We've all heard the term "jump the shark." In fact, it's become so familiar that people are getting sick of hearing it. But there's a certain truth behind the phrase: if you're a fan of a particular show, you can pinpoint the moment when the show has gone too far and needs to be put out of its misery. Some of these moments are well-documented; others less so. Still others haven't happened on any show yet, but you just know they are coming. Below are seven signs that tell you it's time for your favorite show to fade away gracefully:The entire cast turns over
Did you start watching ER because you became weak in the knees at the sight of George Clooney, respected Anthony Edwards' stoicism, or wanted Juliana Margulies to take care of you when you were sick? That's why I started watching (except for the Clooney / weak knees thing, of course). But now I look up and notice that the only people left from the original cast are nurses Chuny and Malik. Even the ER itself has been remodeled once or twice. Same goes with Law & Order: playing a detective on that show is a less stable job than being a hockey coach.
Your favorite period show stops caring about fashions and hairstyles
Do you remember what Happy Days looked like in its last few years? By that time, Joanie, Chachi, Fonzie, and company were supposed to be living in the early '60s. But I saw so much feathered hair and so many Izod polos, I was starting to wonder if they didn't fast forward the timeframe by twenty years. Heck, I was surprised the producers didn't put the Fonz in a Members Only leather jacket. Same goes with M*A*S*H: by that show's end, Mike Farrell had a '70s porn mustache and Loretta Swit had a platinum-blond 'do that was closer to Farah Fawcett than Marilyn Monroe.
The star of your show comes back with a new face
Did you stop believing Roseanne Barr's performance as a lower-middle class "domestic goddess" when she showed up for her show's fifth season with a smoother, decidedly un-jowly appearance? Yeah, me too. It was like we were watching a different person play Roseanne Conner, one that looked more like she should be living in L.A. than Lanford, IL.
Your show adds a cute kid to the cast
This is one of the more well-documented signs, usually referred to as "The Cousin Oliver Syndrome." To the young'uns out there, Cousin Oliver was the cute little tyke that the producers of The Brady Bunch added to the show when Bobby and Cindy, the youngest kids, hit puberty and stopped being cute. I guess the '90s equivalent could be called "The Olivia Syndrome," when a tiny Raven-Symone was added to The Cosby Show when Rudy started sprouting a whispy 'stache (Keshia Knight Pulliam got her revenge though; look at her now!). There are plenty of examples of this, from added cast members (Sam on Diff'rent Strokes) to babies that all of a sudden became four-year-olds (Andy Keaton on Family Ties).
A completely untalented hack wins a reality talent contest
The Sanjaya Scare taught millions of American Idol fans that their show can be compromised by determined fans bent on showing how silly the whole process is. As it is, there are theories abounding that everyone's favorite teenage warbler was pushed out not by the viewers but by the producers. You know that at some point a radio shock jock is going to enter one of their own candidates and ask their listeners to vote for the person no matter how bad he or she is (it's too bad Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf is no longer with us; he'd be perfect).
Your show is on the renewal bubble and there are only three internet petitions to save it
Why do people continue to think that internet petitions are an effective tool in saving a show? No one reads them, and I'm pretty sure network executives think that those petitions are managed and signed by kooks. But people still make them; Veronica Mars alone has had a few dozen "Save our show" petitions created for it over the last year or so. But if your show only generates enough interest for a couple of sparsely-signed petitions, you know it's in deep trouble, especially if those petitions are signed by people like "I.P. Freely" and "Mike Hunt."
Your show hired Ted McGinley
With apologies to Mr. McGinley, but it's been well-documented that he's been the Angel of Death to many shows, from The Love Boat to Happy Days to Sports Night. However, people who say he killed off Married, With Children are being unfair, since he was there for the show's last seven seasons. And Hope & Faith wasn't his fault either. Maybe "Your show hired Kelly Ripa" will be on the list in a few years.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 6)
5-14-2007 @ 10:54AM
David said...
Nicely done but American Idol has always had losers for winners and the true winners were the losers.
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5-14-2007 @ 12:43PM
Deb said...
YOU ARE OUT OF YOUR MIND IF YOU THINK AMERICAN IDOL IS WINDING DOWN! THIS IS THE MOST ENJOYABLE, FAMILY ORIENTED AND FANTASTIC SHOW ON IN YEARS!!!! YOU ARE OUT OF TOUCH.
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5-14-2007 @ 11:13AM
kings33 said...
Need to start a "Save Ted McGinley" internet petition... My favorite Grim Reaper is Anne-Marie Johnson. She was the death knell as far back as "What's Happenin' Now" and "Melrose Place"
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5-14-2007 @ 11:44AM
quizshow said...
