When the writers start to lean too hard on character shticks.
When netflix picks it up and adds new seasons (using untalented writers instead of the ones that made the show good)
Netflix will revive shows after the original networks didn’t order more seasons. In other words, the show was already long-dead…
Can’t wait for the Netflix seasons of Futurama after it gets cancelled again.
Futurama ended after 5 seasons
Clip Show! Nothing says “We’re out of ideas” like a rehash of the currently available greatest hits.
“We want to appeal to a wider audience that’s not the typical X fan”.
It’s usually code for “stakeholders/execs want infinite growth, and we are too burnt out/creatively bankrupt to fight back. So, enjoy the change to another cookie cutter slop content”.
Some shows even start out there already. Massive red flag.
A new kid is added the show.
I don’t usually watch bad TV but one thing I do notice is that if a show doesn’t have a showrunner, or has almost as many writers as it does episodes, it won’t end well.
Having the Baby.
The budding love story is a go to for writers. Everyone loves it, and makes you feel emotions when they finally get together. Problem is, it has a natural path.
2 to 3 seasons to get together. 1 season of new bliss, 1 season of ups and downs, ending with a marriage proposal. 1 season of engagement ending in wedding. 1 season of new marriage stuff. Now what?
Married couples are boring. So what do we do now? Now it’s time for the baby.
And babies are horrible on TV. People watch TV to escape reality, not hear a screaming child. So the dream couple has a baby and it’s so tiring and so much work, but suddenly the show starts focusing on other characters, and then suddenly you know it’s over.
The office was famous for this one. Everyone loves Jim and Pam, until the wedding, then who cares. They tried to force those feelings again with Andy and Erin, but you just can’t.
Parks and rec luckily took a different route with Andy and April, but you can tell they were teetering on the edge, and in the final season everyone had kids anyway.
HIMYM had a worse approach because it wasn’t that Ted was on the path, but rather Lily and Marshall already were and so kids came in earlier, and again change the entire show.
The list goes on, it is an official trope now
Parenting portrayal in HIMYM was natalist propaganda, Lily and Marshall’s kid was maintenance free and they continued to live their old life.
Original writer/creator/actor leaves the show. There can be a lot of reasons why they leave, and sometimes it’s a really good reason, but the show almost always suffers.
I think Rick and Morty shined in S7 without Justin Roiland
It is the lowest-rated season to date on IMDb, so you might just be an outlier.
IMDb got review bombed. The actual genuine reaction from fans has been positive.
That sounds like cope. I remember the first couple of episodes of the season getting criticized heavily on Reddit, for reasons that had nothing to do with the ‘changing of the guard’, after I also found myself bored watching same.
Maybe it improved after that, but I wouldn’t know, I moved on.
