Mentions of sexual assault, suicide, murder, and more.
Warning: spoilers for various TV shows.
Depending on the network, there can be a lot of freedom forTV showsto do as they please in terms of narrative, characters, and more, but some took these and more way too far. It’s not uncommon forTV shows to cover controversial or sensitive topics, sometimes failing to do so correctly, but that’s not the only way they can go too far.
A TV show can go too far thanks to creative decisions, such as killing off a character that didn’t deserve it or whose story wasn’t going in that direction, a twist that does no good to the story, or a bad ending that doesn’t fit what the show had built. In other cases,a TV show can go too far by overstaying its welcome.
Surely, there have been some TV shows that went too far for two or more of the above reasons, and more often than not, this tainted their legacy. While many of these shows are still enjoyable, certain details, moments, and more that went too far can’t be ignored anymore.
The Walking Deadis a post-apocalyptic horror drama developed by Frank Darabont and based on the comic book series of the same name by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard.The Walking Deadwas quite popular, and while its themes and genre would have made it easy for it to cross some boundaries, that’s not why it went too far.
For many,The Walking Deadwent too far with Glenn’s death.
The Walking Deadwas constantly criticized for deviating from its source material, for its repetitive storylines, and for the development (or lack of it) of some characters. For many,The Walking Deadwent too far with Glenn’s death, but for others, it happened around season 5 when the show became tiring and formulaic.
Created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss,Sherlockbrought the Great Detective and his accompanying characters to modern-day London.Sherlockhad a strong start with its first two seasons, but it went downhill after season 2’s finale. Titled “The Reichenbach Fall”, it saw the death of Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch), which was revealed at the end of the episode to be fake.
The series finale introduced a third Holmes sibling in the show’s most nonsensical storyline.
However,Sherlockfailed to explainhow Holmes faked his deathand, instead,used fan theories to mock the audiencein the first episode of season 3.Sherlocknever recovered from that and seasons 3 and 4 were even worse, with the series finale introducing a third Holmes sibling in the show’s most nonsensical storyline.
Dexteris a crime drama TV show developed by James Manos Jr. and based on Jeff Lindsay’s novelDarkly Dreaming Dexter.Dexterfollowed Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall), a forensic technician specializing in blood spatter analysis who was also a vigilante serial killer.Dexterwent too far for a couple of reasons, such asthe death of his wife and his adoptive sister falling for him.
Unfortunately,Dexteralso went too far in its finale, which became one of themost controversial TV finalesever. In it,Dexterfaked his death and became a lumberjack, all so he could keep his murderous urges under control. Luckily,Dextergot two sequel series that fixed this.
Shonda Rhimes’ medical dramaGrey’s Anatomykeeps going, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t gone too far many, many times.Grey’s Anatomyhas had its fair share of controversial storylines, though one that made some viewers quit and others can’t forget is whenIzzie (Katherine Heigl) hallucinated her dead fiancé and had sex with him.
Grey’s Anatomyhas also become infamous for how badly it handles the departure of its actors, often killing off their characters or giving them undeserving and out-of-character endings, such aswhat they did to Alex Karev. Despite all this,Grey’s Anatomykeeps going, but to many, it has overstayed its welcome.
One of the most controversial TV shows of all time isSouth Park, created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone.South Parkis an animated sitcom aimed at a mature audience, and it’s best known for crossing many boundaries over the years. Unsurprisingly, someSouth Parkepisodes have been banned, and the show often faces controversy.
Someexamples ofSouth Parkgoing too farare when it used a racial slur over 40 times in one episode, Cartman making his bully eat his own parents,its many depictions of sexual assault, and many religious controversies.
Dallaschanged TV forever, but not always for the better. Created by David Jacobs,Dallascentered on the Ewing family, the owners of the independent oil company Ewing Oil, and the cattle-ranching land of Southfork. LeadingDallaswere siblings Bobby (Patrick Duffy) and J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman), both starring in the show’s two most famous moments.
At the end of season 8, Bobby died, but at the end of season 9, he was alive and well.
First was J. R.’s assassination attempt, which became a cultural phenomenon, but the show went too far with what it did with Bobby. At the end of season 8, Bobby died, but at the end of season 9, he was alive and well.Dallasseason 10 revealed that all of season 9 had been a dream of Bobby’s wife, essentially erasing the entire season.
How I Met Your Motherwent from being one of the most popular and successful sitcoms, as well as one ofthe best TV shows of all time, to being one of the most frustrating and disappointing ones. For nine seasons, viewers waited for Ted (Josh Radnor) to finally reveal how he met his children’s mother, only for the show to bring an annoying twist.
The finale ofHow I Met Your Motherrevealed that not only was the mother dead, but also that the whole point ofTed telling the story was so he could get his (teenage) kids’ approval to pursue, once again, his ex-girlfriendand long-time friend, Robin (Cobie Smulders).
3The Simpsons
The Simpsons Premiered In 1989
The Simpsonshas been around for so long that it would be surprising if it had never gone too far. Throughout over 30 seasons,The Simpsonshas had controversial episodes, such as its Michael Jackson one, but it has also gone too far for other reasons, the most infamous one being the episode in which it jumped the shark.
The episode is “The Principal and the Pauper”, and the show’s quality has decreased ever since. Despite the show not being as fun and funny as it was years ago, its chaotic decisions that only make the show’s timeline even more confusing, and its insensitivity towards some cultures and groups,The Simpsonsshows no signs of stopping soon.
13 Reasons Whywent too far from the beginning. Based on the 2007 novel of the same name by Jay Asher, the show initially covered the aftermath of the suicide of teenager Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford) and the events that led to it.Hannah’s suicide scene was so graphic and shocking that Netflix had to remove it.
After that,13 Reasons Whyhad no clear direction and relied on shocking its audience to stay relevant, going too far with many of those decisions. The biggest examples of this are the sexual assault of Tyler that almost led him to attempt a school shooting, and giving Justin AIDS after all the character development he went through.
St. Elsewhereis not just one of the most successful medical dramas but alsothe show with the most controversial plot twist of all time. After six seasons of following the crew of St. Eligius Hospital, the finale ofSt. Elsewhererevealed thatthe entire show was the product of the imagination of an autistic boy, and the hospital was inside a snow globe.
Thanks to how many characters fromSt. Elsewherecrossed over into other TV shows, the finale has been theorized to have created amassive connected universe with hundreds of other shows. WhetherSt. Elsewhere’s twist was brilliant or not is up to every viewer, but the show definitely went way too far with it.
