Teen Wolf became a major stepping stone for me. It was something that helped give further meaning to my life and guided me to discovering new joys. It was my first scripted fantasy drama and the one that opened me to the world of fantasy on television. I will always be grateful to Jeff Davis for allowing this to happen. But despite my great amount of love and respect along with my work in collecting all of the seasons on DVD, the series couldn't finish off as my favourite. It had multiple chances in doing so, yet blew them all. There's a pretty significant reason as to why this was the case, and the reason is practically what this piece is all about (the title even provides a little hint). I came to understand the major problem Teen Wolf brought to itself after viewing the entire show. A problem nobody managed to fix. As a matter of fact, it was one that Davis had actually encouraged to some extent and it obviously didn't do him any favours.
Notice how in my previous piece (Teen Wolf: Ranking The Seasons), I have gone with ranking the first three seasons higher than the last three? Well I'm not the only one who shares this view, as a majority across the internet have too expressed similar thoughts and feelings. If you were to ask most of the Teen Wolf fandom what their favourite season was, expect the third to be the common answer (especially the second half of it). Some might even go with either one of the first two. Regardless, I can surely guarantee that seasons two and three (both arcs) will get the most votes from people. Why is this the case? Well for me to answer this as best as I possibly can, I'm to first deviate a little and discuss television shows from a general perspective. More specifically, I'll be referring to those written that have succeeded in producing more than one or two seasons (I'll also weave Teen Wolf into my discussion too, just to not lose track).
Most television series tend to reach their peak approaching the middle of their running. This is primarily due to a couple of reasons. The first of them is how well a series is first received by officials, along with the commercial performance. If a network is pleased with the test run of any particular project they invest time and money in for telecasting, then they're very likely to spend more on increasing promotion for future seasons. And many scripted programmes as a result of increased promotion, will more often than not record larger figures in both ratings and viewership. This was very much the case with Teen Wolf, as the third season went on to average series-high numbers. Promotion focuses mainly on success through numerical data and doesn't necessarily answer for the quality of a TV crew's work in putting the series together. That is where the second reason comes in. It's also important to note that the two reasons aren't mutually exclusive.
The first season is undoubtedly the most vital part of every existing TV show. It's the framework. It's the foundation. It's the engine of a machine in testing. An entire series hinges on both the starting material and the very first story shared with the audience. It doesn't always appear this way to us, and not often is it our favourite season of any particular series (though it is the case for me when discussing Once Upon A Time). This is usually because the story is small and simple, to allow for viewers to connect with the content and follow what happens with ease. Simple stories may look like what they are, but bringing them to life isn't as simple as we think. I bet if we were to ask the question to any TV producer, they'd be quick to consider the first season of a series they're involved with as one of toughest challenges of their lives. While having to be easy enough to understand and follow along, a show's first season still needs to feel unique and highly imaginative. It needs to create a home with striking personalities while also balancing everything nicely. The story requires flow and consistency over each chapter. And logic is an absolute must to ensure viewers don't leave because of confusion.
There is an awful lot to take in when bringing a television series to life. But when done effectively, a fandom is born and people anticipate the many possible directions a show can take. Each season after the first is a collection of exciting new flavours in the form of fresh faces and unexplored places. The foundation of any successful show, sees more detail as the stories are granted the opportunity to become more sophisticated. Think of it like alterations or extra attachments to a product. It's all for the sake of improving the product and making it more enjoyable to use. Scripted television is not much different. And not only do series improve in quality and complexity, but the idea of this becomes the ultimate objective for the crew. They are always aiming to reach new heights while not losing what they stand for. Teen Wolf displays itself as an incredibly strong example in this area as well, with season three outperforming the first two seasons in positive viewer response and receiving universal acclaim for it's darker and more emotionally powerful storytelling. For those who aspire to become producers and/or screenwriters, just remember the many responsibilities that come with the job. Be sure to think outside the box. Have both an artistic mind and a careful approach.
I shouldn't forget to also state that after every peak comes a decline. It is pretty much like the life cycle of a fruit. At it's most ripe stage, it only then deteriorates and turns inedible. This is yet another thing Teen Wolf can relate to, with it's collapse being one of the more significant ones I've come across in my life so far. A decline in quality is when new stories fail to beat or match the old ones. It's when the decisions and efforts from writers are not seen to be good enough. The ideas lack true creativity and imagination, leading to the series drying up and edging closer to dusk. Much of the audience is gradually lost over time and the negative reviews increase. Every show goes through some sort of decline. Sometimes it's by choice and other times it can be unfairly forced upon workers. With Teen Wolf, it ended up being a bit of everything. The mishandling of concepts. The departure of cast members. The unhealthy presence of personal bias and favouritism. All of this after the masterpiece that was season three, led to the almost unwatchable final season in the space of three years.
