History Main / OnlyTheCreatorDoesItRight

->''"Believe me when I say that unless I was going to slavishly reproduce [[Creator/IanFleming Fleming]]'s Bond I was always going to get knocked simply because I wasn't [[Creator/IanFleming Fleming]]."''

** After Creator/MontyOum's death, some fans of ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' felt that Rooster Teeth hasn't done a good job continuing the series, usually citing the fight scenes not having Monty's unique flair and believing the story isn't moving in the direction he would have wanted.
*** Unfortunately, things have become so heated and vitriolic that the current showrunners (who were close friends and colleagues to Monty prior to his death) have been subject to frequent online abuse and MisBlamed for choices that were actually Monty's ideas; for instance [[SpotlightStealingSquad Jaune's prominence in the story]] is not down to Miles' doing a self-insert -- Monty always intended for Jaune to be an audience viewpoint character, [[TheWatson the "Watson" to Team RWBY's Sherlock]].

* There's a subset of animation fans who feel this way about Creator/{{Disney}} after Creator/{{Walt|Disney}} and Roy died, particularly about the films released between the [[WesternAnimation/TheAristocats early '70s]] and the [[WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron mid-80s]] before the older, Walt-era management was shown the door and the new, outside management took over the studio. Anything made from the [[WesternAnimation/TheGreatMouseDetective late '80s]] on tends to get mixed reactions, with the general consensus seeming to be that the work overall is an improvement over the early '70s to mid '80s films, but it just [[NoTrueScotsman "isn't Disney"]].
** And then [[BrokenBase within that subset]] there seems to be a split opinion over whether or not the films made with Creator/JohnLasseter in control of the studio, including ''WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'', ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen|2013}}'' are a step closer to Walt Disney's style or a step further away from it.
* Similarly, not many fans cared for the subsequent incarnations of WesternAnimation/OswaldTheLuckyRabbit (by Charles Mintz and Creator/WalterLantz), preferring the originals done by Walt Disney and Creator/UbIwerks.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' fans got this attitude after Disney tried to do a season without Creator/GregWeisman and botched it up.
* This was once a commonly-held consensus by fans of ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'', who for a long time believed that Nickelodeon had been in the wrong when they fired Creator/JohnKricfalusi, and that the seasons produced following his firing were overall inferior to the seasons he had worked on at best, and absolutely horrible and a blatant insult to Kricfalusi's own creation at worst. Over the years, however, attitudes towards the post-Kricfalusi episodes of ''Ren & Stimpy'' have improved, and are now usually seen as being generally good cartoons in their own right. But what really led this trope to be overturned was in 2018 when Kricfalusi was accused of sexually abusing minors, as well as having [[BadBoss unreasonably high demands of his animators]], thus destroying what was left of his career. Nowadays, the common consensus among fans is that, while the post-Kricfalusi episodes of ''Ren & Stimpy'' may be inferior to the seasons that he was involved in, Kricfalusi himself deserved to be fired from the show.
* Downplayed with the ''Franchise/Ben10'' franchise. The [[WesternAnimation/Ben10 original series]], which for a long time was the only installment that had Creator/ManOfActionStudios as showrunners, is the only one that the fanbase can be said to be in overall agreement about. Every sequel show afterward suffered from BrokenBase for one reason or another, leading to many fans just wanting [=MoA=] to take the reins again. When Man of Action came back for [[WesternAnimation/Ben102016 the fifth installment]] (which served as ContinuityReboot), the result ''still'' lead to a BrokenBase, due to the creators deciding to go in a DenserAndWackier direction.

* After Creator/LaurenFaust lessened her role on the show, ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' got its fair share of criticism as she was only indirectly supervising Season 2's production and left the show entirely by Season 3. However, with the show going on to have ''far'' more seasons that didn't have Faust's involvement, fans debate whether the show was better under her or Meghan [=McCarthy=].
* The 1990s ''Franchise/{{Tintin}}'' cartoon produced by the Canadian animation studio Creator/{{Nelvana}} is a curious variant in that it was created long after creator Herge died. However, the cartoon is still much better received by fans than earlier adaptations, in no small part because it [[AdaptationDistillation generally stuck to adapting Herge's original comic albums]] instead of coming up with its own plots the way other adaptations have done.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' fans rarely think highly of episodes written by Creator/ManOfActionStudios instead of the usual Creator/MarvelAnimation writers.
* The WesternAnimation/SupermanTheatricalCartoons produced and directed by Creator/MaxAndDaveFleischer, respectively, broke new ground for the ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' mythos and provided strong inspiration to other animators. The cartoons produced by Creator/FamousStudios don't have as high a reputation.
** To only a slightly lesser extent, the Fleischers' ''ComicStrip/{{Popeye}}'' cartoons. Many of those are considered to be among the best classic cartoons ever made, while the cartoons produced by Famous Studios are notorious for being StrictlyFormula and for their heavy use of RecycledInSPACE.

