Summary

• Some shows would be far better had they ended with earlier seasons rather than the weaker seasons that did end up being their final runs.
• For example, True Blood should have ended after season 5, as the show’s logical storylines became increasingly nonsensical and the departure of showrunner Alan Ball signaled its decline.
• Big Little Lies’ second season was unnecessary and felt like a soap opera, failing to capture the initial spark of the first season’s complex character dynamics and compelling suspense.

There are too many TV shows that have run way past their peak, refusing to end when they should have called it quits seasons ago. The temptation has always existed for networks and showrunners to squeeze every last bit of juice from a popular series, regardless of declining quality. Rather than ending these shows at their height, they are run into the ground through nonsensical plotlines and stagnant characters to drag out a few more seasons. However, some signs indicate this may be changing.

The Good Place ended after four seasons to avoid continuity issues. Fleabag ended its two-season run due to the story simply being complete. These examples demonstrate the benefits of quitting while ahead, emphasizing quality over quantity even given the commercial incentives to push past a show’s expiration date. This discipline preserves a show’s excellence and cements legacies rather than allowing once brilliant shows to turn into caricatures of itself.

10 Supernatural

The Season 5 Finale Would Have Been The Perfect Ending

Supernatural would have left a stronger legacy had it ended with the epic showdown against Lucifer in season 5. The initial seasons presented a tight narrative arc building up to that climactic battle between the Winchester brothers and the devil. That neatly structured journey would have been the perfect endpoint. Instead, the series struggled for new storylines for another ten additional seasons. Recycling enemies and introducing alternate dimensions was a reflection of the writers struggling to find original ideas, and unfortunately, the Supernatural season 15 series finale didn’t quite resonate like it should have. Ending on a different high note would have preserved Supernatural‘s excellence.

9 The Wire

The End Of Season 4 Would Have Provided A More Hopeful Tone

While The Wire is arguably one of the best TV shows in history, it reached its apex in season 4 with its tragic yet poignant depiction of four Baltimore students navigating broken systems. Ending the series on Namond escaping the streets to find a nurturing home would have concluded The Wire on a rare hopeful note. Unfortunately, season 5 of The Wire is the worst compared to others, as its forced serial killer narrative was hard to believe. The Wire always derived its power from realism, making season 5’s shift in tone not only inconsistent, but undermining the impact of what came before.

Related: Why The Wire Ended After Season 5 (Was It Canceled?)

8 How I Met Your Mother

The Drawn Out Conclusion Felt Like A Waste Of Time

The How I Met Your Mother ending caused controversy by taking nine seasons to reveal the mother’s identity, only to immediately render her irrelevant by having Ted end up with Robin. Tracy was the long-awaited title character, yet the show used her merely as a plot device to get Ted and Robin together. After almost a decade long investment, the conclusion came across as manipulative and unsatisfying. Had the show trimmed its length and expedited the meeting, there would have been room to fully develop Tracy beyond a narrative bait-and-switch. Additionally, keeping the story arc tighter would have prevented the show’s later-season decline and retained enough trust to sell the ultimate romance.

7 Dexter

Concluding At The Season 4 Finale Would Have Made Dexter A Modern Tragedy

The season 4 finale of Dexter would have been the perfect ending as it effectively conveyed the tragic cycle of violence by having the titular character discover his son soaked in Rita’s blood, doomed to repeat his own traumatic past. That powerful scene completed Dexter’s thematic arc exploring the hereditary nature of trauma. Unfortunately, the show struggled to regain its moral center after losing Rita, instead amping up cartoonish villains and plotlines that undermined the show’s gritty realism. Ending after the devastating punch of season 4 would have preserved Dexter’s dramatic legacy before its rapid decline into absurdity.

6 Orange Is The New Black

Continuing Past Season 5 Diluted The Show’s Early Importance

Orange Is the New Black was groundbreaking in humanizing incarcerated women, which was anchored by Piper Chapman’s fish-out-of-water tale. However, the show struggled to evolve once Piper was released. In addition, pivotal character Poussey Washington’s death sparked outrage while epitomizing the callous cruelty of the justice system for women of color, and the unrest leading into season 5’s cliffhanger captured these tensions well. Concluding at this point would have crystallized the series’ messaging about systemic injustices, but unfortunately, dragging things out further muddled the sociocultural commentary while lacking narrative purpose.

5 13 Reasons Why

Should Have Been A Limited Series While Sticking To The Source Material

13 Reasons Why lost its integrity when it continued past its self-contained first season, adapted from the novel written by Jay Asher. The initial mystery of Hannah Baker’s tapes and suicide had a clear resolution at the end of season 1. Stretching the premise into subsequent seasons lacking coherent direction or source material resulted in superficiality and melodramatic plotlines that betrayed the show’s initial grounded approach. The attempt to sustain the show as an ongoing series ultimately turned it into an average teen drama lacking any deeper meaning. Evil villains, shocking violence, and scandalous hookups replaced nuanced storytelling, turning a nuanced drama into average content.

4 The Office

Ending After Season 5 Would Have Preserved The Show At Its Peak

Defined by its cringeworthy yet lovable characters, The Office brilliantly detailed workplace shenanigans. However, the show’s heart and quality declined as the series was unnecessarily stretched. While producing some classic episodes, The Office seasons 5-9 increasingly resorted to contrived plotlines warping the beloved personalities. Will Ferrell’s brief stint as the boss epitomized the shift from situational humor to goofy, and the characters, in general, became less grounded. Ending The Office after season 6 could have preserved The Office at its peak, with the central romance culminating in Michael and Holly finally uniting, along with the supporting cast still endearingly depicted. Allowing the story arcs to resolve gracefully there would have cemented The Office as one of the great sitcoms.

3 Glee

Ending While Still Creatively Fresh Could Have Cemented Its Icon Status

Glee was a genre-defining musical comedy-drama when it first hit the scene. However, the show struggled to recapture that initial magic, especially after the original main characters graduated high school. The fourth season introduced new characters that never quite gelled like the originals. Meanwhile, off-screen, multiple cast member deaths dampened the once lighthearted tone. Ending after the first crew moved on from high school would have allowed the show to solidify its cultural imprint on a high note rather than overstaying its welcome. Capturing lightning in a bottle is rare, but attempting to mechanically reproduce that spark in later seasons only tarnished Glee’s originality.

2 True Blood

Ending After Season 5 Along With Alan Ball’s Departure Would Have Saved The Show

True Blood’s initial campy take on supernatural beings was a hit, but jumped the shark when it moved away from logical storylines. Introducing Sookie as a fairy in season 3, then piling on various mythological creatures highlighted the show grasping for new gimmicks as the original concept grew stale. Additionally, Alan Ball’s departure after season 5 was a sign that the show was already over. The plot became increasingly nonsensical with storylines and True Blood characters’ potential being wasted. Ending while the premise still held novelty could have sustained True Blood’s allure instead of allowing it to turn into a chaotic jumble of vampires, werewolves, werepanthers, fairies, and then some.

1 Big Little Lies

The Initial Spark Of The First Season Was Not Present In Season 2

Big Little Lies’ first season was a massive hit that turned Hollywood star power, biting social commentary, and murder into television gold. The show’s complex character dynamics fueled compelling suspense, ultimately culminating masterfully in a cathartic way. Season 2 proved to be unnecessary, despite the addition of veteran actor Meryl Streep. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to resuscitate the show, which now felt like a soap opera. Capturing that initial spark unfortunately didn’t work out, and concluding the fully-realized first chapter with the original cast would have preserved Big Little Lies’ excellence.