"Jumping The Shark" Is When A TV Show Suddenly Gets Baaaad – Here Are 13 That Did Just That

Ngl, I still watch most of these.

According to TV Tropes, "jumping the shark" is a term for when a TV show "changes in a significant manner" that doesn't really work. In hindsight, viewers realise "that the change actually caused or hastened the show's demise."

Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

Here are 13 TV shows unfortunately did just that...

1. Happy Days – 1974-1984

ABC

During the '70s, Happy Days was one of the most popular TV shows around, that was until season five, when beloved character Fonzie literally jumped over a shark during an episode. The moment was so absurd it became known as the beginning of the end for the series, and it also prompted the phrase jumping the shark. AKA, the moment a TV series has exhausted its core ideas and starts including ridiculous plot points to make up for it.

2. Fear The Walking Dead – 2015-2023

AMC

Any zombie fan will know that the crux of what made Fear The Walking Dead – a spin-off of The Walking Dead –  so great, was that it focused on the first days of the outbreak. The show recounted the initial chaos it caused, how society crumbled, and the impact it had on the show's core family.

After a few seasons, however, the plot quickly became an exercise in characters finding a shelter, losing said shelter, then finding another shelter, with increasingly erratic behaviour from all involved. The fault for this may lie with the series going on for longer than the original show runner (who was fired after season three) planned.

3. Grey's Anatomy – 2005-present

ABC

Don't get me wrong, I'm a massive Grey's fan (currently on my third rewatch), but not even diehard Grey's lovers can pretend the show has entered prime jumping the shark territory. Whether it was the loss of the prime characters that did it, or *that* infamous musical episode, at a certain point the show got away from the magic of its first season, when we were following Meredith Grey through her internship program.

The challenges she faced started out as dealing with working in the same hospital as a one night stand. By 2020, they'd morphed into a series long Covid coma, and spiritual talks with long dead characters. 

4. Buffy the Vampire Slayer – 1997-2001

The WB

Buffy is an iconic show, particularly in its first few seasons when the demon slaying is perfectly tempered with witty lines and, I don't know, a bit of fun every so often. Vampire-killing and high school – what's not to like? But once Buffy was resurrected by the Scoobies in season six, things got ~dark~. That said, the later seasons did have a Spike and Buffy (Spuffy?!) romance, so maybe it all evens out. 

5. Riverdale – 2017-present

Netflix

Riverdale has long been TV's most bonkers show, but it is ~much~ more bonkers now than it was in its first seasons. From Cheryl using witchcraft to switch bodies with her ancestors, to the seven year time jump, to season seven being set in the '50s because of an asteroid hitting the town??? It's hard to keep track of how many jump the shark moments poor Archiekins and his pals have had!

6. Sherlock – 2010-2017

BBC One

Benedict Cumberbatch rose to fame thanks to his role as the famous detective on Sherlock, and it's easy to see why. It was truly fantastic TV. It updated the iconic detective story for modern times, and the first three seasons has it all, intrigue, mystery, just the right amount of drama.

However, a disastrous Christmas special, where modern-day Sherlock takes a trip to Victorian England using drugs, heralded the end of that. By the fourth season, the show was riddled with far-fetched moments, like Watson and Holmes surviving a full-on explosion?!?!

7. American Horror Story – 2011-present

FX

Anthology series are notoriously tricky, but American Horror Story seemed to be the exception... For the first four seasons. Murder House, Asylum, Coven, and Freak Show were all terrifyingly good (as well as just plain terrifying). Each managed to feel unique, while still feeling like the same show.

Hotel – the show's fifth season – sadly wasn't up to scratch. There was an all-star line-up (Angela Bassett, Lady Gaga) but the plot points got confusing and a lot of the characters back stories were weak. Recent series, like Cult and 1984, haven't fared much better.

8. Community – 2009-2015

NBC

Community's problem was a common one – its core cast members outgrew it. In the middle of the fourth season, Donald Glover (who played Troy) left to pursue a music career as Childish Gambino, and while this was a great decision for him (he's got multiple Grammys now) the show floundered. More stars, like Chevy Chase, left, Dan Harmon stopped writing for the show, and the last two seasons were a flop.

9. Downton Abbey – 2010-2015

ITV

Downton Abbey is surprisingly gripping, given how gentle a lot of its plot points are. However, as time went on, the show meandered from period drama into soap. My point of no return was the Christmas day episode when Matthew Crawley was run over by a milk truck mere minutes after his son was born. Is Christmas is a cursed time for TV shows? Possibly. Will I still watch any Downton Abbey Christmas special they decide to come out with? Yes.

10. Lost – 2004-2010

ABC

I came to Lost late, which meant that just as I was getting into it, the highly controversial ending came out. Nevertheless I was hooked, and despite the fan outrage, I persevered in watching it even though I knew was going to end badly. And it did. More and more bizarre, half-explained plot lines got introduced (the giant foot statue), as well as a wild number of Jack flashbacks. By the time the final episode rolled around, I was so tired that I was ready to accept anything as long as it meant the series was over.

11. Dexter – 2006-2013

Showtime

Anti-heroes had a real resurgence in the late 2000s. Don Draper from Mad Men; Walter White from Breaking Bad; and, of course, the vigilante serial killer Dexter Morgan from Dexter. The first two series of Dexter are undeniably good from start to finish, but while Don and Walter have entered the pop culture halls of fame, Dexter... Not so much.

This is mainly thanks to the show's initial premise being overshadowed by the ~horror show~ that was season six, the low point of which was when Dexter's adoptive sister Deb confessed her romantic love for him even after learning he was a serial killer. Add in an unsatisfying finale to the series and it was curtains for Dexter.

12. The Office (US) – 2005-2013

NBC

If you want to pinpoint the exact moment the US version of The Office jumped the shark, I'd have to say it was the wedding of Pam and Jim in season six. Specifically, the two minute long dance number that felt a bit out of place in the mockumentary comedy.

This was compounded by the loss of Steve Carrell from the series in season seven. Carrell gave a career-defining performance as Michael Scott, the bumbling but ultimately loveable manager. The success of the sitcom wasn't all due to Carrell; there was a cracking ensemble cast that included John Krasinski, Rainn Wilson, and Mindy Kaling. However, a lot of the magic went with him when he left.

13. Game of Thrones – 2011-2019

HBO

I will NEVER get over the final series of Game of Thrones. Never. The eighth GOT season undid much of the phenomenal work that had come before it, thanks to rushed story arcs and that incredibly polarising ending (I don't care how you slice it, they did Daenerys dirty).

The final season was SO controversial, a petition even went round, asking producers to completely remake the whole thing. House of the Dragon appears to have won a lot of people back over (it is very good), but not me. The North –  and Emma Cooke – never forget.

That's your lot, but do you agree? Did we miss anything out? Let us know in the comments below!