7. Arrested Development (2003–2019)
The originalArrested Developmenthad a perfect run. The story of the Bluth family spread over three seasons was so well-crafted and well-executed that it forever became part of comedy television’s history.
Fox cancelled it after its third season, and Netflix picked it up years later. A fourth season was released in 2013, and a final fifth season was released in two parts, first in 2018 and then in 2019.
Sadly, the revivedArrested Developmentlacked the spark of the original run. Fans were flabbergasted, unable to understand how the great cast lost the magic that made the show so exemplary in the first place.
Much of it had to do with the cast’s conflicting schedules, making them unable to film scenes together. The writing had to be adjusted and the end result was several disjointed stories, with characters off on their own.
In other words, the fourth season was a convoluted mess and the fifth season couldn’t recover.Arrested Developmentshould’ve ended with its third season, but now has a tarnished legacy.
Related:The Best Arrested Development Characters, Ranked
6. Friends (1994–2004)
Friendshas cemented itself as an iconic TV show that transcends its time. Decades later, the show continues to draw in new fans via streaming.
Set in the 1990s,Friendscentered on six people in their twenties as they navigated the highs and lows of life in New York City, with audiences tuning in by the tens of millions to enjoy their friendly antics.
By the time it came to an end after ten seasons,Friendshad changed the face of television and its impact on pop culture.
However, even among fans, you might hear that the series went on for far too long, with its latter seasons dropping the ball at times.
The will-they-won’t-they love affair between Rachel and Ross dragged on and on without an end in sight across the final three seasons, which made the show such an effort to watch for audiences.
More than that, the show seemingly ran out of fresh ideas and came to its obvious conclusion a long time after it should have.
Related:Who Is the Best Friends Character? The Main Cast, Ranked
5. Game of Thrones (2011–2019)
Everything was going so well forGame of Thrones, right up until season seven dropped. That’s when the cracks really started to appear. (Depending on who you ask, some might even say those cracks started forming back in season five.)
The story ofGame of Throneswas an intricate mass of storylines and characters trying to weave their way through the world without being killed—and many failed in that endeavor.
However, when showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss decided they no longer wanted to work onGame of Thrones, they threw together a truncated mess of an eighth season and called it quits.
Despite HBO’s attempts to keep them on board, Benioff and Weiss wanted to move on to theirStar Warsgig—but also refused to allow anyone else to pick up the show after them.
So,Game of Thrones’s final season contained three seasons worth of material, compressed into an accelerated ending that felt ripped out the pages of an awful unpublished novel.
In a sense,Game of Thronesactually should’ve went on longer than it did. But given Benioff and Weiss’s reluctance to hand the reins to someone else,Game of Throneswould’ve fared better if it just ended sooner.
Had the show ended with season six, fans would’ve bemoaned the unfinished story, but at least the show’s legacy would remain intact. Instead, seasons seven and eight retroactively ruined the series.
Related:How Game of Thrones' Final Season Ruined All Previous Seasons
4. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018–2020)
WhenChilling Adventures of Sabrinawas adapted from the comic books into television by Netflix, it was initially met with good reviews.
Compared to the earlier adaptation ofSabrina the Teenage Witch,Chilling Adventures of Sabrinapresented itself as darker, more detailed, and with better casting. The end result was a completely different animal.
The first two seasons of the show were addictive and engaging, with Sabrina’s troubles as a young witch put on full display while retaining the attention of modern teenage audiences.
However, the show soon lost itself. It became too repetitive, never willing to give viewers more than they already had. The show couldn’t keep itself fresh as parts of it grew stale, even despite its attempts to sexualize everything. Moreover, it just lacked satisfying payoffs.
After four seasons,Chilling Adventures of Sabrinawas cancelled by the streaming giant—two seasons too late, if you ask me.
Related:The Best Witches and Wizards in TV Shows, Ranked
3. Seinfeld (1989–1998)
Seinfeldis a classic that sits among the best TV comedies ever made. Most of that can be attributed to its first seven seasons.
The show delivered a style of observational humor that’s timeless, to the degree that it remains as relevant today as it was in the 1990s. That timelessness not only keeps it popular among fans, but also continues to inspire modern sitcoms of all kinds.
But like many shows,Seinfeldwas victim to change. Rather than it running out of creative ideas or falling into the same beats over and over, the show lost its heart and soul when it lost Larry David.
Larry David’s exit as head writer at the end of season seven was a blow thatSeinfeldnever recovered from, with Jerry Seinfeld keeping the show afloat for another two seasons without his friend and co-creator.
The episodes became lazier without David’s bite, and the series ending is best forgotten entirely. HadSeinfeldended with season seven, it would have been perfection, unsullied by its final two seasons.
Related:The Funniest Seinfeld Scenes and Moments, Ranked
2. The Simpsons (1989–Present)
When all is said and done, fans will look back onThe Simpsonsand hail the impact it had on modern animation—which, one could argue, it started all by itself. Animated television owes a ton toThe Simpsons.
The show’s fractured take on modern life through the lens of the Simpson family was something fans couldn’t get enough of. More impressive is how the show maintained impeccable quality across its first 11 seasons, a staggering feat that’s above most shows.
Almost every episode from that initial period is comedic gold. However, as time’s laws of television often dictate, the decline eventually came.
The Simpsonsmorphed into a parody of what it once had been, with episodes that stooped for cheap laughs rather than the intense—and often devastating—comedic moments it had once mastered.
When rewatchingThe Simpsonsnow, it’s best to stick to those first eleven seasons. Some of what came after is serviceable, but those original seasons is where the magic ofThe Simpsonstruly resides.
Related:The Best Musical Guest Appearances in The Simpsons, Ranked
1. Top Gear (2002–Present)
In 2002, Jeremy Clarkson and Andy Wilman brought the classic (but boring) car showTop Gearback to the screen, except this time using a new format that was a lot more fun for viewers.
The show was so good that it spent nearly 20 years amassing fans around the world, becoming one of the most-watched TV shows in the world with 350 million people tuning in every week.
It was justfunto watch three men lark about in cars and get into a few accidents along the way. The show’s brilliance hinged on the chemistry between Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May.
Then, in 2015, Clarkson was let go by the BBC for a controversial incident, and Hammond, May, and Wilman all left the show with him.
So, the BBC remadeTop Gearwith two new hosts: Chris Evans (not the Marvel one) and Matt LeBlanc. They were joined by a few other co-presenters and they all tried to make the show work, but to no success. This newTop Gearwas simply a travesty.
The BBC continues to limp on with the show, but it has never attained the heights it did with the original trio.Top Gearshould have ended with Clarkson’s departure, but hubris likely got in the way.
