Creator: Brenda Hampton
Years: 1996-2007

I honestly really liked this show when it first came out, and that was primarily due to the great acting of Stephen Collins (and his character). If I had a pastor, I’d want it to be someone like him who genuinely believes in the good in all people and doesn’t tolerate hypocrisy. I felt the show did a good job of doing morality scripts while keeping the show grounded in realism with a few laughs sprinkled in. The kids were charming for the most part, too.

But oh man it jumped the shark. I remember one episode in particular where Simon either accidentally or on purpose is holding onto some marijuana for another kid in school. The local police force figures out that Simon has it. They confront him outside of school and immediately pull their guns on him. What the fuck? He’s the god damned well-known minister’s son who by all accounts is a great student and a great kid with no prior legal issues. And he’s white.

And there was really just too much of that shit.