Jumping the Shark: When Good TV Goes Bad
The other day, I started thinking about television, which happens more than you might think, but that’s not the point.
The point is, I started an hour-long conversation with myself concerning the evolution of a television series, and it ended entirely unsatisfactorily. So perhaps, dear readers, you could help my situation. [PS: I’ll just go ahead and put up a general SPOILER ALERT. But most of my examples have already been cancelled, and if you haven’t seen them, well, I just feel bad for you.]
The question of the day is this: Is it better for a television series to change its focus every few seasons, or should it stay true to the basic themes on which it was founded?
Don’t Go Changing
My main concern – and what kicked off my internal debate – was the USA Network show The 4400. Its first season, which started off as a miniseries (automatically making it better), was incredible. It was all very focused and character-driven, following the main characters as they cope with their extraordinary circumstances. Heartwarming! By the last season, they killed off my favorite character and turned the show into a giant B-movie about government conspiracies from the future fighting a self-proclaimed messiah. Yeah, I don’t care how relevant you tried to make your themes; I didn’t sign up for that.
Dark Angel is another example of how a good idea can totally crap out. The first season was mostly about a young bionic Jessica Alba making her way through a post-apocalyptic Seattle — totally awesome, right? Then in the second season, they introduced the “transgenics.” Because super-soldiers weren’t cool enough, we needed super-soldiers that were half-animal. I think the weirdest episode was when Jessica Alba was “like a cat in heat”. Where the did that come from? Okay, sure, I might have been a little harsh, but it makes my heart hurt when television shows with such potential decide to have a talking dog-man become the hope of a displaced people.
New and Improved
I know that there are many other shows that have changed their status quo and have nothing but songs of praise float their way. Case in point: Angel. The first season of Angel started off dark, with a heavy noir feel to it. In the fifth and final season, though, Angel and friends started working for Hell Incorporated, instead of on the streets, fighting the good fight. . . and it was fantastic! It seemed like there was a new energy to show, and it kept getting better with each new episode. Until, of course, it was cancelled.
On a slightly less depressing and more current note, look at this season of Lost. Now that they have an end in sight, the writers have kicked up the Awesome. Even though the entire series has been about getting off the island, it suddenly feels more intense with the advent of the flash-forwards. Instead of just setting up back-story, we’re getting more about things that matter; we’re getting actual plot, and it’s freaking amazing.
What’s the formula?
So what does that mean for my argument, then? After spending more time on this than I’d like to admit, my wholly unsatisfactory answer is: it depends. It depends on the nature of the show at hand, as well as the writers in charge. Although, I can’t image how, even with Joss Whedon and JJ Abrams, they could have spun the last season of The 4400 into anything other than Utter Disappointment.
Alas. If only Veronica Mars were still on the air. Then we’d have proof whether a sudden and drastic change can bring down even the mightiest of show — or whether it’s just an underpaid writing staff.
photo credit: flickr user jamesgood
February 28th, 2008 at 10:19 am
Hey Krissy, nice post. I think one of the keys to shows not jumping the shark is whether they have a set ending in mind when they are first written. I’ve heard that the entire story of Lost was planned from the beginning with a definite end in mind. Because there is a beginning and an end, they can tie everything together so that later in the seasons when new characters are introduced, you know that they were doing something in the background.
That’s why, while it’s still kind of a shock when you find out about the Others, you realize that they were there all along and influencing the main characters even though we didn’t know it. I think it’s the sudden introduction of new elements with no previous exposure to them that signals the downfall of a show. It’s a sign that the writers are running out of ideas and the show is winding down.
I’ve noticed the same thing in series fiction writing. One of the problems is that you know nothing is going to happen to the main characters, so after the fourth book you don’t get excited when your favorite character is in a tricky situation. He won’t die because it kills off what he might do in the future, which the author doesn’t really know. One reason Harry Potter had such a following was because J.K. Rowling had a plan for the entire series, and there was always the possibility your favorite characters could die and some of them did.
February 28th, 2008 at 10:26 am
That’s why you should stick with soap operas — at least you won’t get used to a pattern.
