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Author Topic: Jumping the Shark  (Read 14733 times)
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« Reply #15 on: January 04, 2010, 08:45:05 PM »

I've been a big fan of The Simpsons, but ever since I got into college years ago, in the early 00's, I just stopped watching.  They jumped the shark by simply refusing to end when they ran out of ideas.  Is it even still on the air?  That's how much I've lost touch with it. I mostly watch Family Guy now, because for all of its juvenile silliness, they still manage to win me over with some original thinking smooshed in.  

From what I see, The Simpsons today has none of the originality of the older episodes, the characters don't evolve anymore, Homer is always at the center of everything, and they seem to rely completely on celebrity guest voices, and plots that always end with everything back the way it was by the end of the episode.  

And the movie...don't even get me started about the movie.  

As an avid fanboy of The Simpsons (I started watching since Season 9), I haven't noticed any jumping the shark.  Maybe with killing Maude off, but that's a whole different debate.  I always dislike it when people say that the episodes have no originality today.  They obviously haven't seen a lot of the show recently.  I like to see you say that after watching Gone Maggie Gone, The Enternal Moonshine of a Simpson Mind, and Dial N for Nerder.

Also, I'm fed up with people saying Season 8 is the greatest and Homer's Enemy is the best episode around.  They are all overhyped and Homer's Enemy was really unsettling and bothersome.  Anyways, that's a whole another debate.

Also, as for jumping the shark, I never noticed this sort of thing with any show.  Either I'm not observant or I just don't give a crap.
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« Reply #16 on: January 04, 2010, 09:16:06 PM »

The Sopranos seriously jumped when they killed off Ralphie.  It gave way to a barrage of big name actors playing mediocre, boring characters. 

Price Is Right jumped when they hired Drew Carey.

GI Joe the cartoon jumped with Arise Serpentor Arise.

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« Reply #17 on: January 04, 2010, 11:38:31 PM »

As an avid fanboy of The Simpsons (I started watching since Season 9), I haven't noticed any jumping the shark.  Maybe with killing Maude off, but that's a whole different debate.  I always dislike it when people say that the episodes have no originality today.  They obviously haven't seen a lot of the show recently.  I like to see you say that after watching Gone Maggie Gone, The Enternal Moonshine of a Simpson Mind, and Dial N for Nerder.

Also, I'm fed up with people saying Season 8 is the greatest and Homer's Enemy is the best episode around.  They are all overhyped and Homer's Enemy was really unsettling and bothersome.  Anyways, that's a whole another debate.

That might explain a lot. I've always maintained that the show started sliding before Season 9.

I do agree that Homer's Enemy wasn't a great episode. It had its funny moments, but it had all of the problems that just continued to get worse over the following seasons. Homer was completely clueless, characters behaved uncharacteristically if it suited the story, and it was maybe just a bit too far removed from reality to be good satire, not to mention the whole situation feeling forced.
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« Reply #18 on: January 04, 2010, 11:45:15 PM »

Although I've always know the phenomenon, I've never known this phrase until recently.


So, let's hear it, what are some of your favorite "shark jumpings?" T.V., film, whatever. I hope to foster this most apt phrase into the badmovies.org lexicon immediately, and hope to see it used regularly, as it can easily fit into at least 25% of all threads.


Uhmmm...I hate to sound like a jerk, but this is an old phrase that's had it's run in popular culture.  It even had a book.
http://www.amazon.com/Jump-Shark-Jon-Hein/dp/0452284104
From what I understand, the original website for jumptheshark was sold to tv guide channel, and now serves more as an promotional site.

But to add to the discussion, my favorite JTS is in the first episode of Criminal Minds because I can pinpoint the exact moment in time it happened.

The two investigators are trying to figure out what the password to the criminal's computer was.  The criminal can't sleep and likes Metallica.
The one says  What would an insominatic Metallica fan use as a password?
The other one says: "Enter-Sandman".

I heard eveyone who got the reference let out a groan after that.
« Last Edit: January 04, 2010, 11:51:34 PM by WingedSerpent » Logged

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« Reply #19 on: January 05, 2010, 06:54:42 AM »

The jump the shark incident I can think of is the last season of the A-Team when the guys went to work for Robert Vaughn. Plus they added the got rid of the girl and added some guy to help them out.
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« Reply #20 on: January 05, 2010, 07:34:43 AM »

Married With Children - when they added that horrifically unfunny kid named Seven to the show.  I'd actually say it jumped when Al founded No Ma'am, as it was out of character for the show and I never found that stuff funny either.  It soldiered on for quite a while after that with an occasionally good episode, but for the most part it was done.

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century - at the beginning of season 2 they ruined everything about that show.  Made it into some sort of children's show.

Star Trek Voyager - when they added the Borg children to the cast.

