The talent of binging shows non-stop for hours, even days on end, takes drive and motivation. Call it a lack of self-control, and perhaps even sleep, but fixating and consuming one TV show over a matter of days has allowed me to scour the depths of many fandoms and become invested in many TV shows. What I have noticed is that some shows go on for far too long, enough to degrade the original storyline. 

Take the show Criminal Minds for example. I absolutely adore this show and I have watched all 15 seasons countless times, to the point that I could recite each episode from memory. But, my love mainly stems from the first few seasons, as they seemed to have an actual pre-determined plot. The writers seemed to have thought out each character and their backstory, creating a cohesive show where episodes built on each other. 

But, the first sign that the show began to fall apart was past the 7th season, when the writers seemed to start running out of ideas. They began to add random aspects of the characters’ backstories in order to create more episodes, at the expense of contradicting previous storylines. For example, one of the main characters of the show, Derek Morgan, in the beginning, was said to have a past of being a New York police officer in his early 20s.  However, in around season 5, it is mentioned that he has a background in law. But in later on,  it is said he spent his youth in the bomb unit of the FBI while also completing undercover work. There is absolutely no way that he could have completed this range of careers within the short timeframe that the show established and they used all these plotlines to create new episodes. This is just one example, however, plot holes further began to be exacerbated as the seasons went on, until at one point the show seemed to make absolutely no sense. It was clear that they had no direction and were just coming up with ideas per episode, completely disregarding the original storyline. 

 The beloved show, the Office, also seems to do something similar to this. It was only predicted to have a few seasons, however, due to its massive success, it began to produce more and more. Being a sitcom, the Office didn’t really need to have a concrete storyline, however, they ran too long in a different way. Once Micheal Scott, the main and most iconic character, left during season 7, the show seemed to slowly degrade. Fans dubbed him as the heart of the show and therefore, though the Office continue for another 2 seasons, it didn’t seem to feel the same. The plot fell apart and the fans, though still committed to the show because of their past love for it, didn’t rate it as highly or enjoy it as much. It was clear that the writers couldn’t fill the hole that Micheal Scott left and was only continuing the show for the sake of continuing it. 

I can name countless other shows that do this and in many different ways. Whether it be running out of ideas, trying to continue a show without a key character, or just losing the plot overall, writers always seem to try to make a show go on for as long as possible, even at the cost of losing sight of the original. Most shows start off with a planned storyline that has a foreseeable end, but as they accumulate success and money they continue the show past its expiration, essentially running it into a grave. This ruins the show you once adored and degrades your memories of enjoyment. At some point, you only begin to watch the show because of your past adoration of it, feeling as though are you compelled to watch, not actually enjoying it.  

All good things must come to an end. High-quality, beloved shows like The Good Place, BBC’s Sherlock, It’s Okay Not to Be Okay, and more are the ones that are meticulously planned and ones that connect as pieces in a puzzle, creating the perfect end. They can go on for many seasons, but the difference is the writers are aware of how far an idea can stretch before it becomes tiring and repetitive. Continuing a show solely for the sake of continuing it serves no benefit or purpose to the storyline, but rather harms the original plot. A good writer knows when to stop to preserve quality and in order for the viewer to keep happy memories of their favorite TV shows, they need to end.