Jumping The Shark

The phrase 'Jumping The Shark' refers to an episode of Happy Days when Fonzie jumps over a shark on waterskis. Having never seen Happy Days, I only know it as a pop culture term for when a TV show moves away from its original premise and does something ridiculous, or special to regain popularity and viewers. The 'Jump The Shark' moment tends to signal a decline in a series. It can happen a lot of different ways. There is a website that lists the different ways (Birth, Death, New Actor Playing A Character, Moving, etc.) and people can vote on whether a particular show has ever 'Jumped The Shark'. I hold to that Friends never did (and that tends to be the consensus on the site too.)