10 Episodes That Show Exactly When TV Shows Started Going Downhill

When a popular TV show like The Simpsons or The Walking Dead suffers a tragic downfall and loses its magic, the failure can usually be traced back to one polarizing episode. It’s common for TV shows to reach a peak somewhere in the middle of their run and gradually go downhill afterward. Whether the writers ran out of good ideas and started “jumping the shark,” an actor who was crucial to the series’ success left the cast, or a beloved character was killed off in a callous and controversial way, a TV show’s decline in quality can stem from many factors.

Not every TV show with a (sudden) bad episode is doomed to go downhill; some shows have saved themselves from that kind of failure. Stranger Things stumbled with season 2, episode 7, “Chapter Seven: The Lost Sister,” and the lackluster third season indicated a decline in the show’s overall quality, but the acclaimed season 4 managed to turn it around. Still, from Community to Game of Thrones, the reputation of a fan-favorite TV show can be tarnished by one bad episode that signaled the beginning of the end.

10. The Walking Dead – “The Day Will Come When You Won’t Be”

Following the cliffhanger ending of The Walking Dead’s season 6 finale, Negan took center stage in the season 7 premiere, “The Day Will Come When You Won’t Be.” Jeffrey Dean Morgan gave a fantastic performance in the episode, but Negan’s sadistic killing of Glenn with his barb-wire-wrapped baseball bat Lucille was excessively gruesome. The intention was for Glenn’s death to be shocking and dramatic, but it just came off as exploitative. Glenn was a fan-favorite character who had been with the show from the beginning, and The Walking Dead’s entertainment factor went out the window in his grueling, eye-popping death scene.

9. Family Guy – “Life Of Brian”

Stewie destroyed his time machine at the beginning of Family Guy season 12, episode 6, “Life of Brian.” However, the tragic irony of this twist was revealed shortly thereafter when Brian was killed in a hit-and-run incident while Stewie couldn’t go back in time to save him. Family Guy is usually a show that prioritizes laughs over everything else, including character development, but “Life of Brian” was a needlessly dreary and downbeat episode that exploited the audience’s love of an iconic character. The fact that Brian was resurrected a couple of episodes later, and everything went back to normal begs the question: why did the show kill off Brian at all?

8. That ’70s Show – “Till The Next Goodbye”

Topher Grace made his last regular appearance as Eric on That ‘70s Show in season 7, episode 25, “Till the Next Goodbye.” Grace left the show to play Venom in Spider-Man 3, which would turn out to be a less-than-stellar career move. Eric got a tearful farewell in the season 7 finale, but the show wasn’t the same without him in season 8. By the time Ashton Kutcher’s Kelso had also left the cast, it was like watching a totally different show.

7. Community – “Conventions Of Space And Time”

Series creator Dan Harmon’s distinctive comic voice was noticeably missing from Community after he was removed from the show’s staff ahead of season 4. While the first couple of season 4 episodes showed promise with the animated show-within-a-show Greendale Babies and a parody of Paranormal Activity, the third episode, “Conventions of Space and Time,” signified the beginning of Community’s downfall. The episode has some fun gags, but it’s missing the depth and intelligence that made Community’s early seasons so great. Its focus on romance and relationships puts it more in line with the clichéd sitcoms it initially set out to subvert.

6. Lost – “Through The Looking Glass”

The season 3 finale of Lost, “Through the Looking Glass,” was one of the greatest episodes of the series and has been praised as one of the most iconic episodes of television ever produced. It has the unforgettable “Not Penny’s Boat” moment, and the shocking twist reveal that the episode’s flash sequences are not flashbacks but flashforwards. However, it also marked the beginning of the end for the series. It highlighted the fact that the writers had no clear plan for where the story was going. Instead, the show introduced a lot of teases and mysteries that never amounted to anything. The dip in quality should’ve served as a grave warning for the divisive series finale.

5. Happy Days – “Hollywood: Part 3”

The phrase “jumping the shark” was coined when Fonzie – the breakout character of Happy Days – went waterskiing and jumped over a shark in season 5, episode 3, “Hollywood: Part 3.” The term has become a shorthand for cartoonish, far-fetched TV storylines that go beyond the audience’s suspension of their disbelief. From Michael’s fake death in Jane the Virgin to Grey’s Anatomy’s notorious musical episode, plenty of subsequent TV shows have jumped the shark. But, while it is a genuinely impressive stunt, Happy Days’ original shark jump remains one of the most egregious examples.

4. Dexter – “Talk To The Hand”

In Dexter season 6, episode 11, “Talk to the Hand,” Debra first confided to her therapist that she was in love with her brother. Not only was this incestuous twist an uncomfortable turn in a show that already required audiences to be okay with murder, but it also felt totally out of character for Debra to fall for Dexter. Audiences had spent six seasons understanding the brother-sister bond between Dexter and Debra, so this storyline put an unnecessarily inappropriate twist on that dynamic.

3. The Office – “Goodbye, Michael”

For The Office‘s first seven seasons, Steve Carell was the glue that held the show together. The supporting cast is full of great actors playing their own lovable characters, but Carell was the one steering the ship. Michael Scott got a perfect, heartfelt farewell in season 7, episode 22, “Goodbye, Michael.” For better or worse (but mostly worse), the network insisted on continuing the series without him. By season 9, premises like getting an unconscious Stanley downstairs were stretched to fill a full episode. Luckily, The Office managed to deliver a satisfying series finale at the end of season 9 — and it undoubtedly had something to do with Carell’s return.

2. Game Of Thrones – “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken”

HBO’s epic fantasy drama series Game of Thrones didn’t really go off the deep end until it rushed its final season. The first sign of the weakness, however, came in season 5, episode 6, “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken.” After Sansa Stark reluctantly marries Ramsay Bolton, the episode ends with a violent sexual assault. What’s even worse is that the scene is more about Theon’s pain than Sansa’s. This scene served no real narrative purpose. Instead, it was yet another example of Game of Thrones using unnecessary scenes of sexual violence for cheap shock value.

1. The Simpsons – “The Principal And The Pauper”

Principal Skinner has been a beloved character on The Simpsons since the very beginning. Over the years, the show has explored his dedication to his job, his military background, his love-hate relationship with Bart, and his on-and-off romance with Mrs. Krabappel. When season 9, episode 2, “The Principal and the Pauper,” revealed Skinner to be an impostor, it sent the message that the writers didn’t appreciate the emotional attachment their fans had formed — not just to Skinner but to the cast at large. The Simpsons went too far with this episode, which marked the end of the series’ golden age.