Do you ever feel let down after watching the first series of something which has been brilliant?

[EachandEveryone]

And the next series is kinda alright but doesnt have the same excitement? I felt that recently with The Marvelous Mrs Maisel it was actually the third that made me think its lost its way. And Pose which blew my mind the first series. The second one just didnt make me cry with it. I still think it was brilliant for what it did but I dont want to see a third.

I lost interest in seasons 2 and 3 of the affair, whereas season one had me hooked.

The worst one for this in my opinion was Lost. It got gradually more ridiculous and complex as the seasons went on - to the point where almost everyone I know who watched it gave up and never made it to the end. Such a pity because the first few seasons were great.

So many times, most recently The Good Place - seasons 1 and 2 were brilliant but it’s gotten progressively worse since then. Sneaky Pete is another - season 1 was brilliant and can’t even get through s2.

I enjoyed S3 of Mrs Maisel a lot though 🤷‍♀️

Then you have programmes that get better every series (eg Better Call Saul). I was also relieved that S2 of Barry was so good as S1 is amazing.

I never got over the BBC Robin Hood series way back in 2008. First series and most of the second was brilliant, then everybody left and the third series was the worst travesty I've ever seen!

I sometimes feel like this and I think I've identified why. I've realised I really hate it when there is a big, dramatic cliffhanger at the end of the season and then you have a year long wait (sometime longer, looking at you GoT and Westworld) and the the next season picks up right where the other left off. It's like what's going? What was she supposed to be doing again? What happened to him? And you loose the drama. I've had this recently with Insatiable.

Surprised about all the hate for Mrs Maisel though, I've loved every season so far.

I can’t put my finger on Mrs Maisel at all. Maybe because it’s not as shocking now her doing stand up? The first season you were rooting for her now she’s getting annoying could that be it? I’d love to see more of Susie tbh.

Agree on this is us, gave up half way through first episode of second season. Green leaf likewise loved it then it felt like a totally different show.

Glee ran 2 seasons too long too.

Mostly third seasons, it seems to me, with it then possibly picking up again by series five (if they get that far). Partly I think is that for series one they have a surfeit of stories to pick from and depending on the format (6/10/12/more episodes) they cull to use the best of them in the first series. Then they've got some good ones left over and some not so good one, and write a few new bits to make a second series. So it tapers off a bit already and by series three they've run out of stories of the initial pitch and are frantically writing new ones, which can never be as good as the storie that have gestated over years (possibly, but definitely months) before they got made.

Someone mentioned The Crown series 3. I think that was always going to be a bit of a let down due the the "change of personnel" thing going on. There's a different flavour to it, though, less of a global momentum held together by the family story, the stories are more local/pedestrian if you like, a lot of focus on things outside the family (see the Aberfan story) and the family connection not strong enough to hold it together. There were rivetingly good bits in the last two we saw (the "coup" one, and the POW investiture one) though. And the guy who played Charles was fantastic, absolutely top job there.

I gave up on The Affair but might try and get back into it due to the lovely Claus Bang (Dracula) now being in it.

Can I add Poldark, Call the Midwife, and Ray Donovan to the list of latter series not living up to the first.

Sorry he's Claes Bang, not (Santa) Claus!!

Im sorry to have to add Better Things to this thread😒 im just not feeling the third one

I agree The Affair went downhill but I think the 5th and final season is brilliant.

The Dirk Gently reboot on Netflix (that in itself had bugger all to do with Douglas Adams and the lovely Stephen Mangan but I let that go).
I adored the first series, loved it. The second series went all Fantasy land Wendimoor bollocks, fuck knows what Max Landis thought he was doing. A completely different feel, new direction, difficult second album film equivalent? Little wonder it got cancelled.

Sherlock. I loved the first series so much and as soon as the second one started it just felt off. Too in love with itself.

Series 3 of This Is Us is amazing.

Mrs Mauser has become like a parody of itself now (just finished S3). Her stand-up routines are still great, but the rest of the dialogue feels corny and false.

Is Better Things the one about the single-mum actress? If so, YES - series 3 is awful. Maybe because they got rid of Louis CK who'd co-written S1 and 2.

My biggest disappointment like this was TrueBlood. S1 was unlike anything else I'd ever seen on TV. I lived for each new episode. It was amazing. Then S2 arrived and... no. The magic had gone.

I always thought things went downhill because they used amazing producers and directors to "birth" new series, and then once the series were up and running and successful, those people move on to the next launch. And the people that take over didn't ever know what had made the first series so, so good.

Broadchurch - they were never going to replicate that feeling when your - along with David Tennant's - heart dropped as you realised who the murderer was.

Lost - gave up halfway through

Glee - also gave up

Sherlock - loved it to start then it got shit with the Mary storyline etc. I like series that have 'one off' episodes where there's a different crime to solve etc. When they start running together I get bored.

I just saw a trailer for Grace and Frankie and almost wept. I loved the early series, then it went a bit odd (esp with Phoebe from friends) but then came back again. Maybe it's just the trailer but it looks dire.