Babylon 5 - at the end of the fourth season, they thought the show was going to be canceled, so they tied up all the plot threads and pretty much ended the show.  But then it got renewed for a fifth season.  They added a new character who was seemingly patterned after Janeway on Voyager, and they basically didn't have any (interesting) story left to tell.
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« Reply #21 on: January 05, 2010, 08:39:14 AM »

The jump the shark incident I can think of is the last season of the A-Team when the guys went to work for Robert Vaughn. Plus they added the got rid of the girl and added some guy to help them out.

For me, it was an earlier episode. Can't remember the details, but it had one of the trademark building montages in which they went to a good deal of trouble to armour plate a truck. Then they used it to crash trough a wall and escape. I mean that's all they used it for. They crashed through the wall, got out and mopped up the bad guys without it. I knew it was all downhill from there. The best part of the show was when they'd go on the attack with improvised weapons and have a big action scene. Then we got more and more episodes in which the climax was just more random machine gun fire. I see the last season as a desperate attempt to save a show that was already a goner.
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« Reply #22 on: January 05, 2010, 09:39:57 AM »



Uhmmm...I hate to sound like a jerk, but this is an old phrase that's had it's run in popular culture.  It even had a book.

[/quote]

Well then, since it's run it's course, allow me to bring it back. I shall also do my best to revive:

"Where's the Beef."
"You look maaahvelous."

Also, The Simpsons? Why is this show still alive? It's gone way past it's capacity to die a dignified death. I've honestly tried to watch it. Boring, not funny, no longer relevant, nor irreverent enough to keep my attention. Family Guy rules!
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« Reply #23 on: January 05, 2010, 09:56:51 AM »

Although I've always know the phenomenon, I've never known this phrase until recently.


So, let's hear it, what are some of your favorite "shark jumpings?" T.V., film, whatever. I hope to foster this most apt phrase into the badmovies.org lexicon immediately, and hope to see it used regularly, as it can easily fit into at least 25% of all threads.


Uhmmm...I hate to sound like a jerk, but this is an old phrase that's had it's run in popular culture.  It even had a book.
http://www.amazon.com/Jump-Shark-Jon-Hein/dp/0452284104
From what I understand, the original website for jumptheshark was sold to tv guide channel, and now serves more as an promotional site.

But to add to the discussion, my favorite JTS is in the first episode of Criminal Minds because I can pinpoint the exact moment in time it happened.

The two investigators are trying to figure out what the password to the criminal's computer was.  The criminal can't sleep and likes Metallica.
The one says  What would an insominatic Metallica fan use as a password?
The other one says: "Enter-Sandman".

I heard eveyone who got the reference let out a groan after that.



HEHE... I wouldnt call that Jump the Shark... I'd call it silly script writing :)




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Skull
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« Reply #24 on: January 05, 2010, 10:26:39 AM »

Married With Children - when they added that horrifically unfunny kid named Seven to the show.  I'd actually say it jumped when Al founded No Ma'am, as it was out of character for the show and I never found that stuff funny either.  It soldiered on for quite a while after that with an occasionally good episode, but for the most part it was done.

If Married With Children did jump the shark... Peg would have a JOB... hehe :)


I recall hearing a few housewives (with nothing better to do) wanted to ban the show because they said 'the content was bad for their children' and the complaint got more people into watching Married with Children... So naturally Fox push more 'anti-feminist content' on Married with Children which actually made the show funnier. No Ma'am was another rehashing of the same old joke (like most good shows they sometimes end up repeating themselves)

[I place Married With Children at the same sitcom level as The Honeymooners and I Love Lucy]


Quote
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century - at the beginning of season 2 they ruined everything about that show.  Made it into some sort of children's show.

Was it the second season or 3rd (if they had a 3rd) that Buck Rogers was playing 'Star Trek' It seemed that way since they were in space.

I remember liking the space vampire episode and the one with the 9 generals and a privite... :)
« Last Edit: January 05, 2010, 10:30:05 AM by Skull » Logged
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« Reply #25 on: January 05, 2010, 10:31:38 AM »

Quote
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century - at the beginning of season 2 they ruined everything about that show.  Made it into some sort of children's show.

Was it the second season or 3rd (if they had a 3rd) that Buck Rogers was playing 'Star Trek' It seemed that way since they were in space.

I remember liking the space vampire episode and the one with the 9 generals and a privite... :)

Yeah, they just had 2 seasons.  In the second one they were in a spaceship and they put Wilma in a little sailer outfit  TeddyR  The 9 generals and 1 private - all midgets - was of course from season 2.
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« Reply #26 on: January 05, 2010, 12:27:31 PM »

Saved By The Bell jumped when Jessie got hooked on caffeine pills.   Buggedout  Actually I always hated this show but I'd say it went downhill after this episode.

