ABC/Mark Levine, ABC/Michael Desmond, CBSSometimes, when you love a show VERY much, it's hard to see its flaws. When you're obsessed with your favorite couple and any and all potential sexytimes between them, you can forgive the cracks in its storytelling simply because you love the characters so much.
But your affection for the show you've been watching for years isn't enough to support it once it reaches a certain point in its life cycle. Wouldn't you rather see a show end while it's on top rather than after it is a shell of its former self and you begin to resent it?
Below, E! News has compiled a list of shows that should end after their current seasons, whether it's because they should prevent a downward spiral or because they simply need to be put out of their misery. And yes, some of them we love very, very much.
The Good Wife
Okay, this is a painful admission, but it's the truth: It might be time for Alicia and the Lockhart Agos Florrick Gardner (or whatever they're calling themselves these days) crew to pack it in. How many partner permutations can one law firm go through before we don't actually care anymore? And while the political campaign storylines were fun at first, they've now become the scenes we sit through until we can watch Alicia and Cush Jumbo's Lucca Quinn kick ass in bond court. Much like the incompetent Howard Lyman, it's time for TGW to retire.
Nashville
This show took a sharp turn from soapy melodrama to bats--t insane, and not in the good way. The plot twists this season have been plucked from the soap opera school of dramatic writing, i.e. "throw everything at the wall and see what sticks." The bottom line: This well has run dry. Nashville needs to end almost as badly as Scarlett needs a haircut.
Bones
You've had a respectable run, Bones. Eleven seasons and you still manage to gross us out with the unique ways you discover bodies each week. But Booth and Brennan are happily married with two kids, back working at the FBI and the Jeffersonian, respectively, and no serial killers are after them. Why not go out on a high note?
Sleepy Hollow
Season three has been a fun, refreshing redux after the slog of season two, but aside from the still-magical moments of Ichabod interacting with the real world (and our overwhelming #Ichabbie feelings), it's kind of stale. There's no crazy mystery to solve, which means the mythology of each episode is just confusing for no reason instead of being confusing because the writers were dropping little puzzle pieces each week. Let's just cherish what we have and send SH off in style.
Castle
Let's be real—the show should've ended a while ago, and definitely before they broke up Beckett and Castle. Let's put this one out of its misery, shall we?
Homeland
Listen, this season is great. Claire Danes is great. Mandy Patinkin's beard? You guessed it, still great. But Carrie going off her meds is a storyline we've already seen before, and the world (including its seemingly endless supply of new characters whose names we can never remember) of Homeland is getting TOO big. Not every show is meant to go on for 7+ seasons...and that's OK!
The Vampire Diaries
Yes, the show is creatively renewed following the potentially devastating departure of Nina Dobrev. And yes, the flash-forwards are incredibly interesting. But how long can that last? As much as TVD keeps reinventing itself, there's only so much story to tell. There's something to be said for ending a show in a fulfilling and satisfying way rather than limping off after a so-so final season (yes, that is definitely calling out Buffy, not sorry about it).
What shows would you like to see end this season? Leave your suggestions in the comments!