* In an interesting case that actually does mix in a bit of MyRealDaddy, while Ciro Nieli has remained on the 2012 [[WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012 Ninja Turtles]] cartoon, Joshua Sternin and Jennifer Ventimilia, who were also heavily involved with its development as well as the original head writers for the series, both took off after the first season was over. Opinions on seasons two and onward have notably been much more divided between fans.
* Many fans of the original ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' feel this way about ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'', as very few involved with the well-regarded former series worked on the divisive latter series.
* Fans of ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'' when comparing it to ''Series/CodeLyokoEvolution'', which had very limited input from the original showrunners, who themselves have basically politely [[CanonDiscontinuity disowned the series as canon in their view.]]
* The two best-received ''Franchise/{{Asterix}}'' animated films, ''Asterix and Cleopatra'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheTwelveTasksOfAsterix'', are also the ones that were written and directed by series creators Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. None of the other ones are generally considered ''that'' bad, but the only two to be up near the ones that Goscinny and Uderzo themselves directed were ''Asterix vs. Caesar'' and ''Asterix in Britain'', which lacked any hands-on involvement from Uderzo (Goscinny had died by this point), but were written by Pierre Tchernia, who was involved in making ''Cleopatra'' and ''Twelve Tasks''.

* Likewise, fellow Cartoon Network series ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'' was this following the ''WesternAnimation/EgoTrip'' movie, as Creator/GenndyTartakovsky had moved on to make ''WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack''. Not only did the show suffer an unpleasant redesign, but fans felt the new staff largely flanderized a lot of the characters. Tartakovsky, however, did return to work on "Chicken Scratch" and "Comedy of Feathers".
* Zigzagged with ''WesternAnimation/JohnnyBravo''. The first season, which the creator, Van Partible, had full input on is considered the best season by fans. The second and third seasons were made without them and, while they have their fans, are more polarizing among fans, mainly in regards to Johnny [[TookALevelInDumbass taking a level in dumbass]]. He would eventually come back on board for the fourth season. ''However'', that season was received so poorly that it wound up killing the series.
* ''WesternAnimation/JohnnyTest'' is an interesting case in that its first season (produced by Warner Bros. Animation) is considered [[SoOkayItsAverage average at best]] rather than being a great show. Regardless, everything after that first season (produced by Cookie Jar Entertainment/DHX Media) is considered some of the worst SeasonalRot to ever befall a show, to the point of rendering it (well, that and the fact that the show was AdoredByTheNetwork throughout its run) one of the most hated cartoons ''of all time'' to many ([[VindicatedByHistory though people have started to lighten up on it since it got cancelled]]).
* Many ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'' fans have this opinion regarding Pendleton Ward and, to a lesser degree, [[WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse Rebecca Sugar]]. After Ward stepped down as showrunner during the fifth season, with Sugar leaving the production entirely to helm ''Steven Universe'', the show shifted into [[GoingCosmic a more introspective tone]] under new showrunner Adam Muto, which many felt was [[ContemplateOurNavels pretentious and distracting from the actual plot]]. A lot of fans who felt this way argue that only Ward and Sugar really knew how to [[CerebusRollercoaster balance the crazy adventures and humor evenly with the darker elements]]. Thus, in their opinions, the rest of the crew was [[ProtectionFromEditors allowed to get self-indulgent due to no longer having someone to restrain them]].
* Trey Parker and Matt Stone had little involvement behind Season 2 of ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'', due to filming ''Film/{{Baseketball}}'' at the time. As a result, many fans see it as one of the worst seasons of the show, alongside Season 20. It is also Trey and Matt's [[OldShame most hated season]], and the only season they haven't done commentaries for on DVD.
* The general consensus among fans of ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' is that the show's quality dipped after Stephen Hillenburg left the series following ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobSquarePantsMovie''. Season 4 is considered to be the start of the SeasonalRot, but it has enough well-received episodes that some will include it with seasons 1-3 as the Golden Age of [=SpongeBob=]. Season 5 has fewer defenders than Season 4 and seasons 6-8 were poorly-received by fans. Hillenburg returned for seasons 9-11 and many agree that the quality started to go up again before Hillenburg's sudden passing.
* Fans of ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerry'' usually agree that the shorts directed by [[Creator/HannaBarbera Hanna and Barbera themselves]] are the best, with reception of subsequent entries varying wildly (the Creator/ChuckJones shorts and ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerryTales'' get generally good reception, but have their detractors; the Creator/GeneDeitch shorts, ''WesternAnimation/TheTomAndJerryShow'' (1975), and ''WesternAnimation/TheTomAndJerryComedyShow'' are mostly loathed, and ''WesternAnimation/TheTomAndJerryShow2014'' is divisive).
* Many fans of the ''Westernanimation/IceAge'' movies didn't like the Creator/DisneyPlus film ''Westernanimation/TheIceAgeAdventuresOfBuckWild'' due to it lacking the involvement of Creator/BlueSkyStudios, which was shut down by Disney a year prior (and in fact, never even involved in that production), and anyone from the original franchise's creative team.
* An InUniverse example in ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLifeStaticCling'', where Rocko believes that the original creator of ''[[ShowWithinAShow The Fatheads]]'' should make the special to save Ed's job, as he believes the Chameleon Brothers would mess it up. The special generally takes Rocko's side, as the Chameleon Brothers' attempts at making the special are... [[StylisticSuck shall we say, less than stellar.]]

