Top 10 Shows That Ran Out of Ideas
Shows That Ran Out of Ideas, Comedies That Ran Out of Ideas, Dramas That Ran Out of Ideas, Sitcoms That Ran Out of Ideas, Shows That Went On Too Long, Shows That Lost Their Mojo, Shows That Jumped the Shark, Shows That Got Really Bad, Shows That Got Worse, Shows That Fell Off, Shows That Lasted Too Long, Shows That Went Downhill, Worst Long Running Shows, Hated TV Shows, Shows That Got Bad, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, TV, WatchMojo, Viral, Countdown, lists, listicles, top 10, Nicholas Miller,
Sometimes, it’s better to end things early and leave people wanting more. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today, we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 shows that ran out of ideas.
For this list, we’ll be looking at TV shows both new and old, just as long as they’ve shown signs of getting stale and being repetitive.
“True Blood” was a series that had its ups and its downs, but even diehard fans have a hard time denying the fact that the final two seasons weren’t exactly up to par. Eventually, it seemed like the writers stopped bothering to come up with new ideas, content with retreading the same worn ground again and again. Seeing Sookie still struggling to decide between Bill and Eric over and over became draining, and the introduction of other love interests in later seasons complicated matters even further. Meanwhile, other creatures like witches, faeries, werewolves, as well as storylines such as another love triangle including Sookie’s brother, and a deadly vampire virus, made things way too over the top.
“Prison Break” was a show built on the premise of a group of inmates breaking out of the clink. The problem: what happens after they escape? “Prison Break” ran into this issue in each season after its first. The series was constantly forced into extending the premise and finding ways to keep things interesting, but to many viewers, it never quite succeeded in its attempts to match the exhilarating first season. Whether they were rehashing the same plot as season 1 in a new location or introducing additional convoluted sub-plots, the story of “Prison Break” floundered after Michael succeeded in breaking Lincoln out in season one, and never quite recovered thereafter.
Despite its early seasons’ success, something about “Homeland” feels dated. For starters, the show’s treatment of Middle East politics have often been criticized as old-fashioned. To make matters worse, each subsequent season has felt notably similar to the one that preceded it. When “Homeland” started, the show was fresh and exciting, but that feeling quickly fell away as it failed to stay socially relevant in terms of its subject matter. With the series’ final season to begin airing in late 2019, fans are hoping that it can recapture some of its former glory to end on a high end.
According to creator Eric Kripke, the original plan for “Supernatural” was to end after the apocalypse arc in season 5. That does seem like a logical stopping point, but the series was so popular that it kept going, and the years since have been quite the mixed bag. Though the moody arguments between the brothers made for entertaining television at first, it’s now been over a decade, and for many… the act has gotten old. That, along with constant possessions, deaths and resurrections has us thinking this series should have stuck with the original five-year plan rather than going on until their 15th season, which is slated to be its last.
We’re not saying adaptations need to stick to the source material, but more often than not… that’s the safest bet. With “The Walking Dead,” AMC took plenty of liberties from Robert Kirkman’s comic book series. But, barring a few exceptions (like Judith’s survival and the introduction of Daryl), these departures have more often than not been baffling. From the fake death of Glenn and the lead-up to the real death of Glenn, all the way up to the handling of Carl and Rick Grimes, it’s been rough. “The Walking Dead” has seemingly often relied on marketing stunts to attract viewers during the late 2010s rather than the actual quality of the show.
After this series got off to an incredibly promising start, it became clear that the creative forces behind “Heroes” didn’t have nearly as clear of a vision beyond that. The first season was must-watch television, but the future of the show became more bleak when the second season lost much of the charm of the first - a problem only made worse by that WGA writers' strike. As the storylines lost their focus and became bloated, ratings began to plummet and the show quickly fell off, steadily declining until its eventual cancellation after four seasons. “Heroes” was revived in a 2015 miniseries titled “Heroes: Reborn,” but the show featured many of the same problems as the last seasons of the original.
