

I think that "Family Guy" is the Platonic ideal of a show that should've stopped at one season. At the time, a lot of its devices seemed genuinely fresh and exciting -- the chronology-leaping cutaways, the openly tokenistic nature of the plots and characterisations, the Stewie character generally. Especially after more writers began to be employed, though, the show developed a kind of grating obnoxiousness very very quickly. What seemed innovative soon became passée, and the writers just couldn't re-invent the wheel appropriately or switch to a more trad style. It didn't help that a million imitators/competitors popped-up soon afterwards. And, whilst the show had always made a big deal about how "un-PC!!!!!" it was, those elements seemed to rise to the fore very quickly during season four or so. The writers' self-involved jubilation at how SHOCKING they were being by breaking so many (non-existent, tedious) "taboos" became the hardest thing about the show to stomach.

e: The final series of "A Bit of Fry and Laurie" was weak as piss, but I'm not sure to what degree that coiuld've been foreseen.

Edited July 6, 2009 by Emperor Fuckshit

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Only Fools should have ended after Del and Rodney became millionaires, I've always thought. There was just no need to take it all away from them.

Prexactly.

[Lowerdeck]

The Simpsons - pretty much from like Season 10 onward (and was showing signs of decline even before that) has been a shell of its former self. I don't really catch too many newer episodes anymore. I do feel things have slightly gotten better as of recent, but still nowhere near as good as the mid 90s era stuff.

Family Guy - I can't really think of that many good episodes once it came back from cancellation. Now it's just too crappy for me to care about. It has gotten way too preachy, especially Brian. Stewie isn't as good anymore. Peter and the manatee jokes are just shit now. It should have ended a couple years ago.

Most people think I'm mad when I say American Dad is much better, but it really is. Family Guy became one manatee joke after another, and a bunch of preachy anti-Republican spots between them.

[Guest Mr. Potato Head]

Backing efwa up on The Drew Carey Show. I could deal with it without Kate for a while, but when Drew started going through a new girlfriend every week and confiding in his bus driver, it wasn't the same show. And it wasn't good.

Also all reality TV. Every premise is great once or twice, why is Survivor/Big Brother/etc. still going on other than to churn out new flash-in-the-pans for our pop culture industry?

[YI]

I got into Friends about a year ago, downloaded all of it. But it got 'shit' after like season 4/5...with only odd moments of brilliance afterwards (The Europe Story, Monica/Chandler)...but by the end of season8, I just gave up watching. The finale was shit because "Ross and Rachel get together!!!"...WOW!!! WHO GIVES A FUCKING SHIT!?!?! Season 5...season 6...maybe...yes...but at this point, I don't give a flying fuck...they've been apart longer than they ever were together.

[Darloboy]

The Simpsons, easily. Just not very funny any more, and a lot of the celebrity appearances seem pointless and crowbarred in so they can say "Hey look, here's [celebrity]!", whereas in the older episodes the guest stars usually actually brought something to their episode.

Edited July 7, 2009 by Darloboy

[the machine]

Drew Carey went from being one of the best comedies on television to unwatchable in about two years. Scrubs should not have come back. Family Guy jumped the shark BEFORE it was canceled in terms of McFarlane's creativity. It just wasn't something with a long shelf-life.

Is Smallville still a show? Shouldn't it just be called "Young Superman" or something by now? The character's got to be about 25 by now.

Ultimately, it seems that -- particularly under Ian Maxtone-Graham -- the show's writers just felt that they could do no wrong. The "Itchy and Scratchy and Poochie Show" episode consists of basically a twenty minute tirade against the show's fanbase, and is one of the absolute nadirs for OFF. The "animated sit-com" feel -- complete with subtle narratives, consistent and nuanced characterisation and big, booming trad gags -- was slowly eliminated in favour of a non-sequiturish "show me the funny" style which perhaps reflected a desire to "keep up with" shows like "South Park" and "Family Guy". A lot of people point to the "Homer's Enemy" episode as a point at which any attempts by the show's writers to glean pathos from situations involving the family were basically exhausted -- Homer, at that point, was an obnoxious jerk who deserved whatever he got.

I'm all for Simpsons bashing, but calling Itchy, Scratchy and Poochie the nadir is missing the mark by a LOT. A twenty minute tirade against the show's fans? Wasn't it at least as much a commentary on the mindset that long-running shows need new characters to stay fresh? Plus, it had a reasonably well-constructed story and didn't end with a series of increasingly stupid non sequiturs. Plus it has at least a few lines that are pretty good. "When are they gonna get to the fireworks factory?!" Try laughing at an episode like Kill the Alligator and Run or Tennis the Menace. I don't think there's a single good episode in season 12. Maybe the one with Sideshow Bob trying to kill Krusty, but it's easily one of the worst Sideshow Bob episodes out there. Mike Scully taking over along with Matt Groening leaving the show and guys like James L. Brooks being long gone meant there really wasn't anybody left who cared about the original goals of the show and we were left with a more joke heavy cartoon instead of a sitcom style show with strong characters. Plus there was a trend to try to write Swartzwelder jokes, but really nobody else on the staff was ever going to be John Swartzwelder. Even Swartzwelder had run out of material after 8 seasons.