Shark Bytes

"Ryan and Taylor are comatose and enter an alternate universe."

It's not that it's a bad episode, I found it quite entertaining - but it set the scene for later surreal aspects and it just eventually crumbled to pieces. I thought the 4th series was quite promising until then.

The moment Ryan discovers that his baby has 'died' yet barely reacts is when this show jumped the shark. That moment was the first episode of season 2. The show had little to offer long before the death of Marisa.

The first season was awesome, it was so funny, it felt real, the Fab Four were great, the supporting characters were great, it was pretty much perfect. I just think the show's producers and maybe FOX got too full of themselves. Remember when after the first season they had 2 specials on "The O.C.", "A Day In The Life", and there was another one as well. Did the show really need two specials? No, especially not after it's first season. Then for the 2nd season they decided to add new characters that were bland and did nothing but drag the show down. The third season was even worse, with Johnny and Volchek and Chili, the wannabe Seth. Also it's no wonder Mischa Barton quit, because Marissa was a lesbian, almost raped, and then killed. I think they were trying to capitalize on the popularity of Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton's meltdowns. The fourth season was a good rebound but not having Marissa was too much, even though I think Taylor was a great character, I think it would've been better though for a Marissa/Taylor/Ryan love triangle.

Totaly when marissa died the show went down hill, but i stayed strong and watched it till the end. i love the s/s in season 4 that was probably the main reason i watched the season. didnt like taylor/ryan. you cant beat that ryan and marissa spark from the pilot. love kaitlin she really turned the show around.

I don't know if I can say the O.C jumped the shark. I'm sure it happened, but it's been so glossed over in my mind I don't remember. I will say, with as much passion as I can, that the final season was not a waste. I found it was exactly what the show should be. The writers must have seen their demise because they stopped giving a crap. I counted only four serious episodes in the whole run. I'm counting the last one too, although it really deserves it's own category. They wrote episodes without trying super hard to be exciting or outlandish. They focused on characters rather than situations. The dialog was the best I've ever seen in a teen soap. Everyone had the perfect amount of screen time. There wasn't too much time dedicated to retarded, time-wasting plot lines. Taylor was a gift for the show. She fit perfectly into the glossy, faux world of the O.C simply because she wasn't any of those things. She was honest and crazy and wonderful. A.R acting was perfectly neurotic. She seemed to make Ryan use his facial expressions way more than Marissa ever could. I never saw the guy smile so much. It hit me on the last episode when Summer is on the bus that the show was finally ending. I also realized that Bilson is a uber actress (in contrast to Barton). She should be working long after Mischa fades into nothing. I felt like I had just watched the lives of these people from over their shoulders and I didn't feel drained or annoyed with any of them. Say what you want about the O.C, but it wasn't a waste of time. Sure there were side trips into stupidity, but the pay off in the end was worth the journey. If you're a fan of story arcs and true, well developed characters, the O.C was a gift. The end was so much like the beginning, but it felt miles away. I'm sure another show will come along to replace it one day, but until then The O.C has my respect.

There is no doubt that The O.C. jumped the shark when Marissa was killed. It didn't come as a huge surprise since the previews said someone wasn't going to survive the night and we all knew Mischa was wanting to leave. And I semi-understand Josh Schwartz's rationale that they have put Marissa through every possible storyline. However, the entire dynamic of the show changed once she was gone. The core of the show was Seth, Ryan, Marissa and Summer. Granted that even started to shift throughout season 3 when Marissa was hanging around Volchok all the time. But still, once Marissa was killed off, a huge piece of the puzzle was missing and I know a lot of people stopped watching after that.

I actually think it jumped in the fourth season when ryan and taylor were together. The biggest jumptheshark moment was the chrissmakkuh episode in another universe.

Ryan and Taylor are one of the most mismatched couples in tv history. They kill off Ryan's true love and put him with the girl who got him kicked out of school. Oh yeah, makes perfect sense. I mean seriously, talk about personality clash.

Ryan and Marissa had the connection and spark since day one, but ever since the writers started creating all these obstacles in the way of them being a happy couple, the show went downhill. The show jumped long before Mischa's departure but it officially died when Marissa did.

In my opinion, it jumped the shark way before Marissa's death. I was addicted to this show from the beginning and it definitely started going down in flames when Johnny came in to the picture, as well as the whole boorish, faux-lesbian garbage. I adored the Summer/Seth story line, but the engagement scam was a serious turn off too. Julie Cooper made the show.

The OC is one of my favorite shows. I still watch reruns, with the exception of most of season three. I thought season three was horribly written and had too many new and unlikeable characters (johnny, volchuk) The writers seemed to think we liked all of the new characters, when really there were very few I actually liked. I thought they should have brought Luke and Anna back in the last season, but otherwise I thought season four was pretty good. I did not understand the whole Taylor/Ryan pairing at all. My favorite parts were always with Seth and Summer. I also enjoyed the parts with the Cohen family, the parents were a huge part of this show.

The OC was a great show and I still love to watch the reruns. But everyone knows that it jumped when Marissa died and that the series was really over before season 4 even started. I remember watching the last season episodes as they originally aired and hating the Ryan/Taylor love scheme and mostly all of the non-Seth/Summer events. But I knew that I had to watch the last few episodes of a show that I genuinly loved for 3 seasons.

But now as I watch season 4 a year removed, I can appreciate it much more. I know that it's not the same without Marissa, because she added that certain element to the show. But somehow I actually like Taylor, which is strage because I've never really liked any of Ryan's girlfriends not named Marissa.

So we all know that Mischa Barton had problems with the producers and had to leave the show. I think her dying added some more episode material, but obviously the show would die along with her. Nevertheless, we can be thankful for the 4 years of hour long episodes that have given us great memories, relatable characters, and some fantastic music moments.

Killing marissa off was a big big mistake. The show went way downhill after she left. She was a main character it wasn't the same without her. I still watch the reruns on the soap channel but I can't watch season 4.I mean taylor and ryan in love wtf??? Taylor was fine when she had a small part but once she took over in season 4 and became ryans love interest it made no sense she was so annoying and they had no chemistry! I agree with the earlier post when ryan and marissa would breakup they would always put him with the most annoying girls lindsey I hated also they had no chemistry either and theresa who kept popping up with his maybe baby looked too old to be playing a 17 year old. By the way mischa barton may not of been the best actress but she was a beautiful girl and not to skinny. Its a shame she doesn't look like that anymore but hey we always have the reruns on the soap channel to remind us of how hot she used to be.

when marissa died the show became BORING. I HOPE THAT IN THE SEASON/S THAT ARE COMING THEY PUT RYAN AND MARISSA TOQETHER AND SETH AND SUMMER AND TAYLOR GOES WITH THAT FRENCH GUY THAT SHE HAD MARRIED!!

I only saw some episodes from different seasons but I think I can understand why people like it and why they don't...I agree that some characters are likeable like Sandy Cohen or Seth (although they can be a little annoying too) but even though I didn't like Marissa, killing her was a lame idea in my opinion...Also, despite Mischa Barton's mumbling and Ryan's no talkin there where a few original and good moments(spiderman kiss...maybe it's lame but it's an original variant of the banal kiss in the rain) but a little bit too dramatical for me, sorry but I think it should have found more ways of beeing entertaing withou soap

this show clearly jumped the shark in the last season. the episode where ryan and taylor fell off the roof while hanging christmas lights. they both wind up in the same dream where relationships are different and they have to change everything back to normal before they can wake up??!! gimme a break!!