Shows That Got BETTER Over the Seasons

[sheilaforever]

I think it has to with the actors REALLY finding their comedic timing (if they have it LOL) but also the writers getting in on the basics of their characters and therefore delivering truly hilarious scripts. After 80 episodes it gets difficult to keep it fresh with the same characters...

Or it is all just subjective and we viewers just get fond of those shows before getting tired of the same style/humor and keep watching it out of habit.

I'm a bit surprised that no one has mentioned one single David E. Kelly Show. He should own this thread.

Practice, Ally McBeal, Boston Legal - all were improved by leaps and bounds in their late season 1 or definitely by season 2 with new characters really working on the strength's of each show. Season 3 was usually the climax and it started to deteriorate by season 4 or 5. Don't think any of his show's lasted longer with the exception of The Practice which basically became it's own spin-off in season 8 though before officially launching Boston Legal.

[Gray Bunny]

It's also interesting how 80's/90's shows wouldn't necessarily cement their character history in the first season. They would make changes once they found a good footing for the character and then stick with it here on out.

For random instances, in the first season of Boy Meets World, Shawn references to having a sister. It is later established for the rest of the series that he's an only child.... In the first season of Melrose Place, Alison indicates that she had a very happy, healthy childhood. Later, at the tail end of season 2, she realizes her father molested her as a child and subsequent references indicate that she had a messed up upbringing... 90210's Donna was sleeping around, according to season one (the episode when the Walsh kids throw a house party, geezus why do I remember this crap), but was later established as a virgin who wanted to remain that way until marriage.

[Soaplovers]

Mary Tyler Moore's first season resembled That Girl in tone, especially Mary's hairstyle. I think the show started morphing in season 2.

Growing Pains first season was rough, but season two through five were pretty good.

I think the first season is used to establish character, but once the writers see how an actor plays the character then they start to write the character to fit the actor.

[Max]

I actually liked MWC better during the earlier years. The show probably peaked in Season 3 (88-89), but the first two seasons were excellent as well. (What I liked best about the first season was that the Bundys were somewhat normal, as opposed to the cartoons they'd become later.) Seasons 4 & 5 were also good, but there was a noticeable decline in quality in the sixth season. Most of the episodes that aired in the last three years (seasons 9-11) I thought were unwatchable.

[amybrickwallace]

Wasn't the time MWC started to falter was when Seven was introduced? (If so, what a coincidence!!!)

[Max]

The general concensus seems to be that adding Seven (at the start of Season 7, 1992-93) was the definitive jump the shark moment. Even though it was better than season 7, I also thought that season 6 was considerably inferior to what came before. (That was the season when Peggy got pregnant, only to have it revealed that the pregnancy was just a dream of Al's. In real life, this storyline change was made out of respect to Katey Sagal, who had a stillborn baby.)

[amybrickwallace]

Thanks for clarifying. I was never a regular MWC viewer, so thanks for filling in the blanks.

[Dr Neil Curtis]

Gimme A Break was good after season 2 when Joey Lawrence and Telma Hopkins joined the cast. The last season and the move to New York wasn't a fave of mine.

[VirginiaHamilton]

Funny enough, the Joey Lawrence years are the only ones that I remember.

[Khan]

I do think "Gimme a Break" improved once Hal Cooper and Rod Parker joined the show as EP's and showrunners.

[Cheap21]

Dallas 2.0. This season is SOOOO much better than the first two years

[amybrickwallace]

I mentioned The Middle earlier in this thread, and I stand by that. The car lot scenes were by far my least favorite parts of the show. Once the car lot was phased out and the focus turned 100% to the Heck family, the show took off and stayed that way to the end.

[Gray Bunny]

 

I loved the Terri era just as much as Chrissy/Ropers. Indeed, all eras of Three's Company hold up very well in reruns. 

 

EDIT: Ha! Didn't realize this was a rebooted thread from 2014 and that I already commented on good ol' Terri 

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[amybrickwallace]

TJ Hooker  - The first couple of seasons were good, but the show didn't hit its stride until the third season with the addition of James Darren to the regular cast, expanding Heather Locklear's role, and revamping the theme song.

[All My Shadows]

It's several months later, but I was about to say the same thing in regards to The Brady Bunch that I said almost 5 years ago lol I've been watching it a lot on MeTV on Sunday mornings, and I still feel the same way. The final season had some of the show's best episodes.

Here's one - The Price is Right, by its very nature, got better as the years went on and they added more games, the audience got more into it, the roster of models stabilized, etc. Early TPIR is great, but classic, vintage, top-notch Price is Right is basically anything from about 1980-2005. Those 25 years were golden.