** Another side feels that the 5th-7th series were alright - but everything after (When David Mitton was replaced as episode director) wasn't as good. Some even feel series 6&7 were the start of the decline, because Allcroft, Mitton, and Maidment had less and less involvement to the point when David Mitton wrote ''no'' episodes in Series 7 but remained the director.
* Zig-Zagged with ''WesternAnimation/{{Doug}}''. Many fans believe that Nickelodeon was the only ones who could do Doug right, thanks mostly to the huge tonal shift when it [[ChannelHop moved from Nickelodeon to ABC]]. However, Jim Jinkins and several of the staff ''were'' actually involved with Doug even during the Disney run despite [[MisBlamed accusations that they weren't]]. However, Jinkins has stated that as the series went on, he had less and less to do with it, and some of these episodes are the ones that fans have the ''most'' issue with. The main example being the Quailman episodes, which were much more numerous in the final season.

* ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' has some fans who insist that the AlternateUniverse shows are all crap because Creator/YoshiyukiTomino had nothing to do with them (ignoring the fact that ''Anime/TurnAGundam'' was not only his baby, but acknowledges everything that came before). Some take it a step further and say The Creator Does It Right Only When He's Depressed, savaging ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamZZ Gundam ZZ]]'' (made to clear up the gloom from ''[[Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam Zeta Gundam]]'') and the very divisive reception to ''Anime/MobileSuitVictoryGundam'' and ''Anime/GundamReconguistaInG'', shows that even the creator can get it wrong.
* The 2003 ''Anime/FullmetalAlchemist'' series has gotten hit with this with the conclusion of the manga and the second anime adaptation. The first anime series split off from the manga half way through and ended up creating its own original storyline. This storyline took the CharacterDevelopment of several of the main characters in a different direction than the manga. As a result... Some fans of the manga have now adopted this mindset. Interestingly, the original manga author not only approved of the different direction, but actually encouraged it.

* Jessie, James, and Meowth from ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' are a good, but little-known example of this. The late Creator/TakeshiShudo, the show's original head writer, created the trio. Even though the characters have appeared in all but a few episodes of the show to date, when you watch the episodes and movies he wrote, it's clear who created the trio and truly knows what they're all about. In fact, he wrote [[http://bulbanews.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Translating_the_Blog_Entries_of_Mr._Shudo many, many blog articles]] in Japanese concerning Team Rocket, their origins, personalities, and even philosophy (!), and stated he did not like the RunningGag character route they took after his departure from the anime, with many fan circles agreeing with him on this.

* This is the general opinion about ''ComicBook/TheSpirit'' comics not written and drawn by Creator/WillEisner. There's some conflict about whether the strips drawn under Eisner's supervision but not personally by him are up to standard, but much less about the several attempts to revive the character after his death.
* There are some, namely Creator/AlanMoore, who argue that Franchise/SpiderMan declined greatly after Creator/SteveDitko's departure and that the art style and quality was greatly softened by later writers. While there are quite a lot of prominent Spider-Man elements and stories that succeeded Ditko's run, in terms of consistency and artistic quality, it remains the GloryDays of the comic.

* Creator/SteveGerber's comic, ''ComicBook/HowardTheDuck'', is considered a classic. Howard comics not made by Gerber? Not so much.

