Original Desmond

It seems in the US in particular, TV shows will keep going until they are axed or have gone too stale.

Hardly any TV shows have the discipline to end when they are supposed to.

I see both Lost and Prison Break falling into this trap.

In contrast, UK shows seem to have the discipline (e.g. UK Office, YOung Ones, Fawlty Towers etc). They know when enough is enough

Slayer2005

I would say Angel, but it didn't have much of a choice since it was cancelled in its fifth season (regardless I believe it still would've went out at about the right time). Buffy ended at about the right time. Season 7 wasn't one of the best seasons, but it was the best time to go out. It did so well and it had closure.

riley_dude

That's a tough one. It would be much easier to name shows that have gone on too long.

resinrats

Star Trek TNG
Star Trek DS9

wergo

It's pretty hard to tell. The only ones we can know for sure are the ones that went on too long. Without a crystal ball there's no way of knowing if an unmade season would have stretched patience too thin. Perhaps 'Six Feet Under' could have given its greatest season ever had it stayed for a sixth; we'll never know. Maybe 'Buffy' season eight would have been dreadful (though I SERIOUSLY doubt it). Would a world where 'My So-Called Life' stayed on the air been a better place or a worse one?

As I sit pondering an upcoming season with NO 'Arrested Development', season three of 'Veronica Mars' and yet ANOTHER (ugh!) season of 'Seventh Heaven' it's hard not to be hyper-aware of what a total crap-shoot the whole thing is.

There's gotta be a Roger Ebert paraphrase about how no good show can go on to long, yadda yadda yadda....

But, in the spirit of the original post question, I'll nominate 'The Larry Sanders Show.'

sb5

I read an interview with Arrested Development's Mitch Hurwitz where he said that the reason he ended up declining the Showtime deal (which came so close to happening that Jason Bateman actually said on a radio show that two new seasons were coming) was that he thought the show had run its course, and he felt forcing new episodes out would result in a steep decline in quality. So, you could argue that AD fits the post question, since there was a chance for it continuing, but was declined for "artistic reasons".

Of course, maybe it was just a money thing, and Mitch said this just to make himself look noble. Who knows?

Joe Molotov

Most shows don't go long enough.

wergo

I don't think it was a money thing, but the impression I got from various comments wasn't that Hurwitz had run out of ideas so much as he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown and didn't feel confident that he could continue at the same pace. Maybe if Showtime would have agreed to do the show with him working as a consultant (they weren't) or if the cast and crew could have agreed to take a year off before coming back (that's a lot of people to have to ask not to take any new jobs) the show could have continued.

It certainly must be tempting to be known as the guy who walked away from the table with their winnings intact, though. No matter what else happens from here on in, AD will ALWAYS be known as either one of or the greatest sitcom ever. And that final episode is gonna be known as the one to top.

Josh-da-man

Babylon 5.

Jay G.

I'm sorry, but it's hard to blame a show that was cancelled before the producers wanted it to as having a lack of discipline, since most don't last long enough to be at the point where they should end. And when exactly is a show "supposed" to end? It's all subjective, such as the fans who still like the show The Simpsons compared to those who think it should've ended seasons ago.

The best examples you can come up with are shows you think may go on too long? Producers of LOST said they had mapped a several season arc before they started the show, and Prison Break looks like it's following a similar pre-planned arc.

I think it's unfair to compare US to UK shows since they are different in so many ways.

First off, you cited three critically acclaimed and popular UK shows. These are the exception to UK TV, not the rule. We typically only see the critically favored stuff in the US, which can skew our views. Ricky Gervais of The Office has said that "there's an awful lot of English rubbish that's successful."
http://www.avclub.com/content/node/22609

Secondly, there are major differences in how the shows are produced, especially the quantity and intended runs. US shows are typically produced in runs of around 22-24 episodes a year. They are also intended to have multiple seasons if possible, with actors, writers and producers sometimes locked in for years. Networks will almost always renew a show before its current season has ended in order to limit the amount of time between seasons.

In contrast, UK shows, especially the ones you cited, often have very limited season runs, typically about 6 episodes. On top of that, they are commissioned as individual series, and called that, instead of a season. The shows are contracted and produced for that single series, at which point at the end of it there's no more comittment on anyone's part. If the series was successful, the show might be picked up for another series. So the producers and writers are much more focused on creating stories and arcs for the individual seasons, since they have no idea if a second one will even be commissioned.

