- 3 months ago
When good shows go bad... Join us as we count down our picks for TV series that overstayed their welcome! From fantasy worlds that lost their magic to finales that betrayed years of character development, these shows remind us that sometimes it's better to end on a high note than drag on until viewers beg for mercy.
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00:00Did you kill all these people? I did. Welcome to WatchMojo and today
00:07we're diving into the top 10 TV shows that should have ended earlier but dragged on.
00:12Beware of spoilers. It's not easy to see something that's never been before.
00:20Number 10, Once Upon a Time. I want Henry to excel in life.
00:23I don't think that makes me evil, do you? I'm sure he's just saying that because of the
00:31fairytale thing. What fairytale thing? You know, his book. This fantasy drama takes beloved fairytale
00:37and Disney characters and drops them into modern day Storybrooke May. The twist? They're cursed to
00:42forget who they really are and only Emma Swan can break the spell. By season six, Emma sacrifices
00:48herself but being resurrected in a battle that felt like the perfect series finale.
00:52You just need time. Let me give that to you. Regina.
01:01Go. He's my son too. He needs at least one of us.
01:08But instead of ending it there, the show continues with a seventh season. This time,
01:13it jumped years ahead, shifted focus to Henry, Emma's child and introduced his new characters.
01:18At this point, it felt rather different and unnatural as if its heart was gone. Seriously,
01:24why continue when most of the core cast including Jennifer Morrison have already left? Audiences
01:29agreed. Ratings dropped and season seven became the last.
01:32As of tomorrow, Lucy moves back in with me. Permanently.
01:45I'm starting to understand the whole Cinderella thing.
01:479. Scrubs
01:49Before medicine ever became a business, the only rule was to do your best to help the patient.
01:55Like it or not, medicine is a business. If the hospital shuts down, who are we helping then?
02:02What is it with show creators dragging things on after the story's already over? Scrubs nailed
02:07its ending in season eight. We watched JD grow from a nervous intern to a confident doctor and that
02:12final walk down the hallway filled with memories and closure felt like the perfect goodbye.
02:17It's never good to live in the past too long. As for the future, thanks to Dan,
02:23it didn't seem so scary anymore. It could be whatever I want it to be.
02:29He even left the hospital, but ABC wasn't ready to let go. So we got a ninth season. This one focused
02:35on new med students with the original characters appearing occasionally. The problem? It wasn't what most
02:40people signed up for. JD's bromance with Turk was gone, and the sacred heart chemistry we loved
02:46vanished. Some fans started to feel the decline earlier, but with season nine, Scrubs became an
02:51empty shell for many.
03:028. House of Cards
03:16This Netflix political drama definitely started out strong. When it dropped in
03:202013, its intricate plot and powerful performances had viewers hooked. Then it hit the wall in 2017 when
03:30the lead actor Kevin Spacey faced multiple allegations, and Netflix cut ties with him.
03:35Instead of wrapping things up, the show stretched into one more season, shifting the spotlight to
03:40robbing Wright's Claire as the lead. Unique, carefully calibrated. Pain, hysteria, and just a small dose of
03:49crazy. Claire Underwood like they've never seen before. The sixth season turned into a final showdown
03:57between her and Doug and other rivals, which wasn't all that compelling. Despite Wright's commanding
04:02presence, many felt the show had lost its bite with Frank out of the picture. What we ended up with
04:06was an ending that fell flat compared to the show's initial explosive beginning.
04:11It seems fitting, somehow, that you're the first person I meet with after I return to work.
04:18There's something very full circle about it.
04:207. Prison Break
04:22I'm not playing games. Open it.
04:24Sir, you have a half a million dollars cash in your bag. Don't you think it would be better?
04:29Knowing when to stop is a skill many showrunners can't seem to master. And Prison Break proves this,
04:38right from the very start. Michael Schofield's grand escape plan and the tense prison dynamics
04:43had people locked in. Season 2 kept the momentum alive with the breakout and its aftermath. Perhaps
04:49it should've ended there, but the show kept going with each new season stretching its premise further.
04:53It was no longer about one daring escape, but government conspiracies and other outlandish twists.
05:05By the time the revival arrived years later, the magic of that original hook was long gone. Worse,
05:11the story had tangled itself in so many plot holes that it felt cheap and quite confusing. Now,
05:16that's how you ruin a great show. When Glee premiered in 2009, it was fresh,
05:39intriguing and unlike anything else on TV. The mix of teen drama, comedy and big musical numbers
05:45turns it into a cultural phenomenon. It got good ratings, top music charts and even won golden
05:51globes and emmys. But every good thing has an end, right? Over time, the show grew formulaic with
06:04writers trying to outdo themselves. It started to feel like Glee was chasing everyone's approval
06:09instead of knowing what it was. When many of the original cash graduated, the replacements just
06:14couldn't fill their shoes. It became obvious. Glee had lost its spark and by the time the show reached
06:19its finale, it was a shadow of its former self.