* The ''{{ComicBook/Asterix}}'' books written by Albert Uderzo after the death of Creator/ReneGoscinny have been less well received.
* This trope was invoked on the 90s-era ''Comicbook/{{Superboy}}'' books. After sales dropped substantially during the run of Ron Marz and Ramon Bernado, the character's original creators (Karl Kesel and Tom Grummett) returned to the title in an attempt to recapture the magic the book once had. However, the new stories featured a radically different direction and despite the original team, never truly recovered.
* Most Creator/JackKirby fans agree that nobody else has ever had a really good grasp of the ''ComicBook/NewGods'' characters and their universe but Jack himself. The series left a lot of unanswered questions, so inevitably every new writer ends up filling in the blanks with their own ideas, which usually feel at least a little "off." The most well-regarded version of the characters after Kirby are not the comics so much as the Franchise/{{DCAU}} animated series by Creator/BruceTimm.
* Similarly, many Comicbook/{{Thanos}} fans tend to dislike depictions not written by Creator/JimStarlin, as the character tends to devolve from a complex, multifaceted villain into a generic EvilOverlord under most other writers.
* A lot of people feel this way about the handling of ComicBook/BuckyBarnes by anyone other than Ed Brubaker. While Brubaker didn't ''create'' Bucky, he did redefine him and was the one to give him the Winter Soldier identity, the role the character is now much more famous for. This gave Brubaker uncontested MyRealDaddy status over Bucky. Some people just don't like it when other writers handle Bucky, especially since a lot of the time, it tends to result in him either regressing (such as being flippant about killing) or adding things to his history that hurt the original story (Rick Remender added that Bucky ''could'' somewhat fight his programming).

* The overriding opinion on ''ComicBook/Earth2'' is that it took a ''sharp'' nosedive once James Robinson left the title. Under Robinson's pen, the series served as a place where characters mostly tied to the Justice Society of America were allowed to flourish, as well as other characters Retgone'd from the main DCU. It also was obviously slowly building up to the formation of the Justice Society. Once Robinson left the book, [[SpotlightStealingSquad it increasingly focused on alternate versions of the Superfamily and Batfamily, to the point that the original leads were reduced to supporting characters.]]

* [[ComicBook/TheUnbelievableGwenpool Gwenpool]] tends to be this when she's written by anyone besides Christopher Hastings, often forgoing the CharacterDevelopment she rapidly underwent in her own series to instead be an self-righteous, stupid, and narcissistic caricature of a stereotypical 2010s "millennial" teenager. It doesn't help that Marvel itself [[WolverinePublicity tended to shill her as such with cameos in other comics and video games]], which completely goes against and misses the point of her character. Thankfully, most fans agree that her characterisation in ''ComicBook/WestCoastAvengers2018'', the series she migrated to after her solo run ended, is more in line with Hastings's vision. Her second solo title, ''Gwenpool Strikes Again'', is another point of contention, some approving Leah Williams for still making Gwen an endearing TalkativeLoon ([[ApprovalOfGod Hastings himself liked it]]), while others deemed she went for a too meme-y Deadpool approach, regardless of the MetaTwist that explains her behavior.

* Although ''ComicBook/NewWarriors'' was conceived by Marvel editorial, the series has never again been as popular or as cohesive as it was under writer Fabian Nicieza in his original 53-issue run. With changes in team roster and storytelling direction, the brand had been increasingly irrelevant for the decade after Nicieza left (despite efforts to retool it as a comedy in the third volume), and the team being used as throwaway scapegoats in ''ComicBook/CivilWar'' ensured it would never recover.
* While far from awful, the ''Franchise/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' comics have gotten this from being written by people who were not part of the show. Azula's handling in them is met with particular scorn. Averted with the F.C. Yee novels which have been warmly received.
* Critically, ''Comicbook/MsMarvel2014'' has never been long-lasting and beloved as the GWW run.

* The ''Literature/JamesBond'' novels written after Creator/IanFleming's death are nowhere near as famous as the ones written by him (nor as typically well-received). Of course, there wasn't really any other way around his death.
* Creator/FrankHerbert's ''Franchise/{{Dune}}'' series was taken over by his son after the former's death, based on his father's notes. Despite this, many fans suggest stopping after ''Chapterhouse: Dune'', Frank's final Dune work (other fans suggest stopping after the original ''Dune'').
* This was one of the reasons the TV series adaptation of ''Series/TheDresdenFiles'' failed compared to the [[Literature/TheDresdenFiles books]]. Most fans did not see the show as good without Creator/JimButcher.

