Boxset viewing - When to bale out / which episode "Jumps the shark"

buchansleftleg

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As Box-set binges have become a real phenomena now, I propose providing an essential service whereby fans of the series highlight the point to bale out, as inevitably the show starts to run out of ideas and begins to "jump the shark" with increasingly ridiculous plots / new random characters / it was all a dream!

Mid series droop - where a series has an off year but then comes back to form could also be highlighted!

To Get us started.....

Frasier

Ever-present on Channel 4 mornings i must have watched the entire series through several times. It's usually well written and has great characters. Some felt the series dipped when events between Niles and Daphne developed (No spoilers) but i think the writing held up after that until.....

Anthony Paglia appears as Daphne's brother! - With an accent that seems to be the befouled offspring of Dick van Dyke and a Wythenshawe scally, Paglia really stinks up the screen and hams it up something chronic.

There are OK episodes beyond this point but once he appears the craft, subtlety and wit of the show reduce in my opinion. Watch with subtitles while he is on and it may be worth persisting.
 

Annihilate Now!

...or later, I'm not fussy
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Battlestar Gallactica

Pretty much Season 4.5 onwards from what I can remember - its been a long time though.
 

JoaquinJoaquin

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Frasier

Ever-present on Channel 4 mornings i must have watched the entire series through several times. It's usually well written and has great characters. Some felt the series dipped when events between Niles and Daphne developed (No spoilers) but i think the writing held up after that until.....

Anthony Paglia appears as Daphne's brother! - With an accent that seems to be the befouled offspring of Dick van Dyke and a Wythenshawe scally, Paglia really stinks up the screen and hams it up something chronic.

There are OK episodes beyond this point but once he appears the craft, subtlety and wit of the show reduce in my opinion. Watch with subtitles while he is on and it may be worth persisting.
Good point on Frasier. Totally agree with you in what you are saying, That accent was horrible! The Niles \ Daphne thing I hated though I must say. Even the series finale, which I liked at the time when watching live, When I re-watched the full box set a few months ago it didn't feel the same.
 

JoaquinJoaquin

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Walking Dead

Wish I bailed out after Season 3 as it got worse and worse, to the point i'd put it on Friday nights to help relax me to sleep. Season 7 I stopped completely.

Californication

First 3 seasons were great. 4 started the decline, 5 was barely watchable and 6-7 were garbage.
 

Massive Spanner

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Dexter - Just stop after season four, trust me.

The Walking Dead - Just stop after episode one, trust me.
 

caid

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Was going to put the dexter but im not sure any of it is worth watching.
First season was kind of good i guess?
 

Cheesy

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Walking Dead

Wish I bailed out after Season 3 as it got worse and worse, to the point i'd put it on Friday nights to help relax me to sleep. Season 7 I stopped completely.

Californication

First 3 seasons were great. 4 started the decline, 5 was barely watchable and 6-7 were garbage.
Walking Dead never had an individual jump the shark moment as such, just once you'd watched a few seasons and realised it was essentially the same story over and over again in a new setting with a different villain.
 

Ian Reus

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Walking Dead
This.
I loved the first season which was mostly based in a major city. But it just felt like the group were running about the same forest for the next 6 seasons.
The story didn't really evolve much after the second season either. Bump into another more hostile group. Get chased, beat and kidnapped for a few episodes before Rik came up with a cunning plan for revenge which stretched into the second half of the season.
Rinse and repeat.

My advice. Bale after the second season.
 

Drainy

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Walking Dead never had an individual jump the shark moment as such, just once you'd watched a few seasons and realised it was essentially the same story over and over again in a new setting with a different villain.
For me it was the following:

S3: When the Governor is trapped in a corner surrounded by a horde of zombies grabbing him, then miraculously he is alive in pretty much the next scene to capture Andrea
 

antsmithmk

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I've got pedigree for sticking out TV shows when it's clear it's going nowhere (see Lost).

However even I have had the common sense to ditch the walking dead. Totally dire and just kept getting worse. Same stories, same location, no furthering of the story beyond meeting a new super villain each series. They could have gone anywhere in the Americas, yet it seems they've run about in about woods outside Atlanta for 5 years. Dire.
 

Kaos

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Walking Dead I would have happily ditched after season 2 in hindsight.

Dexter after season 4, where he transformed into a little bitch and started hiring sidekicks.

Homeland after a couple of episodes.
 

T00lsh3d

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Red dwarf, Series 7. It felt like something inside me had died and was lost forever
 

Solius

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Oz jumps the shark in Season 4 with the ageing pill.
 

Rado_N

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Prison Break - end of season one

Dexter - end of season four

How I Met Your Mother - maybe season four at best

Community - season three, some of four was decent

Californication - season three
 

PoTMS

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That 70’s Show - when Eric leaves. Don’t bother watching the final season.
 

cyberman

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Breaking Bad when they create a giant magnet to sit outside a police station evidence room to wipe a computer.
They're multi millionaires yet have never, not once, used that to bribe or influence police officers in a relatively small American setting.
 

duffer

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I am very good/bad (depending on your point of view) at quitting a show when I think it turns shit.

