jumping the shark

Verb

jump the shark (third-person singular simple present jumps the shark, present participle jumping the shark, simple past and past participle jumped the shark)

1. (idiomatic) Of television program or other narrative, to undergo a storyline development which heralds a fundamental and generally disappointing change in direction.
   • Happy Days infamously jumped the shark when Fonzie literally jumped a shark on water skis. I Love Lucy jumped the shark when Lucy and Ricky moved to the suburbs. The Brady Bunch jumped the shark when Cousin Oliver moved in.2003, Jon Hein, Jump the Shark, book overview (revised edition; Plume; →ISBN, 9780452284104)
2. (broadly, idiomatic) To experience a decline in quality, appeal, popularity, etc.
   • Pintsize: Wait, don’t you want to know why I’m tied up and hanging from the ceiling?
     Faye: Not really. Nighty night!
     Pintsize: Shit! My wacky antics have jumped the shark!2007, Jeph Jacques, “Time To Add A Cute Kid To The Cast”, in Questionable Content, number 951