* Books that get [[TheFilmOfTheBook turned into movies]] are nearly 100% this.
** Some are just horrible, like the ''[[Literature/InheritanceCycle Eragon]]'' film or the ''[[Literature/TheBooksOfEmber City of Ember]]'' movie, a few are average like ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' or ''Literature/{{Twilight}}''. Even the well-received book movies, such as ''Literature/HarryPotter'' or ''Literature/TheHungerGames'', get complaints. Even a well-received TV show like ''Series/GameOfThrones'' receives this from fans of ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' especially for the later seasons which [[OvertookTheManga had no books to draw from]] and thus [[GeckoEnding the new material]] often has divergences from the source material.
* The sequel series to ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfAmber'' written after Creator/RogerZelazny's death is universally regarded as FanonDiscontinuity. This stance is considerably helped by the fact that several of Zelazny's friends have publicly stated that he abhorred the idea of anyone else writing canonical stories in the Amber 'verse.
* Certain Creator/VCAndrews fans feel this way after her death and Andrew Neiderman took over the name. In terms of series that she actually started, the last three ''Casteel'' books had this response.
* Creator/RobertJordan famously kept churning out [[LongRunner volume after volume]] of his hit mega-series ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', rarely moving the plot even close to a resolution, and then finally [[DiedDuringProduction passed away]] before finishing. There was some debate over whether another author would step in and finish, but eventually Jordan's widow Harriet [=McDougal=] did choose Creator/BrandonSanderson to write the last book in the series, which turned into the last three books. Some of the more devoted fans of the series will tell you in no uncertain terms that the final three books show a measurable drop in quality, with Sanderson butchering many of the characters and story arcs he obviously didn't understand. Other fans who were irritated with Jordan's rather extreme wordiness, languid pace and seeming unwillingness to resolve any of the plot threads [[MyRealDaddy felt rather differently about Sanderson]]...

* ''Series/TheMillenniumTrilogy'' was planned to be much longer had writer Stieg Larsson not [[DiedDuringProduction died right after submitting the manuscripts]]. The publisher eventually decided to continue under the pen of David Lagercrantz, and those who dislike the new trilogy will give this assessment for their inferiority.

* ''Series/GameOfThrones''. The early seasons aligned mostly with the plots developed by Creator/GeorgeRRMartin, including having him write a few episodes. Unsurprisingly, those episodes written by Martin (particularly the Battle of Blackwater Bay) are seen by fans as being among the strongest in the series. The demarcating mark amongst critical fans seems to be the strange decision not to write in the Tysha betrayal storyline in season four when Jamie releases Tyrion; a defining mark in Martin's storyline. Once the showrunners Creator/DavidBenioff and Creator/DBWeiss were fully responsible for the direction of the show, the gaping plot holes developed and the dialogue got weaker to the point of MemeticMutation. The declining quality reached its zenith in the final season, regarded by most fans as a total letdown and is unwatchable to many.
** ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'': The first season has received much praise across the board. Martin being back with some degree of creative control over it probably helped, in addition to Creator/RyanCondal replacing Benioff and Weiss as showrunner.
* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}''. Many fans blamed the seasons 6 & 7 showrunner Sera Gamble for the show's less-than-stellar state after Eric Kripke, the creator and original showrunner, stepped down (though Kripke still had some input on the show). After season 7, Gamble also stepped down and was replaced first by Jeremy Carver and then by Andrew Dabb, who closed out the show after 15 Seasons. Carver was praised for getting the show back on track, and Dabb was praised for adding new characters, including The Wayward Sisters and Jack Kline, but most fans agree the Kripke years are superior to anything that came afterward. This persists despite many beloved stand-alone episodes primarily because the show never nailed its arcs the same way after Kripke's departure. Moreover, since the controversial SeriesFinale, fan opinion remains divided even though nearly everyone agrees that Kripke's vision for the end, which was the Season 5 Finale, was superior.
* Arguably also true of ''Series/{{Smallville}}''. After the departure of co-creators and original show runners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar at the end of Season 7, the show seemed to end up in something of a RunningTheAsylum state with what was originally conceived as an accessible story about the future Superman with a loose approach to the mythology degenerating into DC ContinuityPorn. It didn't help that [[LongRunnerCastTurnover most of the original cast had left]] by the time Gough and Millar stepped down.
* ''Series/TheWestWing''. Creator and showrunner Creator/AaronSorkin left the show at the end of the fourth season; the fifth season was savaged by critics and fans alike, and while the sixth and seventh were generally accepted as being an improvement, there are many fans of the Sorkin era who simply ignore everything after season four.
* ''Series/GossipGirl''. When Joshua Safran took over as showrunner the quality of the show went drastically downhill and the ratings followed, which led to the majority of the fans complaining about him. It did not help matters that Safran frequently argued with the fans on twitter and that one of the show's directors stated that people who didn't like the changes were not real fans. He left the show after the fifth season, but the damage was done (the next season was its last, and its lowest-rated, and CutShort to boot. And as for the SeriesFinale...).