I watched and liked at least one season then gave up on the following:

The Following
Dexter
Heroes
X-Files
Prison Break
Homeland
Walking Dead.

Can't see myself ever going back and finishing any of them off.
 

HTG

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Simpsons
Two words: Armin Tamzarian.
 

Mr Pigeon

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Community after season 4, Dexter after season 4, Gazorpazorp Rick & Morty really went downhill after the mid-century break between seasons 68 and 14 due to the Continuity Wars.
 

Igor Drefljak

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I definitely agree with The Walking Dead.
In hindsight, I'd have quit after episode 1, it really went downhill form there. I really don't get the longevity of that show when I feel we had some really good once cancelled on us (Revolution, Alcatraz, The Returned)
 

do.ob

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Suits turns to shit much earlier, about the time they started introducing multi-eposide storylines.
 

OnlyTwoDaSilvas

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Simpsons
Two words: Armin Tamzarian.
Garbage episode. Still some funny bits, but the plot was just so awful.

Though I do kind of like the retrospective explanation of the episode by the episode's writer, even though I don't at all buy it:
"This [episode] is about a community of people who like things just the way they are. Skinner's not really close to these people—you know, he's a minor character—but they get upset when someone comes in and says, 'This is not really the way things are', and they run the messenger out of town on the rail. When the episode aired, lo and behold, a community of people who like things just the way they are got mad. It never seems to have occurred to anyone that this episode is about the people who hate it."
Cool caveat, despite being total bollocks. They should have said that at the time, and not 20 years later. Sounds like a desperate defence.

The other writers, Matt Groening and Harry Shearer have all called it a mistake though. Which it definitely was. The beginning of the end, even though Season 9 and 10 are still mostly solid.
 

HTG

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Garbage episode. Still some funny bits, but the plot was just so awful.

Though I do kind of like the retrospective explanation of the episode by the episode's writer, even though I don't at all buy it:


Cool caveat, despite being total bollocks. They should have said that at the time, and not 20 years later. Sounds like a desperate defence.

The other writers, Matt Groening and Harry Shearer have all called it a mistake though. Which it definitely was. The beginning of the end, even though Season 9 and 10 are still mostly solid.
You should watch the audio commentary to the episode. It’s basically 22 minutes of the writers angrily defending themselves. Quite funny, actually.
 

Kaos

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Some series with no "jump the shark" bale out points:

Futurama
Firefly
Death Note
Cowboy Bebop
I actually think Death Note jumped the shark a bit in the second season after

they killed off L and introduced a new protagonist so late into the series

Still a great show though.
 

GBBQ

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Arrested Development - The revival on netflix. Really suffered by not having the cast together for most scenes and while it still has some great moments it really suffers in comparison to the first 3 series.
 

Yagami

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Dexter - Just stop after season four, trust me.
Dexter after season 4, where he transformed into a little bitch and started hiring sidekicks.
Dexter - end of season four
Dexter after season 4
You guys need to be more specific. Don't even finish season 4. Immediately turn it off as soon as Dexter gets that phone call at the end of the last episode.

I did enjoy s5, though. Not as good as the previous seasons, but better than the latter ones.

I actually think Death Note jumped the shark a bit in the second season after

they killed off L and introduced a new protagonist so late into the series

Still a great show though.
I agree. I think the first 7 or so episodes are great, then after that up until the point you mentioned were good to very good, then after that it was just alright.
 

Irrational.

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That was just a terrible individual episode, though, the remaining episodes were really good.

edit: or, wait, maybe I'm thinking of episode 8.
Do you mean the one with the punks/ outcasts? If so, it's episode 7. Horrible episode.

Also, I liked the idea of having another character like Eleven, but the new one was rubbish and the execution of the whole idea was very poor.

Season 1 > 2 in my opinion.
 

Massive Spanner

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Do you mean the one with the punks/ outcasts? If so, it's episode 7. Horrible episode.

Also, I liked the idea of having another character like Eleven, but the new one was rubbish and the execution of the whole idea was very poor.

Season 1 > 2 in my opinion.
Oh ok, yeah, it was awful. My point is the last few episodes were still great.
 

The Cat

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Homeland start of Season 4.

Simpsons after Season 12.

The Magicians - couple of episodes in.
 

KirkDuyt

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Prison Break: after season 1
Imho season 1 was one of the best seasons of any show I've ever seen. The rest was thoroughly meh.

Homeland: after season 3
For a reason I won't spoil I lost interest.

Fargo: after season 1 (controversial maybe)

Family guy: turned to shite after season 10 or so, but returned to form lately.

Rick and Morty: never.

Happy days: the episode where Fonzy jumps the shark.

I'll get my coat.