TV shows that have gone on for way to long

Recommended Videos

Something Amyss

Aswyng and Amyss
Dec 3, 2008
24,759
0
0
Gizmo1990 said:
I am a hudge Stargate fan but season 9 and 10 just did not work for me.
Season 10 was the best they'd put out in years.

Ermm....On topic...Is House still around? It had already gone on too long when I canceled my cable a few years ago.
 

Ishal

New member
Oct 30, 2012
1,177
0
0
V da Mighty Taco said:
I'm tempted to say FiM, but there's only been 3 seasons so far. Still, things haven't been the same since early Season 2 and Season 3 kinda jumped the shark, though here's to hoping they can turn it around for Season 4. It's still entertaining at this point I'd say, but something's been missing for the most part since "Lesson Zero" and it feels like they ran out of ideas at some point down the line.

Seth McFarland shows definitely qualify. He's a one-trick pony (no MLP reference intended), and his style went stale a long time ago.

Reality TV. All of it. I hate speaking in absolutes, but I cannot think of a single Reality TV show that was even remotely interesting in at least the past five years. It's probably the biggest reason I don't watch TV anymore besides a select few cartoons every once in a great while (unless it's pony season, in which case it's usually only once a week). Everything about RTV feels incredibly fake and is often reliant on very low forms of comedy or very petty drama that does not appeal to me in the slightest. It's like Flash-drawn cartoons - they can be done well, but instead it is almost always done in the cheapest way possible with very little effort or passion put into it so the producers and network can make a quick buck.

EDIT: According to some of the above comments, some soap operas have gone on to have nearly 5-digit episode counts. Yikes; talk about eye candy! Is it even humanly possible to actually watch the whole series of one of those within the span of a year - scratch that, 5 years?
FiM hasn't been around that long, and I'm actually glad its been around so long. So many shows get cancelled before even getting a chance nowadays. Jumping the shark is debatable, Season 3 had the same amount of good, bad, and mediocre episodes when compared to the other seasons despite being shorter. Will be interesting to see where it goes from here.

OT: Reality TV. All of it. Its reached its over saturation point. Its embarrassing, and it needs to die, immediately. Duck Dynasty is proof of this.

Also lots of Shonen Anime... Jesus Christ anime fans, One Piece? I laugh when anyone holds that show up on a pedestal. Granted, it has its moments, and utilizes interesting tropes and characters, but its current episode is listed as... 597. Are you kidding me? Naruto, Bleach, and so many others have this problem. I realize it wouldn't be this way w/o the fillers, but its no excuse. Brevity guys!

Thats about it for me, Reality TV clogs up too much space on TV and I defy anyone to argue that 597 episodes is not absurd.
 

Pink Gregory

New member
Jul 30, 2008
2,296
0
0
FalloutJack said:
Anime that references H.P. Lovecraft (of which there is more than one) really needs to stop. If you're going to reference one of the great early horror story writers, by god make it horror and worth seeing. Even Lovecrafts racist views don't merit that kind of insult.
Much as it's given people something of a unique outlet, I've never really thought that Lovecraft really bears a visual interpretation. So much of his writing concerns the unfathomable, the unnameable (as he puts it in one of his shorter and actually quite middling stories); far as I'm aware he did birth the whole 'I cannot describe it because it drove me insane' trope. I'm not sure I like the implication that Lovecraft = Tentacles and Elder Gods. There was more to Lovecraft than a silly mythos.
 

Relish in Chaos

New member
Mar 7, 2012
2,660
0
0
Dragon Ball. By the Boo arc, it had almost completely lost the fucking plot. Super Saiyan 3, Potara, the abuse of Boo's regeneration, BLARGH! It had some pros, but it has a lot of cons too.
 

TakerFoxx

Elite Member
Jan 27, 2011
1,125
0
41
Aetheora said:
I agree with anything McFarlane related. American Dad was great, Simpsons was funny (and still can be entertaining) and Family Guy was good when I actually found it funny. Now, anything he is still working on could probably fade away slowly and it wouldn't shake the whole world. I think the Simpsons could at least end first. Or Family Guy (preferably)
Er, McFarlane actually has nothing to do with the Simpsons. That's all Matt Groening.
 

Auron225

New member
Oct 26, 2009
1,790
0
0
Heroes

I only watched it recently and absolutely loved Season 1. I actually thought Season 2 was fairly decent but after watching only the pilot for Season 3, I suddenly realised that I don't care anymore. They've already stopped two apocalypses but what irks me more than that is that nothing can happen anymore that shocks me, because it can be undone. Where I stopped, 3 characters had the potential to revive the dead so if ANY character died, it didn't seem like a big deal at all. One of those 3, and another person, had the ability to travel through time and both of them frequently did so to prevent awful crap from happening.