A classic case of dragging a good show on for too long, “The X-Files” became a shell of its former self by the end of its initial nine-season run. Beginning with the debut of the show’s first feature film after season five, the show began a slow decline that worsened when Fox Mulder actor David Duchovny only appeared in half of the episodes in season eight. By that point, many episodes felt like recycled stories, and it became apparent that the cast was losing interest. The show finally came to an end in 2002, but was later revived for two more seasons in the 2010s to mixed success.
There was once a time where “The Simpsons” could be called the best show on television. That just simply isn’t the case anymore. Many fans will argue over when the decline began, but there’s no doubt that “The Simpsons” of today is a very different show than what it once was. The series that used to be based around the characters of the family eventually became more focused on celebrity cameos and shoehorning in new locations. Gone is the clever, layered joke-writing that made the show famous, and in its place is a non-stop barrage of sight gags. This might seem harsh, but it’s only because we hold the early seasons in such high esteem.
Seth MacFarlane's animated family sitcom took more than a few cues from its yellow-skinned predecessors when it debuted in 1999. Though it’s had its fair share of memorable comedic moments, the show outwore its welcome a long time ago with its over-reliance on pop culture references and stale weekly storylines. The show’s animation has always felt a bit bland, but it has only gotten worse as the years have gone on. “Family Guy” was labelled as being an unoriginal comedy by critics from the very beginning, and over time, it’s lost many of the fans it once had.
Before we reveal our top pick, here are a few dishonorable mentions.
“Once Upon a Time” (2011-18)
“Dexter” (2006-13)
“Weeds” (2005-12)
When the foundation upon which the humor of your show is built is the fact that the main characters are nerdy, you might get into trouble in the long run. The reaction to “The Big Bang Theory” is a controversial topic, as even though many will agree the show stopped being funny long ago, it still boasted consistently massive ratings for many years. What can’t be denied is that the show became a cartoon version of itself in its later years, with the actors pretty much forced to play caricatures of their characters. After 12 seasons on the air, “The Big Bang Theory” has finally come to an end and many will say that it’s been a long time coming.
For this list, we’ll be looking at TV shows both new and old, just as long as they’ve shown signs of getting stale and being repetitive.
#10: “True Blood” (2008-14)
“True Blood” was a series that had its ups and its downs, but even diehard fans have a hard time denying the fact that the final two seasons weren’t exactly up to par. Eventually, it seemed like the writers stopped bothering to come up with new ideas, content with retreading the same worn ground again and again. Seeing Sookie still struggling to decide between Bill and Eric over and over became draining, and the introduction of other love interests in later seasons complicated matters even further. Meanwhile, other creatures like witches, faeries, werewolves, as well as storylines such as another love triangle including Sookie’s brother, and a deadly vampire virus, made things way too over the top.
#9: “Prison Break” (2005-09; 2017)
“Prison Break” was a show built on the premise of a group of inmates breaking out of the clink. The problem: what happens after they escape? “Prison Break” ran into this issue in each season after its first. The series was constantly forced into extending the premise and finding ways to keep things interesting, but to many viewers, it never quite succeeded in its attempts to match the exhilarating first season. Whether they were rehashing the same plot as season 1 in a new location or introducing additional convoluted sub-plots, the story of “Prison Break” floundered after Michael succeeded in breaking Lincoln out in season one, and never quite recovered thereafter.
#8: “Homeland” (2011-)
Despite its early seasons’ success, something about “Homeland” feels dated. For starters, the show’s treatment of Middle East politics have often been criticized as old-fashioned. To make matters worse, each subsequent season has felt notably similar to the one that preceded it. When “Homeland” started, the show was fresh and exciting, but that feeling quickly fell away as it failed to stay socially relevant in terms of its subject matter. With the series’ final season to begin airing in late 2019, fans are hoping that it can recapture some of its former glory to end on a high end.
