although i love 'the wire' (greatest show ever) and 'arrested development', i think they were perfectly self-contained and am somewhat relieved they finished when they did. they are what they are, great to sit down and power through, and you do not need to worry about them jumping the shark. especially with 'the wire', which i felt had some life in it, but it really watches like a novel. 'arrested development' had a ton of life left, but when i first watched it, it was already canceled (same with 'the wire' and what i thought when i bought the first seasons of 'family guy'). so those three seasons are 'arrested development' to me. all there ever was and will be and going into it knowing that i really appreciate and enjoy it for what it is. plus, they are both great show to watch over and over again with so much depth.
'party down' definitely died too soon and i adam scott was much better on it than he is on 'parks and rec'.
hbo motto: "oh, you love this show? here's five episodes, see you in two years."