TV is the perfect escape after long days listening to dull lecturers and trying to contribute in seminars you never really cared about. Gripping storylines transport us to a world of ridiculousness, where we accept a time travel hub in the middle of an island, or believe it is possible for sinkholes to randomly appear in the middle of Seattle. As the show goes on, we start to invest emotionally in our favourite characters, eagerly waiting for the next episode.
As always, these shows must come to an end. It’s a sad fact, but some shows have embraced this and gracefully bowed out, while others try to cling on to what once was. This tends to lead to the ultimate question – when is the right time for a show to end? Popular sitcoms such as Sex and the City and Friends got their timing just right. The former ended whilst retaining the integrity of the characters throughout its reign on TV, keeping storylines shockingly crude; yet never lowering itself to unnecessary sexuality. Although Friends kept on going until one could sense that the fluffy fantasy bubble was about to burst, it still proved to be captivating. Both of them managed to leave us wanting more of our favourite characters. I yearned to see how Ross and Rachel would fare or to once again hear an utterly inappropriate yet fantastically open conversation between ladies who lunch. Shows choosing to end themselves at the right time are unfortunately hard to come by. Take Scrubs, for example, loved for its zany, witty humour, just about survived the ascension of its main characters from interns to doctors; yet to be honest, it really should have stopped once JD left. One Tree Hill‘s storylines became far-fetched after its groundbreaking first four seasons, as the original concept was milked for all it was worth. Ever dwindling viewing numbers should have shut this production down well before its upcoming eighth season finale.
There are also current series, which I avidly follow, whose time, I know deep in my heart, is fast approaching. Grey’s Anatomy, a favourite of mine, reuses the familiar concept of a hospital as a backdrop to a deep and intricate web of personal drama. I have often found myself sobbing at the screen. Denny’s passing is still one of the most heart-wrenching episodes of any drama I have ever seen, or Teddy’s husband on the operating table at the mercy of Christina’s scalpel. However, the storylines are becoming more erratic as the daily catastrophes become even wilder, because anything vaguely normal would just be too boring to air. It is no longer possible to exploit Meredith’s fragility, as by now she should be shattered – how she is still whole defies belief. No matter how much I don’t want to admit it, this show must go, before it becomes a shadow of its former brilliance. Then there is the case of the cult classic that I feel no one wants to admit should not be causing our LED screens to light up yellow anymore. The Simpsons, once hailed as comedic genius, recently aired its 500th episode, to little applause from me. Nowadays it has begun to repeat the same gags that made it famous, and recognised as a breath of fresh air, attracting cameos from celebrities and world leaders alike. Yet the producers are revelling in the mounds of gold this franchise has brought them, obviously not knowing when to let go. Should it then be common practice to give shows an end date, so that they are not tempted to wring a franchise out to its bitter end and taint memories of the whole series? I would much rather stop watching my favourite show because it has been killed off than have my interest in it die. Hopefully producers will start to see it this way more often too, so that we will not be subject to watching the falling of a star on the small screen once more. But unfortunately if a show’s a money-maker, it’s not going to end any time soon.