(Part 2 of 5) Leave it to the networks to take a good idea and copy it so many times, it runs the format into the ground. Remember what happened after the success of Seinfeld and Friends? We got show after show of groups of friends hanging out together, most of which were mediocre at best. The same thing happened this past fall; due to the success of 24, Lost, and Prison Break, viewers were greeted with a slew of serialized shows, supposedly playing out a single plot over a season or seasons. The shows were of every type, from comedies (Big Day) to tense kidnapping dramas (Kidnapped, Vanished).

Out of all the serialized shows that premired in 2006, only two -- Jericho and Heroes -- can be thought of as successful shows. What did the networks and the producers of these shows do wrong? I can think of a few reasons, which I'll list after the jump.