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. The Creator/GeneRoddenberry produced Seasons 1 and 2 are regarded as being way better than Season 3, where Fred Freiberger took over. Inverted by the following ''Star Trek'' shows however, which are widely regarded to have hit their strides after the original creators stepped down from the showrunner role (see MyRealDaddy for more info). There are also some fans who regard only the Roddenberry-produced episodes and [[Film/StarTrekTheMotionPicture film]] as genuine ''Star Trek'', and everything else as brainless trash, though this is very much a minority viewpoint.
** Inverted by the movies, which saw a huge ''improvement'' after Gene was kicked off of them, and by ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', [[GrowingTheBeard which got much better]] after he was KickedUpstairs and subsequently died.
** Played straight when the Rick Berman Era ended and the Kurtzman era began. Berman wasn't involved in the franchise until 1987, but he at least had the benefit of working with Gene Roddenberry and being his hand-picked successor. Kurtzman, on the other hand, is best-known for working with Michael Bay to [[DarthWiki/RuinedForever ruin Transformers forever]].
* The first two seasons of ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}'', where creator Constance M. Burge acted as the show's creative lead while Brad Kern handled the showrunning duties, are usually regarded as being by far and away better than the rest of the show's run, where Kern alone was in charge of things.
* {{Zigzagged|Trope}} with ''Series/GilmoreGirls''. Creator Amy Sherman-Palladino and her husband Daniel left the show after season 6. Opinions on the following season 7 differ, but it's generally acknowledged that the show just wasn't the same afterwards. However, when the creators returned with full control for the 2016 Netflix revival, ''Gilmore Girls: A Year In The Life'', which reportedly incorporated developments that were originally planned for season 7, the reception ended up ranging from mixed to negative, subverting the trope.
* Shari Lewis was a great ventriloquist and puppeteer. Her daughter Mallory...decidedly less so.
* Creator/JossWhedon was largely absent from season six of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'', as he was working on ''Series/{{Firefly}}''. The result was a season that was disliked by a lot of fans, with the exception of the beloved "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS6E7OnceMoreWithFeeling Once More With Feeling]]", which, funnily enough, was the only episode Joss wrote and directed that season, though as always he contributed the overall seasonal plot and made notes on others' work.
* Deborah Joy [=LeVine=] was pushed out of ''Series/LoisAndClark'' after the first season, and her intentions to chart character trajectories for the two leads and to emphasize Clark's impact on others (as in the Jack storyline) were scrapped for what some saw as a heavier reliance on soap and melodrama. In particular, the post-[=LeVine=] leadership was blamed for the notorious Clone!Lois story arc.
* For a number of fans, the quality of writing on ''Series/TrueBlood'' went downhill after showrunner Alan Ball left at the end of season 5, and took most of the veteran writers on the series (Alexander Woo, Raelle Tucker, Mark Hurdis) with him. The result is that Brian Buckner took over, and brought in a new host of writers who weren't familiar with the show. It is believed this is the reason a lot of the story threads set up in season 5[[note]]The destruction of the Authority, the war between vampires and humans, Luna accidentally outing shifters to the world, the revelation that Warlow was coming for Sookie, Pam/Tara's relationship, Andy's faerie kids, Alcide becoming leader of the pack, Jason struggling with visions of his dead parents encouraging him to hate vampires, Jason's hunt for Warlow, Nora reforming and joining Eric, Bill becoming Billith[[/note]] didn't get properly followed up on in the final two seasons, and that these writers wanted to redeem Bill's character after all the heinous things he'd done.
* ''Gene Roddenberry's Series/{{Andromeda}}'' was Darthwiki/RuinedForever when its creator and head writer, Robert Hewitt Wolfe, was fired from it near the end of season 2. However, most of his core writing team (Zack Stentz, Ashley Edward Miller, Matt Kiene, Joe Reinkemeyer) stayed behind and kept the show more or less watchable throughout season 3. It was ruined forever ''again'' a year later, when those four writers left and there was nobody remaining who had any idea what the hell they were doing.

* After Creator/MontyOum's death, some fans of ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' felt that Creator/RoosterTeeth hasn't done a good job continuing the series, usually citing the fight scenes not having Monty's unique flair and believing the story isn't moving in the direction he would have wanted.
** Unfortunately, things have become so heated and vitriolic that the current showrunners (who were close friends and colleagues to Monty prior to his death) have been subject to frequent online abuse and MisBlamed for choices that were actually Monty's ideas; for instance [[SpotlightStealingSquad Jaune's prominence in the story]] is not down to Miles' doing a self-insert -- Monty always intended for Jaune to be an audience viewpoint character, the "Watson" to Team RWBY's Sherlock.
* Another Rooster Teeth case is ''Webanimation/GenLock'', which got a season 2 on Creator/HboMax that fans wished had remained on RT's hands instead of done by an entirely different company who downplayed the most liked elements (slick mecha action and interesting character moments) while taking the show on widely criticized new directions.