#7: “Supernatural” (2005-)
According to creator Eric Kripke, the original plan for “Supernatural” was to end after the apocalypse arc in season 5. That does seem like a logical stopping point, but the series was so popular that it kept going, and the years since have been quite the mixed bag. Though the moody arguments between the brothers made for entertaining television at first, it’s now been over a decade, and for many… the act has gotten old. That, along with constant possessions, deaths and resurrections has us thinking this series should have stuck with the original five-year plan rather than going on until their 15th season, which is slated to be its last.
#6: “The Walking Dead” (2010-)
We’re not saying adaptations need to stick to the source material, but more often than not… that’s the safest bet. With “The Walking Dead,” AMC took plenty of liberties from Robert Kirkman’s comic book series. But, barring a few exceptions (like Judith’s survival and the introduction of Daryl), these departures have more often than not been baffling. From the fake death of Glenn and the lead-up to the real death of Glenn, all the way up to the handling of Carl and Rick Grimes, it’s been rough. “The Walking Dead” has seemingly often relied on marketing stunts to attract viewers during the late 2010s rather than the actual quality of the show.
#5: “Heroes” (2006-10)
After this series got off to an incredibly promising start, it became clear that the creative forces behind “Heroes” didn’t have nearly as clear of a vision beyond that. The first season was must-watch television, but the future of the show became more bleak when the second season lost much of the charm of the first - a problem only made worse by that WGA writers' strike. As the storylines lost their focus and became bloated, ratings began to plummet and the show quickly fell off, steadily declining until its eventual cancellation after four seasons. “Heroes” was revived in a 2015 miniseries titled “Heroes: Reborn,” but the show featured many of the same problems as the last seasons of the original.
#4: “The X-Files” (1993-2002; 2016-18)
A classic case of dragging a good show on for too long, “The X-Files” became a shell of its former self by the end of its initial nine-season run. Beginning with the debut of the show’s first feature film after season five, the show began a slow decline that worsened when Fox Mulder actor David Duchovny only appeared in half of the episodes in season eight. By that point, many episodes felt like recycled stories, and it became apparent that the cast was losing interest. The show finally came to an end in 2002, but was later revived for two more seasons in the 2010s to mixed success.
#3: “The Simpsons” (1989-)
There was once a time where “The Simpsons” could be called the best show on television. That just simply isn’t the case anymore. Many fans will argue over when the decline began, but there’s no doubt that “The Simpsons” of today is a very different show than what it once was. The series that used to be based around the characters of the family eventually became more focused on celebrity cameos and shoehorning in new locations. Gone is the clever, layered joke-writing that made the show famous, and in its place is a non-stop barrage of sight gags. This might seem harsh, but it’s only because we hold the early seasons in such high esteem.
#2: “Family Guy” (1999-2003; 2005-)
Seth MacFarlane's animated family sitcom took more than a few cues from its yellow-skinned predecessors when it debuted in 1999. Though it’s had its fair share of memorable comedic moments, the show outwore its welcome a long time ago with its over-reliance on pop culture references and stale weekly storylines. The show’s animation has always felt a bit bland, but it has only gotten worse as the years have gone on. “Family Guy” was labelled as being an unoriginal comedy by critics from the very beginning, and over time, it’s lost many of the fans it once had.
Before we reveal our top pick, here are a few dishonorable mentions.
“Once Upon a Time” (2011-18)
“Dexter” (2006-13)
“Weeds” (2005-12)
#1: “The Big Bang Theory” (2007-2019)
When the foundation upon which the humor of your show is built is the fact that the main characters are nerdy, you might get into trouble in the long run. The reaction to “The Big Bang Theory” is a controversial topic, as even though many will agree the show stopped being funny long ago, it still boasted consistently massive ratings for many years. What can’t be denied is that the show became a cartoon version of itself in its later years, with the actors pretty much forced to play caricatures of their characters. After 12 seasons on the air, “The Big Bang Theory” has finally come to an end and many will say that it’s been a long time coming.
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