Rena Sofer, queen of the show killers. Ted McGinley actually made married with children funnier.
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5-14-2007 @ 11:50AM
dave.birinyi said...
I'm not so sure the McGinley Effect is true of Sports Night. The show was short-lived, lasting only two years, but McGinley came and went all within the first season.
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5-14-2007 @ 11:58AM
4ham said...
While you're whole "The entire cast turns over" is valid for some shows, it's why I'm such a fan of ER and L&O. Stories happen, and people come and go. I'm actually kinda of pissed off at SVU for NOT changing the cast up. Things are really stagnant there.
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5-14-2007 @ 12:12PM
ThatGuy said...
Don't forget about Paula Marshall. She, along with McGinley and Sofer, is at the top of the show killing craft.
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5-14-2007 @ 12:26PM
Jamie said...
I would add once the sexual tension is broken between two main characters, it is curtains for the show.
I also believe adding Michael Iroonides to a science fiction show is the kiss of death. (V: THE SERIES, WAR OF THE WORLDS, and SEAQUEST; DSV)
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5-14-2007 @ 12:51PM
Joseph Land said...
I swear, there should be a test people have to take to be allowed to have a caps lock key. Hell, it should be tied in with the one that makes sure people are smart enough to be allowed to have children.
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5-14-2007 @ 12:57PM
Vince said...
According to rule #4, adding a cute kid, then Buffy TVS jumped the shark in season 5 adding her little sister Dawn.
Perhaps, but Dawn added to the show in my opinion.
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5-14-2007 @ 1:04PM
Richard Ott said...
The sign when it's time for The Simpsons to go? When
they make a movie 15 years later than when they were a
popular merchandizing machine in 1992. However, at the
rate they're going, I wouldn't be surprised if Fox were to
sign another 10-year contract with The Simpsons after
The Simpsons Movie were to become the highest box
office grossing movie this Summer after Spiderman 3.
Even now, an untitled Simpsons game is in the works
for the PS3 & X-Box 360, along with a "Travel With The
Simpsons" ride at Universal Studios, Orlando Florida
scheduled for 2008. The D'oh just keeps rolling in, man.
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5-14-2007 @ 1:05PM
BigTed said...
Forget Roseanne's facelift.... The show really went nuts when they mysteriously brought in hotter Sarah Chalke as Second Becky.
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5-14-2007 @ 1:54PM
Bash said...
*purr*
Sarah Chalke...
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5-14-2007 @ 1:58PM
Keith McDuffee said...
Maybe web browsers need to have a Microsoft-like 'Clippy' to help people use the Caps key:
"It looks like you have the caps lock key enabled. Do you want to a) rant in a comment b) express your love for American Idol c) enter text for the hearing impaired?"
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5-14-2007 @ 2:02PM
David said...
Jamie, Michael Ironside did not kill Seaquest DSV, he was never on it. He was on Seaquest 2032.
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5-14-2007 @ 2:08PM
yaa said...
Ted McGinley??? He is quite possibly the worst actor in the history of acting. How he keeps getting hired is the biggest mystery of all.
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5-14-2007 @ 2:20PM
williemelmoth said...
Some of you may be too old to remember her, but Conchata Ferrell was a sure sign that a TV show was losing altitude fast, and that you'd better start thinking about how that seat cushion doubles as a flotation device.
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5-14-2007 @ 2:22PM
ScottR216 said...
I agree with 95% - though I'M not sick of hearing the term "Jump The Shark".
"The Entire Cast Turns Over" - Errrr... actually NO. Law and Order's cast has nobody from the original seasons, and is going strong and well. If a show's turnover is handled so skilfully that you barely notice, that's doing it RIGHT. Replacing cast members with others who try to be carbon copies is a kiss of death; Law and Order and ER did it right - each incoming character is fresh and unique.
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5-14-2007 @ 2:25PM
Borat said...
"YOU ARE OUT OF YOUR MIND IF YOU THINK AMERICAN IDOL IS WINDING DOWN! THIS IS THE MOST ENJOYABLE, FAMILY ORIENTED AND FANTASTIC SHOW ON IN YEARS!!!! YOU ARE OUT OF TOUCH."
CALM DOWN.
Damn...what is it about American Idol which brings out the crazy in people? Just one more reason to not watch that show.
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5-14-2007 @ 2:30PM
Kimbro said...
I agree with most of what appeared in this article, except I would like to agree with a previous poster about "Law & Order".
They are story-driven not personality driven. "Law & Order" is successful because we don't know much about the characters. It has been on the air for 18 years because of its story-driven approach.
If it stays on for another two years (keeping my fingers crossed), it will be tied with "Gunsmoke" for the longest-running television program of all time.
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