>>216008856
because they had no idea what to do with the show after they were forced to solve the murder. it's plainly obvious while watching that it goes off the rails after that. the back half of season 2 is barely tolerable now in the digital age where you can binge it, imagine watching it as the audience back then.

>>216008881
There's some good individual bits happening in that slump era, but it's really obvious how aimless it is. For every decent arch in that period like Ben Horne goes civil war theres an even more pointless and more annoying James plot.
The actors are trying but the spine of the show is gone.