Knowing when to pack it in

Malcolm in the Middle is calling it quits at the end of this season. I'm
thinking they made the right choice to go out on top.

Just Me...

Out on top?!!! The show's ratings have been in the toilet for years. And
they didn't exactly call it quits. They got cancelled due to poor ratings.

Stan Brown...

Bwaaa-haaa-haaa.

That ship sailed several years ago.

Taylor...

lol No kidding, eh? Man even at year 5 (actually, 5.5 since it was a
mid-season replacement) was _stale_.

Given the nature of the show, centering on a family with kids in that age
range it is probably for the best that they bowed out now. Shows never make
the transition from 'kid' characters to adult without jumping the shark.

In general the worst offenders of not knowing when to pack it in:

Simpson's
ER
Happy Days
MASH
Saturday Night Live
Family Ties

Ronnie...

Roseanne
The Cosby Show

Slayah...

That 70's Show

record.hunter...

That Topherless Show should never have become That Topherless Show.

karl...

NYPD Blue

Jack Bauer's Spunky Sidekick, Ian J. Ball...

Disagree on this last one. "Blue" was still good at the end.

Patrick Joseph McNamara...

If you include all the various incarnations of a show:
Law & Order
CSI
Star Trek (Next Gen and beyond)