I hate to say it but Hell's Kitchen mildly jumped the shark last season.  Whenever people start answering the judge/host back its going to go downhill.  

CSI jumped when Grissom left.
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« Reply #27 on: January 05, 2010, 03:20:32 PM »

Married With Children - when they added that horrifically unfunny kid named Seven to the show.  I'd actually say it jumped when Al founded No Ma'am, as it was out of character for the show and I never found that stuff funny either.  It soldiered on for quite a while after that with an occasionally good episode, but for the most part it was done.

If Married With Children did jump the shark... Peg would have a JOB... hehe :)


I recall hearing a few housewives (with nothing better to do) wanted to ban the show because they said 'the content was bad for their children' and the complaint got more people into watching Married with Children... So naturally Fox push more 'anti-feminist content' on Married with Children which actually made the show funnier. No Ma'am was another rehashing of the same old joke (like most good shows they sometimes end up repeating themselves)

I agree that No Ma'am was a nail in the coffin. It took things to a level of absurdity that actually made the jokes harder to enjoy. Al and his buddies complaining about the women in their lives is one thing. Guys relate to that. But having them form a club with meetings and t-shirts and such - basically formalizing what they would have done anyway - that just didn't make sense.

But I think it was just the result of something that had been going on for a while. This is the same thing that happens to other long-running sitcoms. The show becomes less about funny situations and more about the characters doing their shtick in an ever more exaggerated fashion.

Happy Days was the same way. The shark jumping episode is what we notice, but that was the culmination of another trend that had been killing the show for some time - Fonzie as superhero. The Fonz was very successful as the intimidating greaser bad boy the girls loved, the nerdy guys looked up to, and the adults were unsure of. He was tough, he had style, and he knew a few cool tricks, like getting the jukebox to play by hitting it. On top of that, he also lacked sophistication, and was in some ways kind of a dumbass. He was great because he was believable, almost familiar, and he fit a niche within the show. But then his popularity resulted in an expanded role, which messed up the whole nostalgic coming-of-age comedy centred around Richie and his friends. But the show was still funny.

However, from there, Fonzie's coolness gradually turned into a full-blown super power, summoning women like Aquaman calls fish, and doing things with thumps and finger snaps that bordered on telekinesis. But that stuff was still funny.

But then the show continued to revolve more and more around the Fonz, who went from being the guy who could be counted on to intimidate a bully or set one of the guys up on a date to the guy who solved everybody's problems with his wisdom.

And on it went. The writers just kept emphasizing the traits that made people like Fonzie in the first place, at the expense of the character's and the show's integrity, until they had him jumping over a shark on water skis. Of course, the other factor there is the story well gradually running dry, and the writers struggling to come up with fresh new ideas that keep people excited about a show they're gradually tiring of.

Same thing happened to Married with Children. Al got dumber, more misogynistic and more pathetic in general, Peggy got lazier and nastier, Marcie turned into a full-blown radical feminist harpy, Kelly got dumber and sluttier, Bud got hornier. Simpsons has the same problem.

For a while, this stuff can make a show funnier, but it eventually reaches a point of excess. The characters become caricatures of caricatures, and the things they do go from funny with a bit of truth to just plain absurd. The show gets weighed down by characters doing their thing and it bears little resemblance to the show people liked in the first place.
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« Reply #28 on: January 05, 2010, 04:51:10 PM »

AndyC -

Bravo, sir.

Another poster had criticized my use of the term "jumping the shark" as it is an older term that had run it's course. Who cares? The phenomenon and the damage it does to good entertainment is very real, whatever you call it. This is why shows like Family Guy and South Park avoid jumping the shark. They are so absurd to begin with that they can pretty much do whatever they want, as long as they're funny. They're not stuck on whether or not the character is doing what they're expected to do. Most times they do, but sometimes they step outside their stereotype, as human beings do. Quagmire is a sex-addicted pervert, but he also fell in love once and almost got married. Peter is a moron, but he sometimes makes brilliant pop-culture references. Brian has more sense than the rest of the family most of the time, but we still have to be reminded that he is a dog, and has dog instincts. The show pokes political fun, and sometimes brilliantly, but doesn't wear an agenda on it's sleeve like The Simpsons does. Even when the show gets close to jumping the shark, it almost always seems to pull back just in time. 
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« Reply #29 on: January 05, 2010, 05:02:47 PM »

I'd head the phrase "jump the shark" many times before but had never actually seen the clip of Fonzie doing it until today.

Here it is in all of its glorious absurdity!

Small | Large



The thing I find funny about it is that Fonzie is wearing his leather jacket while skiing.
Hilarious!   TeddyR


Small | Large

« Last Edit: January 05, 2010, 05:05:26 PM by Ash » Logged
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