Good guy? Bad guy? Evil twin? Possessed? Who the hell knows?
February 28th, 2008 at 1:02 pm
I have an evil twin. It’s not as cool as they make it out to be.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:52 pm
Hey, Adam. Yeah, having an end-point in mind definitely adds something to a series. I hate it when shows randomly introduce something, and you’re just supposed to accept it. One thing I hated about The 4400 was how they suddenly made a series-changing arc based on a character who wrote Ed Wood-style B-movies. It’s like they ran out of ideas and hoped that neck implantations and more Scary Government Agents would distract people.
That’s one reason why I love the idea of mini-series (or anything Ricky Gervais does) so much. They’re short enough to get to say what they want without getting distracted. And they’re long enough for you to become emotionally attached. [PS: Have you watched Extras? Because it was really good.]
February 28th, 2008 at 8:36 pm
Veronica Mars. That was an excellent show. Amazing. I started watching it as a joke, now I own all three seasons. The writing was excellent. The dialog was easy to digest with great pop-culture references and witty, but not to the extent of Gilmore Girls witty dialog that made me want to vomit. Projectile vomit. And the characters, oh the characters. Everything about that show is solid gold. Damn you CW.
February 28th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
@adam - lol, forgot about your evil twin…
@ricky - i *LOVED* veronica mars. i didn’t get into it until after krissy gave me the first season on dvd — i ended up calling in sick for two days until i could finish watching it.
February 28th, 2008 at 10:55 pm
So, the other day I finally decided to re-watch the last episode of Veronica Mars. Wow, was that depressing. It was such a great episode that set up so many possibilities, and then it just died. Ugh, it still makes me sad.
Fun fact: When VM was canceled there were rumblings that it was all because Les Moonves of CBS didn’t like it. In fact, Dawn Ostroff, the President of The CW loved the show. But since CBS is one of The CW’s parent companies, and Les Moonves is Evil Mr. Burns, they didn’t renew it.
But it’s not like I’m bitter or anything.
February 29th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
Had it not been for this post, I would not have remembered “Dark Angel” nor Jessica Alba acting “like a cat in heat.” Many thanks Krissy.
P.S. Can LOST actually end well? I have my concerns.
February 29th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
No problem, Jordan. That’s just my way of making the world a better place.
Also: I really doubt that Lost will have a fulfilling ending. They’d need some amazing explanations for the stuff they’ve been throwing our way. They can’t just rely on the excuse “It’s all about the journey, not the destination”; they’ll really have to deliver, otherwise I’ll be personally offended.
That said, if there are more episodes like last night’s, I’ll be happy. I’ll go ahead and say it was one of my favorites of the entire series.
March 2nd, 2008 at 6:27 pm
I thought Lost was good this week. I think they’ll do an excellent job of handling the ending, and if not, I’ve heard optimists live longer and healthier lives than pessimists. So at least I’ll have more time to curse them for ruining a good thing.
Ricky lent me the Veronica Mars DVDs which I’m planning to watch once I finish Firefly. I’m a little concerned though by the cover art on the DVDs. There’s one girl and five guys which makes me wonder, what’s this show going to do to my estrogen levels?
March 2nd, 2008 at 10:10 pm
Woah, there. Veronica Mars after Firefly? You might want to pace yourself. That’s so much good television at once, you might lose faith in the current TV schedule. (Although, I hear The Moment of Truth is high quality.)
But rest assured, all of my guy friends love Veronica Mars. And only 1 of them has spontaneously grown a uterus. So the odds are in your favor. And really, I think the trade-off is worth it.
March 3rd, 2008 at 9:20 am
Seriously, Adam, I agree with Krissy on this one. Not because she’s my sister, but because she’s like a litmus for Cool Television. She knows what’s up.
But still, a spontaneously grown uterus would be kinda cool.
March 3rd, 2008 at 11:54 am
Jeez, I’m getting killed out here!
March 3rd, 2008 at 12:01 pm
Heath liked it. Last I checked, he had no uterus.