Additionally, as a result of the UK production process, the space between the seasons of a UK show can be lengthy. For example, the second series of Fawlty Towers was produced four years after the first one. The Office had over a year gap between the airing of the first season and the second season, and then another over a year gap between the second season and the xmas specials. The Young Ones had a year and a half gap between seasons. So you're not only getting your show in much smaller doses, but spaced much further apart.

Also, the shorter runs means that for a UK show to match the US in number of episodes, it has to air much longer. For example, the US version of The Office has aired nearly three times as many episodes as its UK conterpart, despite only being on season 2.

Even with the smaller runs, UK shows can go on too long. Some think Monty Python went a series too long, especially since John Cleese felt so and had left the show. Red Dwarf's eight series was seen as dissapointing to many fans. As Ricky Gervais says: "But, unlike American series, if the British ones start off well and then do five seasons, you can be sure that seasons three, four, and five aren't as good."

Also, all the shows you listed had short runs, even by UK standards. It's true that they were all ended by the creators, but they seem more the exception than the rule in the UK as well. It helps that they were all still very well regarded and popular when they ended, although some probably suspect that at least a few of those series had a few more good episodes in them that we'll never see. The UK has had its number of long running shows as well though. Doctor Who is the most famous example, being on air for 26 consecutive years.

Finally, it's important to remember that almost all US TV is commercial, while the BBC is a government-funded enterprise. For US networks, it's much easier to continue an existing hit than to start over, investing millions into a new show that may or may not be a hit. Whereas the BBC is not as tied to ratings, and not at all to advertisers, and due to their commission process for shows, it's not much more difficult or risky to commission a whole new series as opposed to another run of a different series.


Still, we're starting to see a change in the US TV, where season arcs and such are becoming more prevelant, and there's even the possibility of one season shows. 24, for example exists as self-contained seasons more or less, instead of carrying story arcs over.

mrpayroll

Hill Street Blues is a perfect example of this. The quality never declined during it's seven years and it left with a bang.

Chris

kvrdave

Cheers
Seinfeld
Babylon 5
ST:TNG
DS9
Deadwood

Tracer Bullet

It's also important to remember that British television does not automatically equal the BBC. We don't get much stuff over here from the commercial channels because most of it is pretty bad. The only ones I can think of that most Americans would know are The Prisoner and Queer as Folk.

THX7966

I love the show, but I would argue that Cheers went two years too long. How about The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Dick Van Dyke? They called it quits and they were still great shows.

Patrick G

Friends went out on top.

RichC2

Most anime series go out after 26 episodes, they come in, tell their story, and are over with.

More shows need to follow that pattern. I would have been sad if Lost ended after one season, but season two had definite "dragging this through the mud" episodes. They need to decide on a full concluding point, and the "They have it all planned out" bit is rubbish, they have plot details planned out but how long it takes to get there is totally dependent on the studio.

das Monkey

"Masaka is waking!" Try again.

das

obscurelabel

Emily's Reasons Why Not

The Bob Newhart Show

I haven't watched it in a while, but from memory, TBNS seemed remarkably consistent during all of its six seasons. I think that CBS wanted to keep going but Newhart thought that they had done enough with that particular setup.

DRG

This brings up an interesting point. Some people seem to think a decline in quality warrants an instant death sentence. But there are shows I think are still good shows in general, even if they're not quite up to their old level of quality. I would never claim Simpsons is as good as it's heyday, but I still enjoy it most of the time. If it's still a 6/10 show for me, and I gladly watch other 6/10 shows, should it matter that it used to me a 10/10 show?

Now an extreme drop in quality is something else entirely. Some people may just find the show embarassingly bad now. If so it makes sense they quit on it.

Jay G.

Not just anime, but live action Japanese shows as well, not to mention Korean and Chinese shows. These shows typically work much more like a mini-series or serial, telling an over-arching story, instead of self-contained episodes.

Of course, some of these shows go on to additional seasons, but they're more like sequels than just continuations as we see in the US.

However, we must consider that all other countries also have a steady diet of US shows they can subsist on between new series and shows from their own country.

I actually like the idea of one-season shows in the US. However, I don't think it should be to the exclusion of more standard fare.

Turd Ferguson

Happy Days

Jay G.

I don't think the show that's the genesis for the term "jump the shark" can be said to have ended when it should've.

Superman07

lol.

pretty sure i haven't seen that episode since it aired (what, back in 94?) and i know what you're talking about.

Charlie Goose

I'm sure Turd was being sarcastic about Happy Days.

Although I really wanted to see a lot more, Ed left at a good time.

flashburn

As far as Prison Break goes, on the "Making Of" extra on the DVD the creator stated that he has the first 5 seasons planned out.