So basically, if anyone died or any other tragedy happened - chances are it would be undone. It was practically a series where ANYTHING that happened could be reversed, like pulling the "It was all a dreeaam...!" excuse out of its ass.
 

Dangit2019

New member
Aug 8, 2011
2,449
0
0
Survivor, Simpsons, American Idol, and pretty much every soap opera.

Also, Duck Dynasty's been airing for too long, but that's because it got old after the first 30 seconds.
 

The White Hunter

Basment Abomination
Oct 19, 2011
3,888
0
0
madwarper said:
In addition to the Simpsons, every Seth McFarlane show.

Here's a cut away gag. Didn't like it? Don't worry, we're going to throw 20 more at you in the next 5 minutes.
Didn't like those 20 minutes of cutaway gags? Well how about we say "******" a lot for the next 5?
Or how about ******? No?
Jews? No?

Well you just have no sense of humour!
[sub]Note the italics to denote sarcasm, I feel the need to put this disclaimer here because I find family guy wholly irritating, on the grounds that it's mostly inane babble and vain attempts to get shock gags[/sub]

OT: Seth McFarlane shows. Two and a Half Men.

I don't really have much else as I really don't watch very much TV, i don't think the simpsons needs to die as it hasn't really declined much in quality, it's more that it parodies a world that doesn't exist anymore.

A lot of reality shows should just fuck off and die.

I'll tell you what doesn't: Have I Got News For You, it's in it's 45th season and still excellent. But then you can't go wrong with a topical news quiz featuring Paul Merton, arguably one of the worlds wittiest men.
 

MarsProbe

Circuitboard Seahorse
Dec 13, 2008
2,372
0
0
champy_fan said:
Big Bang Theory. Maybe then we can replace it with a show whose primary joke isn't "LET'S ALL LAUGH AT THIS HANDICAPPED MAN."
I still quite like TBBT, although it is far from my favourite show. If it did have to be replaced, it would have to be with something funny that didn't use canned laughter. Even if they do say all the laughter you hear in TBBT is from the actual audience. I find that highly unlikely. as there's no way a scene involving nothing more than Sheldon and co sitting around staring at their laptops would illicit that much laughter from any audience.

But yeh, all long running soaps should go. You know the ones that have their "plot secrets" plastered over the front of every hack tv/gossip mag a week before said episode is due to air. As the people that watch these shows probably don't have the mental capacity to handle unexpected plot developments. What would we do if some games mag chose to lead their Bioshock Infinite front cover with:

Booker DeWitt & Zachary Comstock - the same person! Read their full shocking story inside! Plus: Booker & Elizabeths amazing journey to the city of Rapture!

Oh, and don't forget the "talent" shows: X-Factor/Britains Got Talent. Yeh, ok I get it. You want to churn out as many manufactered solo artists/pop groups as you possibly can, but surely it was better when we didn't have a whole tv series dedicated to the process?

More than anything though: How I Met Your Mother. Someone kill than thing already.
 

The White Hunter

Basment Abomination
Oct 19, 2011
3,888
0
0
Ishal said:
Also lots of Shonen Anime... Jesus Christ anime fans, One Piece? I laugh when anyone holds that show up on a pedestal. Granted, it has its moments, and utilizes interesting tropes and characters, but its current episode is listed as... 597. Are you kidding me? Naruto, Bleach, and so many others have this problem. I realize it wouldn't be this way w/o the fillers, but its no excuse. Brevity guys!

Thats about it for me, Reality TV clogs up too much space on TV and I defy anyone to argue that 597 episodes is not absurd.
I'd like to just pop up as a One Piece fan to say that I love One Piece, and I agree with you entirely. One Piece as a show is far too long and takes too long to get anything done. IT's largely because it's based on having one episode per chapter of the manga. Taken as a manga it's fine, since a chapter can be read in 2 minutes, it doesn't translate well to a 20 minute episode though, and whats more is the manga is actually rather brief and relatively quick, but the show becomes very sprawling with a lot oof things happening at the same time about 200 chapters in and it really slows down.

It's funny, it's clever, it's well written, it has great characters and it's crafted with love and attention, it is however insanely long taken as an animated show. Hopefully after it finishes it will get the same treatment as Dragon Ball Z did in Kai.

Many shounen anime would really benefit from being animated in Seasons if you ask me, so that the company could evaluate what is needed and what can be cut more effectively.
 

Bill Nye the Zombie

New member
Apr 27, 2012
67
0
0
Zachary Amaranth said:
Gizmo1990 said:
I am a hudge Stargate fan but season 9 and 10 just did not work for me.
Season 10 was the best they'd put out in years.

Ermm....On topic...Is House still around? It had already gone on too long when I canceled my cable a few years ago.
House ended, what, last year? The year before that? The last season was a total train wreck as far as I was concerned. They got rid of everybody from the 2 good teams they had, and then added something about Wilson getting cancer? I don't really know, watched the first couple episodes of the last season and stopped.

