Solid First Seasons

So occasionally we’ve talked about shows that just started off so strong and up a muddled mess. Unfortunately this is an all too common phenomenon, particularly in network shows. It boils down to studios wanting more money so they keep their successful shows on long enough to ruin them. So we are going to go through some of the shows that had incredible, groundbreaking first seasons. Perhaps they even had a good first few seasons, but eventually they ended up incomplete and messy.

First up we are starting with Lost. We have talked about this first season and its strengths. In fact it started a whole YouTube series that I haven’t even come close to completing because I get really sidetracked. But we will get to the rest of the series. As well as the whole of the rest of the series on this list. The goal is to find some kind of common denominator as to when these shows get bad. Lost had an amazing first season bible, and a really amazing first season. It had arguably one of the best first seasons of television ever. And it had a good following with great ratings and the story was extremely well crafted and did its job of getting its audience excited. This is definitely a show I would consider revolutionary for both the medium and the industry as a whole.

Next we’ve got Castle. You really can’t go wrong with a Nathan Fillion show, and the character of Castle was so right in his element. This show played heavily into the will they-won't-they aspect between Castle and Beckett. The problem it falls into is the same one many shows fall into, once they do get together the show gets bad. The show became so dependent on their relationship and its tension that once it happened it had no motivation.

This next one actually bothers me the most, Once Upon a Time (From the producers of Lost so that makes a lot of sense). Once Upon a Time started off really well. The twisted view on fairytale stories was a great idea. I think they fleshed out the characters really well. But then the stories and characters started to turn more Disney and I feel like that's when the show got weird. I also feel like this show reached about 5 natural conclusions and they just kept going and they really really should have stopped.

This last one everyone knows, Supernatural. It was a good first season, perhaps even a great first couple of seasons and then…they kept going. The boys made the mistake of saying they would go as long as the fans wanted them to, the problem with that statement is that the fans are crazy and dedicated and that led to the show being on for about 8 seasons longer than it needed to be. Especially since, for the most part, each season ended in a way that if the entire show ended there the story would be okay.

Lots of shows are sold off of good first seasons, good ideas. But the first season is just the concept of the show. It's your chance to fully introduce your characters and their dynamic. But unless you plan for your show to be a mini series, you have to plan on more than one season. And in order to plan for more than one season, you have to know who your characters are, their weaknesses and have multiple storylines ready so that if your show gets extended past your original plan it doesn’t get terrible. I also just wish networks would give writers a chance to just end their stories when their ready.