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Many viewers know this disappointment. Season two of your beloved TV show has just begun streaming, and optimism runs high. Season one ended so perfectly: future plotlines were teased tantalisingly, and a key figure faced a shocking fate – or did they?. After the season wrapped, you were perusing Reddit threads with dedicated fans to find some Easter egg clues shedding light on future developments.

But the new season opener falls flat. The writing appears robotic and uninspired. By the next installment, a beloved actor's character acts in a way that you and Reddit user Fishy2345 agree is totally out of character. Halfway through the season, it’s clear that the showrunners have had collective amnesia concerning narrative arcs clearly established previously. As the underwhelming ending arrives, you privately hope it had ended sooner.

The Curse of Overextension

Wanting a series to end early is often late realization; viewers usually oppose premature cancellations. Look at Kaos, a clever mythological satire with Jeff Goldblum, which was binned by Netflix due to low viewing figures. Yet audiences can console themselves that the program avoided a disappointing second season.

Looking back at the horror-mystery show Yellowjackets, I currently desire it was a one-season story. The debut offered a richly imaginative setup, with ten flawless installments. A 1996 plane crash strands a female soccer team in wilderness. Excellent actors (with Juliette Lewis, Lauren Ambrose and Sophie Thatcher) depicted the survivors in dual eras. There were multiple award nominations, creators confidently planned five seasons to tell the story in necessary detail. However, a season four finale was just confirmed. And as a fan, I let out a sigh of relief.

The Stranger Things cast returns for season five.

Story decisions have weakened the core. In place of exploring post-rescue life, and their coping with awful experiences, the story grew padded and excessive. This involved a wearying pattern of bringing in and focusing on new characters (like the underdeveloped daughter Callie) who did nothing for the broader story. It's disappointing, and as a viewer, it is depressing to see your favorite show morph slowly into a hate-watch.

An Increasing Pattern

However, Yellowjackets isn't alone. Shows such as Emily in Paris, House of the Dragon, Squid Game and Stranger Things have lost the shock of the new, and settled into familiar patterns. Occasionally, series should end on a high note.

Actually, benefits come from self-contained series. Considering Sharp Objects, I May Destroy You, and Adolescence, writers understand when narratives find completion. Yet the spell breaks for programs including Big Little Lies, originally a limited series, extend endlessly with reduced impact. Maybe Adolescence's creators hesitated about continuing.

The Perfect Example

I wish Yellowjackets could have been a one-and-done series, living rent-free in our imaginations, unresolved threads included. My top series ever followed this pattern. My So-Called Life, the ideal adolescent show, lasted for only one season yet felt epic in scale: the roles were challenging and multifaceted, the cinematography was perfectly autumnal, and the dialogue was untethered from the normal “teen speak written by a 35-year-old” trope. The ending left questions unanswered, but that is perfectly in keeping with the reality of youth queries staying forever open. After 18 great episodes (and one mediocre), I mourned its end and drafted follow-up stories to answer some of those questions. Despite existing on obsolete equipment, it shows how series resonate profoundly.

The Unique Connection

When producers honor the special viewer-program bond, more programmes can bow out when the time is right.

• The author writes about the arts, music and fashion.