I kinda feel like NCIS needs to end now, or a least get back to it's roots. Its gone from a crime show about the military to a show where they uncover government conspiracies/secret projects/etc. and they become more like a spy team. I thought that's what they made NCIS: LA for. A tad off topic, but can the History Channel change its name? I don't think there is a historical show on its entire roster. They could become the Society channel or the Hick channel or something.
 

The White Hunter

Basment Abomination
Oct 19, 2011
3,888
0
0
MiracleOfSound said:
This thread makes me glad Breaking Bad bad is ending this year, even if it is a bittersweet feeling. Like a holiday romance it will stay lovely in the memory and won't ever have a chance to get stale.
Man I really need to get around to watching that seeries, it looked absolutely fascinating when they started advertising the first season here on whatever Fox was calling it's UK channel at the time.

It was also about the time I watched Dexter and decided to never bother watching any kind of drama on Fox ever again.

How did it turn out in the end?
 

Sheebers

New member
Sep 23, 2012
5
0
0
Zetatrain said:
lunavixen said:
Supernatural - (didn't they deal with the apocalypse already?)
Definitely this one. After the whole apocalypse arc everything else just seemed insignificant and pointless. Also didn't the writers originally want to end Supernatural with season 5? Everything up until the last 5 seconds of season 5's finale seemed like they were wrapping everything up, especially with the prophet's monologue at the end.

Honorable mentions go to 24...sort of.
If you asked during Season 6 I probably would have said yes, but then season 7 came out and I really enjoyed it. I'll have to wait until I finish season 8 to pass judgement.

DVS BSTrD said:
Fucking Two and a Half Men. The three least likable leads in TV history, and every joke is about what terrible people they are.
Ah knew I was forgetting one though for different reasons. Personally I think they should have just stopped once Charlie Sheen left.
I have to say that I'm really torn on Supernatural. On the one hand, I completely agree with the idea that the 5th season seemed to wrap everything up and that Chuck the Prophet's narration of that last episode would have made a really beautiful end to the show! I was actually kind of surprised after that when I still had season 6 to move on to(but really, not, because who ends a lucrative series like that when they can keep going anymore)

But at the same time I love the characters and the mythology and just the things they get into all the time, and the overarching plot of what thing of Hell is going to break loose next is a little flagging after the really solid arch of the apocalypse, I still really enjoy it, and like I said a lot of it is the characters and a lot of the baddie-fighting antics they get into that really makes Supernatural a great show to me.

But I always have been a sucker for things that are...Well, supernatural, in my fiction. So it's still a really fun show, for me at least, but I CAN see where the perfect ending could have been, though I think it could also just be the ending of that chapter.

--

On a second note, Two and a Half Men...I can't even believe they continued that after Charlie Sheen crashed and burned. Just...Why. It was useless before that happened, even moreso after they replaced him with Ashton Kutcher...however much sense THAT swap makes...
 

Mcupobob

New member
Jun 29, 2009
3,449
0
0
badgersprite said:
To be honest, I kind of tend to think that most shows should be written with the plan of ending.
Babylon 5 and Breaking bad are both shows that had/have planned endings

Problem with Babylon 5 was the they canceled the show at season 4 and the fans were given a unsatisfied ending. After many angry letters they brought the show back with a weak season 5 but it got the ending it deserved.

Breaking bad so far so good, kinda pisses me off they have chopped the last season into two parts....

As for shows that I think have gone on too long

Glee, that show shouldn't have made it past the pilot. Also reality T.V in general has gone on to long.
 

Quellist

Migratory coconut
Oct 7, 2010
1,443
0
0
Realitycrash said:
I wanna say the Simpsons, but maybe that's just me growing sick of them. I just wish they all would die from their own stupidity and the only sane person (Lisa) would be left, stranded in a cold and dead world, playing a requiem on her saxophone.

Oh fuck yes, so glad someone else mentioned that wretched show. Lisa Simpson as a kind of female salad fingers in a Dead, empty world? i'd watch that!
 

The Grim Ace

New member
May 20, 2010
483
0
0
Even though it just ended, the US version of The Office went on far too long for me, like almost a chore to watch for me too long. Also keeping with the chorus, everything else mentioned in this thread merits a just stop already. I don't entirely agree with the person saying that about New Who but I've never seen original Who to say otherwise.
 

V da Mighty Taco

New member
Apr 9, 2011
890
0
0
Ishal said:
FiM hasn't been around that long, and I'm actually glad its been around so long. So many shows get cancelled before even getting a chance nowadays. Jumping the shark is debatable, Season 3 had the same amount of good, bad, and mediocre episodes when compared to the other seasons despite being shorter. Will be interesting to see where it goes from here.
No offense, but I fully acknowledged that in my post. I still like FiM, btw, but things just haven't been the same since Season 2. I will disagree on S3 having the same amount of good / bad / mediocre as S1, however.

