After the first couple of weeks Strictly has stopped being "must see TV".

Is is the contestants none of whom seem to have that spark that past winners have had, is it the judges who are now becoming caricatures of themselves, is it Brucie who is past it or are Tess Daly's dresses too ugly?

For you (and a few more on these forums) maybe, but the viewing figures indicate otherwise. And (respectfully) I feel that they are a truer reflection of opinion than the relatively small number of people who post here.

My own opinion - no, not at all.

At the beginning of the season, I was very excited and for me, Strictly was certainly "must-see TV"!

However, in the second week, I began to lose interest. I'm not sure if it was because of the four week's of men/women dancing seperately, or that there are no contestant's that I find enjoyable to watch, with the exception of Jodie Kidd and John Sergeant.

Last season, big personalities such as Alesha, Gethin, Matt, Letitia, Kenny, Kate, Penny, Dominic and Stephanie were enjoyable to watch.

I dont think it has quite reached that "Happy Days" moment..yet.
It probably does need a revamp, a few new faces. I dont think the celebs are that much different this year, the judges have probably become bigger than was originally intended..necessary for the X factor but not SCD.

I hate that expression! *runs from thread screaming*

I only found out recently what 'jump the shark means'.

I don't think Strictly has but I think some fans have. The last two weeks were beyond ridiculous. It's a TV programme!

I know it's a media phrase - but for those of us outside the in crowd, what does it mean?

It refers to a moment from Happy Days where Fonzie, still wearing his leather jacket, went water skiing and jumped over a shark. It kinda signifies like if a show has been so amazing, but it soon becomes over played or lucklustre and so will resort to doing something OUTRAGEOUS in order for it to better itself.

I don't think this phrase is suited to Strictly at all.. just because Tess's dresses "aren't what they used to be" .. doesn't mean the show has jumped the shark.

I do think that with JS' departure a corner has been turned and which way the show goes now will be interesting. Will there be an effort to ensure that only celebs with good dance potential get in? Will the scoring/voting system be changed? If not, and poorer dancers survive the public vote week on week, will they feel under pressure to quit?

Not until the Fonz had made his annual appearance on ITT.

Thank you. I'm not sure if it relates to strictly though. I thought Len's behaviour was a bit out of control - if I did that in the office I'd be on a disciplinary - but in TV terms I guess it's not that OTT.

*runs back into thread quickly*
The reason I hate "jump the shark" is that it's just like all the other ridiculous buzz phrases of the moment (blue-sky thinking, run that up the flagpole, think outside the box etc. etc.) Aarrghh!
*runs back out again*

Does anybody have a link for this big argument? (I cannot access IPlayer).

This is the first series that her dresses have been consistently nice, so I'd doubt it's that.

This series has all the signs it has.

Much depends on how they approach it next year, changes do need to be made and not by giving more power to the judges, they need to respect the viewers as well as the dancers,

I think they need to refresh the judging panel - get rid of Len and Arlene.

Something has definitely gone wrong during this series. I have lost interest.

I think I have had enough of the judges. As individuals they are alright (apart from Len), but put them together and they cannot behave.

I am also sick of the media circus surrounding the show; it has always been there, but it has never been this big.

No...and I don't think in most cases a single reason or specific incident or a particular storyline or a single plot development can be pinpointed as a real downward turning point in that way. Generally I think it's a process and often quite a natural one of people just growing tired of a show they once enjoyed. Also I believe that 'Happy Days' carried on for years after 'jumping the shark'.

Mind you if they cast Ted McGinley next year......

Interestingly, in a poll for DWTS, the most popular shark-jumping moment / reason was 'Day One'. Make of that what you will.

http://jumptheshark.com/topic/Dancin...l-Comments/470

No - but did not like the first four weeks men/women split.

They should have fewer couples and have them competing against each other from the first week - it really made the whole thing drag!

I don't think you can see it anywhere but iplayer. How come you can't get it?

*nods* There were too many contestants this year. It feels like this series has been dragging on forever.

apart from yesterday's navy saggy boobed effort

It hasn't jumped the shark but this series has been poor.

Surely this show 'JTS' when it tried to convince the viewers that the sunday night show was being broadcast live, on the Sunday! I mean, come on! Do all the celebs come back in the same clothes and sit in the same positions the day after, in the same clothes? John Barrowman was there in the flesh on Saturday and oh look, singing on Sunday. Can someone spill the beans and come clean?