The way I see it, the quality of this show was indeed a tale of two halves. The first half being what I call the 'rise' and the second being the 'fall'. The 'rise' of Teen Wolf was the period when the show appeared it's strongest and got better by the year. It began with the first season, a loose and twisted adaption of both the 1985 Teen Wolf film and a Shakespeare play (Romeo and Juliet). Although lacking originality, it still caught interest through dark and mysterious content and built rational ground with plenty of mythological and supernatural elements. The second season went one better, with a story more intense and scary while both creating and exploring unique mythos. Then there is the celebrated third season, an even darker two-part stroke of genius that brings the action and recognises emotional connections with audience members. All of these stories took place within a time when Jeff Davis and his team were in full focus. They balanced everything well and covered their tracks nicely to keep people around and always guessing what comes next.
Straight after came the 'fall' of Teen Wolf. It was during the fourth season when I started to sense Davis and his support dropping the ball. There was little surprise here though, especially since they came off a near-perfect story and lost a few highly-respected cast members to other projects and pursuits shortly afterward. Losing a small fraction of the audience was unavoidable, but it was the crew's response to the tougher challenge that led to more viewers quitting. The interesting thing being that it wasn't a lack of effort, but rather an overabundance of it. They tried too hard and the final product made them look somewhat desperate. Season four attempted hanging onto fans through endless use of nostalgia. Much of what was given involved throwbacks and recycled personalities. The villains were the same ones from the first season and new characters didn't feel as natural or refreshing (just copies or mixtures of existing ones). The follow-up to 3B wasn't as bad as some made it out to be, but a few ideas did get botched and one or two priorities were disordered.
But it would certainly get worse. I suspected there were quite a few changes within the writing team for the last two seasons. This added to the confirmation of Jeff Davis taking a backseat to work on his other plans. After viewing the last 40 episodes, I refused to believe these were the same people who gave viewers the ultimate series highlights. Season five was the start of an underwhelming experience. The writers no longer cared with covering their tracks or exploring ideas with great concentration, which left many bits and pieces of the story becoming predictable and unimaginative. A concept both inevitable and intriguing at the same time regarding science's twisting of nature, was mistreated with forgettable and shallow components (from the characters to the mythos). Part one was incredibly lethargic and dull while part two although a small improvement, failed at most times to convey the mystery and allow for viewers to wonder. It was a low point in my eyes, but just enough for me to still consider it a decent conclusion to the series.
Season five though wasn't the real conclusion. Davis and his team still believed they had a couple more narratives to share, and I'll definitely give them that. The concepts were once again interesting enough to explore. But when it came to how well they were carried out, a big thumbs down from me. Season six as a whole was so horrible, that I was on the verge of skipping them on DVD. Prior to the production, multiple sources regarding a cast member's exit hinted the possibility of some cruel treatment they received on set. It led me to the view that this crew was somewhat unprofessional. And with the way the season itself played out, I was also left to gather that they weren't so bothered with trying. It felt as if they had completely given up and just recklessly chucked a bunch of things together, hoping rather than knowing whether it would all work out. Bar a couple of heart-rending scenes with the more weighty characters of the show, season six in its entirety was a collection of force-fed romances and plot conveniences to escape hard work and kill time.
One of the biggest problems that so many people didn't see however, lied with the executive producer himself. Nobody (including myself) can deny the amazing work Jeff Davis had done over this time. He put forward a rough idea and it turned into a huge success that would be shared between teenagers and young adults around the world. Throughout much of the journey though, Davis sort of abused his power and one could come to the conclusion that he may have just overfed everybody with his personal preferences. Most of the decisions he made were more for his benefit than the show's. When he enjoyed working with any particular actor, he kept them around without thinking whether or not their character would fit well into the story. Being openly gay (which is no problem whatsoever as I do support it myself), he too arguably went a little crazy with LGBTQ representation. Certain relationships were made official without much of a build-up or connection with the characters involved. Understandably, Davis steered the ship and had the right of direction for his idea. But sometimes he just couldn't see the forest through the trees. He couldn't see a lot of his desires having a negative impact on the show's quality towards the end.
Truth be told, Teen Wolf from a more logical perspective didn't always turn out great. Some of it in fact, wasn't professionally written. A few promising stories failed to deliver and the rotating of characters across the seasons was a little too much for a show with only 100 episodes. Don't get me wrong, I still love Teen Wolf and will continue to do so for the rest of my life. But I won't ever be somebody to consider it the best of television drama. I won't ever act like it hasn't got flaws, because it most definitely has these (and quite a lot of them if you ask me). It did once edge very close towards perfection when I was finishing school. But the wheels then suddenly fell off, and the series reached its finish line soon after with little to no repairs. We all have our own opinions and we won't always agree with each other. Nothing however will change my view that this was a show split by a large, indestructible wall at the halfway mark. A wall that just about signified the differences in quality TV.
Travis "TJ" James
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