S1 to me was a very solid season all around with the only major hiccup being Owl's Well (still my least favorite episode). It was lighthearted; didn't bog itself down with an overarching story, yet built up the finale throughout the whole season; and gave an even amount of focus to all of the main characters (AJ included), even with the "Twilight must be in every episode" requirement. None of the main characters felt more important than the rest, and the season really went out on a high note with Best Night Ever.

Season 2 was very hit-and-miss; some episodes were phenominal (Friend in Deed, Sisterhoove's Social, the original Discord episodes), whereas others were disappointing or just plain dull (A Canterlot Wedding, Hurricane Fluttershy, Secret of My Excess). Season 2 was also unbelievably reliant on what's known on TVTropes as Flanderization: exaggerating a specific character trait to extreme levels for the sake of comedy at the cost of the character's, well, character. Seriously, did every Twi episode need to revolve around her becoming Fluttershy from Best Night Ever?

Season 3 felt much more in character for the most part than S2 (though they fucked Spike HAAARD this time around). However, the insistence on making this Twilight's season did much more harm than good, and the storytelling this time around was just plain bad. The reformations of Trixie and Discord were unbelievably forced, Sombra wasn't threatening in the least (and looked like a bad OC to boot), Twilight's ascension to princesshood was done so very poorly (to the point where it felt like jumping the shark for a lot of people) and sets things up to potentially be even more Twilight-focused, and no other character apart from RD made any progress in their lives - and RD's progress still pales in comparison to Twi's. This really should not have been the Season of the Sparkle, imo.

Ishal said:
OT: Reality TV. All of it. Its reached its over saturation point. Its embarrassing, and it needs to die, immediately. Duck Dynasty is proof of this.

Also lots of Shonen Anime... Jesus Christ anime fans, One Piece? I laugh when anyone holds that show up on a pedestal. Granted, it has its moments, and utilizes interesting tropes and characters, but its current episode is listed as... 597. Are you kidding me? Naruto, Bleach, and so many others have this problem. I realize it wouldn't be this way w/o the fillers, but its no excuse. Brevity guys!

Thats about it for me, Reality TV clogs up too much space on TV and I defy anyone to argue that 597 episodes is not absurd.
*Hands M1911 to Reality TV* Let's play Russian Roulette. You go first. >:p

Yeah, multihundred-episode shounen anime like DBZ and Bleach go on for far, far too long. It isn't like the plotlines are that deep to begin with, yet they feel the need to constantly drag things out to the point that one could very well assume that the original writer (often of the manga) doesn't actually intend to ever wrap things up or even have an ending planned out to begin with. Fillers can fuck themselves as well - did the show staff really think that people would enjoy them spending over an entire year doing fuck all for the overarching plot or making every other episode the equivalent of an annoying comedic-relief side character?

EDIT: Fixed some grammatical errors and made some points easier to read.
 

V da Mighty Taco

New member
Apr 9, 2011
890
0
0
FalloutJack said:
Pokemon. I don't think that needs an explanation.
Yeah, that deserves a mention, though admittedly I was never into the show to begin with and haven't watched it in possibly a decade. Still, Pokemon isn't the kind of show that warrants running for over a decade.

FalloutJack said:
Anime that references H.P. Lovecraft (of which there is more than one) really needs to stop. If you're going to reference one of the great early horror story writers, by god make it horror and worth seeing. Even Lovecrafts racist views don't merit that kind of insult.
0_o

Anime like that exists?

FalloutJack said:
Oh, and Cartoon Network. Let's blow them out of the water and let somebody else try.
My thoughts on Cartoon Network in a nutshell:

Yeah, they can go fuck themselves. Johnny Test, the New Looney Toons, that abysmal live-action crap that they do; almost all of it is just plain terrible. They still at least show some of their old shows every once in a while and they do run Boomerang (a hit-and-miss channel that shows cartoons from the 1950s through the early 2000s), but that doesn't excuse crap like that SNL-wannabe MAD.

Seriously Cartoon Network, you can't just have characters be unlikably obnoxious or reference pop-culture and call that humor.
 

Bestival

New member
May 5, 2012
405
0
0
I agree with a lot that's been posted so far. (Well I still like American dad and South Park, and some of Family Guy.)

What I think ran too long is Never Mind The Buzzcocks. Should have ended with Simon Amstell imo. Quick witted quirky host that was almost as good as Lamarr. The guests hosts usually don't have anything to do with music, and are just there because they're somewhat famous.
And one of the few that does know music brings his band along, and one of the members plays a banjo song for Paloma Faith that was one of the creepiest, unfunniest, dragging things I've ever seen. Singing about imagining her underwear, while she's clearly not amused about it at all, and he didn't even get her fucking name right.

So yeah, that.