* There's a subset of animation fans who feel this way about Creator/{{Disney}} after Creator/{{Walt|Disney}} and Roy died, particularly about the films released between the [[WesternAnimation/TheAristocats early '70s]] and the [[WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron mid '80s]] before the older, Walt-era management was shown the door and the new, outside management took over the studio. Anything made from the [[WesternAnimation/TheGreatMouseDetective late '80s]] on tends to get mixed reactions, with the general consensus seeming to be that the work overall is an improvement over the early '70s to mid '80s films, but it just [[NoTrueScotsman "isn't Disney"]].

* The general consensus among fans of ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' is that the show's quality dipped after Stephen Hillenburg left the series following ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobSquarePantsMovie''. Season 4 is considered to be the start of the SeasonalRot, but it has enough well-received episodes that some will include it with seasons 1-3 as the Golden Age of [=SpongeBob=]. Season 5 has fewer defenders than Season 4 and seasons 6-8 were poorly-received by fans. Hillenburg returned for seasons 9-11 and many agree that the quality started to go up again.

* This was once a commonly-held consensus by fans of ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'', who for a long time believed that Nickelodeon had been in the wrong when they fired Creator/JohnKricfalusi, and that the seasons produced following his firing were overall inferior to the seasons he had worked on at best, and absolutely horrible and a blatant insult to Kricfalusi's own creation at worst. Over the years, however, attitudes towards the post-Kricfalusi episodes of ''Ren & Stimpy'' have improved, and are now usually seen as being generally good cartoons in their own right. But what really led this trope to be overturned was in 2018 when Kricfalusi was accused of sexually abusing minors, thus destroying what was left of his career. Nowadays, the common consensus among fans is that, while the post-Kricfalusi episodes of ''Ren & Stimpy'' may be inferior to the seasons that he was involved in, Kricfalusi himself deserved to be fired from the show.

** Inverted by the movies, which saw a huge ''improvement'' after Gene was kicked off of them, and by ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', [[GrowingTheBeard which got much better]] after he died.

* A widespread perception of the fourth season of ''Series/{{Community}}'', made after creator Creator/DanHarmon was fired by the network.

** Some are just horrible, like the ''[[Literature/InheritanceCycle Eragon]]'' film or the ''[[Literature/TheBooksOfEmber City of Ember]]'' movie, a few are average like ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' or ''Literature/{{Twilight}}''. Even the well-received book movies, such as ''Literature/HarryPotter'' or ''Literature/TheHungerGames'', get complaints. Even a well-recieved TV show like ''Series/GameOfThrones'' receives this from fans of ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' especially for the later seasons which vastly diverged from the source material.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. Rhe Creator/GeneRoddenberry produced Seasons 1 and 2 are regarded as being way better than Season 3, where Fred Freiberger took over. Inverted by the following ''Star Trek'' shows however, which are widely regarded to have hit their strides after the original creators stepped down from the showrunner role (see MyRealDaddy for more info). There are also some fans who regard only the Roddenberry-produced episodes and [[Film/StarTrekTheMotionPicture film]] as genuine ''Star Trek'', and everything else as brainless trash, though this is very much a minority viewpoint.
** Inverted by the movies, which saw a huge ''improvement'' after Gene was kicked off of them, and by The Next Generation, which got much better after he died.

* Likewise, fellow Cartoon Network series ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'' was this following the ''WesternAnimation/EgoTrip'' movie, as Creator/GenndyTartakovsky had moved on to make ''WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack''. Not only did the show suffer an unpleasant redesign, but fans felt the new staff largely flanderized a lot of the characters.

* PlayedStraight by ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'', where the Creator/GeneRoddenberry produced Seasons 1 and 2 are regarded as being way better than Season 3, where Fred Freiberger took over. Inverted by the following ''Star Trek'' shows however, which are widely regarded to have hit their strides after the original creators stepped down from the showrunner role (see MyRealDaddy for more info). There are also some fans who regard only the Roddenberry-produced episodes and [[Film/StarTrekTheMotionPicture film]] as genuine ''Star Trek'', and everything else as brainless trash, though this is very much a minority viewpoint.

* ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' has some fans who insist that the AlternateUniverse shows are all crap because Creator/YoshiyukiTomino had nothing to do with them (ignoring the fact that ''Anime/TurnAGundam'' was not only his baby, but acknowledges everything that came before). Some take it a step further and say The Creator Does It Right Only When He's Depressed, savaging ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamZZ Gundam ZZ]]'' (made to clear up the gloom from ''[[Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam Zeta Gundam]]'').

* As inferior as the last few ''Westernanimation/IceAge'' movies were, everyone agreed that the Creator/DisneyPlus film ''Westernanimation/TheIceAgeAdventuresOfBuckWild'' was a much worse affair given it lacked Creator/BlueSkyStudios, which was shut down by Disney a year prior (and in fact, never even involved in that production), and anyone from the original franchise's creative team.