06:21It's raining glitter! Is everyone okay? Who would do this? Sue. Sue. Sue? Sue!
06:36Please tell me that was insured. Oh, it's not. But that was very, very pretty.
06:41Number five, That 70s Show. Wait a second. You two look sweaty and guilty.
06:53Have you needed my candy?
06:56This teen show was pure charm in sitcom form. Set in a Wisconsin basement, it was packed with goofy
07:02teenage antics, sharp humor and that perfect mix of rebellion, awkward friendship and romance. The
07:08dynamic between the core six, Kelso, Donna, Jackie, Fez, Hyde and Eric was the heart of the show.
07:13When you started acting like an immature jerk, I started having doubts about us. But now this purple
07:18and pink unicorn candy just proves you're a grown-up.
07:24Eric and Kelso were especially important in keeping the show's balance. So when they both basically left
07:30before the show's final season, that balance fell. The writers brought in new characters, but they just
07:35couldn't make up for the charm the duo added to the series. Perhaps if it had ended before their exit,
07:40it wouldn't have had that finale which failed to capture what made it special.
07:52Number four, The Walking Dead.
07:54Characters are like the fabric that hold a series together. Kill them off carelessly,
08:09and the whole story starts to unravel. Take The Walking Dead. When it premiered in 2010,
08:14it hooked millions of viewers with its gritty, emotional tale about survival. Fans connected
08:19deeply with characters like Rick, Glenn, Carol and Daryl. But as seasons rode on, the show developed
08:24a shocking habit of killing off beloved characters, which felt like a cover for weak writing.
08:34Glenn's brutal death and Negan's arrival in particular left many viewers more drained and
08:38thrilled. Adding stretched out plots and recycled storylines, and the shortcomings become hard to
08:43ignore. What began as gripping television stumbled when it lost its sight of careful storytelling.
08:54Number three, Dexter. But it doesn't matter what I do. What I choose, I'm what's wrong.
09:02With shows like Dexter, you have to ask when is enough enough? Dexter had a strong premise from
09:07the start and became one of Showtime's mega hits. If it had ended at the right time, it might have kept
09:12its acclaim. Sergeant Doakes discovering Dexter's secret felt like climax material.
09:17Christ, you're the Bay Harbor Butcher. I really hate that name. Jesus Christ, man.
09:22He said that. I always knew there was something with you.
09:25Rita's shocking death in season four also felt like a natural endpoint. Instead of ending the story,
09:31the writers kept stretching it. New love interests, new villains, and more subplots. Even Deborah
09:37discovering his secret, arguably the biggest turning point of the series, should have been the end.
09:41Yet the story dragged on into more absurd territories, twisting her morals and giving us
09:45a watered-down version of Dexter. By the end, the finale felt like one of TV's biggest disappointments.
09:51How did he end up wrapped in plastic on the altar?
09:56I snapped.
09:58Number two, Game of Thrones.
09:59We appear to be missing a master of whisperers, and a master of laws, and a master of war.
10:06Yes, Your Grace. Suitable prospects will be brought to you for an audience in the coming weeks.
10:10A lot of people were probably waiting for this one. To many fans, Game of Thrones finale is
10:15honestly one of the most unforgivable things to have happen on TV. For years, it was held as the
10:20gold standard for television. There were epic battles, rich storytelling, shocking twists,
10:26magic, and layered characters to keep many engaged.
10:39But when the finale arrived, everything unraveled. The initial seasons drew from George R. R. Martin's
10:46book. Without that roadmap, the storytelling started to falter. It became quite obvious in season seven,
10:52and especially season eight. The characters abandoned arcs that once defined them,
10:56spectacle took prominence over thoughtful storytelling, and in the end, fans felt cheated.
11:01Now, we'd rather pretend season eight never happened.
11:04If we don't win this fight, then that is the fate of every person in the world.
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11:25It really feels like How I Met Your Mother took a masterclass in how to ruin nearly a decade of
11:52enjoyment for fans. The ending was anything but satisfying. After spending almost an entire
11:57season building up to Robin and Barney's wedding, the show threw it away with a sudden divorce.
12:02The mother, who we'd waited years to meet, turns out she's been dead for years.
12:06You need to sit down and listen to the story about how you met mom, yet mom's hardly in the story.
12:12No, this is a story about how you're totally in love with Aunt Robin.
12:16Instead of honoring her story, the finale pushed Ted back to Robin, making the story feel callous and
12:22shallow. What stung more was the rushed delivery. In a short time, viewers were hit with a divorce,
12:27death, and a forced reunion with no time to process any of it. After years of investment,
12:33this is what we got? Fans deserve better.
12:45What other beloved shows went on for too long? Let us know in the comment sections down below.
12:52the
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