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* The general consensus among fans of ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' is that the show's quality dipped after Stephen Hillenburg left the series following ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobSquarePantsMovie''. Season 4 is considered to be the start of the SeasonalRot, but it has enough good episodes that some will include it with seasons 1-3 as the Golden Age of [=SpongeBob=]. Season 5 has fewer defenders than Season 4 and seasons 6-8 are almost universally detested for producing some of the most unfunny, crude and NauseaFuel episodes ever in a kid's show. Hillenburg returned for seasons 9-11 and many agree that the quality started to go up again (though still paling in comparison to the first three seasons), but Hillenburg unfortunately passed away of ALS in November 2018, so it's likely that this trope will come into play again.

This is CreatorWorship taken UpToEleven. When someone makes a sequel to a popular work which they did not create, and it is completely savaged by fans.

* While far from awful, the Franchise/AvatarTheLastAirbender comics have gotten this from being written by people who were not part of the show. Azula's handling in them is met with particular scorn. Averted with the F.C. Yee novels which have been warmly received.

* The overriding opinion on ''ComicBook/Earth2'' is that it took a ''sharp'' nosedive once James Robinson left the title. Under Robinson's pen, the series served as a place where characters mostly tied to the Justice Society of America were allowed to flourish, as well as other characters Retgone'd from the main DCU. It also was obviously slowly building up to the formation of the Justice Society. Once Robinson left the book, it increasingly focused on alternate versions of the Superfamily and Batfamily, to the point that the original leads were reduced to supporting characters.

* [[ComicBook/TheUnbelievableGwenpool Gwenpool]] tends to be this when she's written by anyone besides Christopher Hastings, often forgoing the CharacterDevelopment she rapidly underwent in her own series to instead be an self-righteous, stupid, and narcissistic caricature of a stereotypical 2010s "millennial" teenager. It doesn't help that Marvel itself [[WolverinePublicity tended to shill her as such with cameos in other comics and video games]], which completely goes against and misses the point of her character. Thankfully, most fans agree that her characterisation in ''ComicBook/WestCoastAvengers2018'', the series she migrated to after her solo run ended, is more in line with Hastings's vision. Her second solo title, ''Gwenpool Strikes Again'', is another point of contention, some approving Leah Williams for still making Gwen an endearing TalkativeLoon ([[ApprovalOfGod Hastings himself liked it]]), while others deemed she went for a too meme-y Deadpool approach.

'''Ed:''' Flooop???\\

* An InUniverse example in ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLifeStaticCling'', where Rocko believes that the original creator of ''[[ShowWithinAShow The Fatheads]]'' should make the special to save Ed's job, as he believes the Chameleon Brothers would mess it up. The special implies Rocko's opinion is the correct one, as the Chameleon Brothers' attempts at making the special are... [[StylisticSuck shall we say, less than stellar.]]

* As inferior as the last few ''Westernanimation/IceAge'' movies were, everyone agreed that the Creator/DisneyPlus film ''Westernanimation/TheIceAgeAdventuresOfBuckWild'' was a much worse affair given it lacked Creator/BlueSkyStudios, shut down by Disney a year prior (and in fact, never even involved in that production), and anyone from the original franchise's creative team.

* As inferior as the last few ''Westernanimation/IceAge'' movies were, everyone agreed that the Disney+ film ''Westernanimation/TheIceAgeAdventuresOfBuckWild'' was a much worse affair given it lacked Creator/BlueSkyStudios, shut down by Disney a few years prior (and in fact, never even involved in that production), and anyone from the original franchise's creative team.

* In an interesting case that actually does mix in a bit of MyRealDaddy, while Ciro Nieli has remained on the new [[WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012 Ninja Turtles]] cartoon, Joshua Sternin and Jennifer Ventimilia, who were also heavily involved with its development as well as the original head writers for the series, both took off after the first season was over. Opinions on seasons two and onward have notably been much more divided between fans.

* This was once a commonly-held consensus by ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'', who for a long time believed that Nickelodeon had been in the wrong when they fired Creator/JohnKricfalusi, and that the seasons produced following his firing were overall inferior to the seasons he had worked on at best, and absolutely horrible and a blatant insult to Kricfalusi's own creation at worst. Over the years, however, attitudes towards the post-Kricfalusi episodes of ''Ren & Stimpy'' have improved, and are now usually seen as being generally good cartoons in their own right. But what really led this trope to be overturned was in 2018 when Kricfalusi was accused of sexually abusing minors, thus destroying what was left of his career. Nowadays, the common consensus among fans is that, while the post-Kricfalusi episodes of ''Ren & Stimpy'' may be inferior to the seasons that he was involved in, Kricfalusi himself deserved to be fired from the show.