Jumping the Shark : When Is A Good Magazine Over?

[Mojopin]

harpers bazaar lost its appeal long time ago. they had the most stunning covers in the mid nineties, an incredible artwork, - and for me it all stopped and went down down down after the april 1997 issue. and year after year it got worse

 

[dreams]

i need more time to think about some other mags, but the one that instantly popped in my head when i read your post luxx was harpers bazaar...
it jumped the shark after the death of liz tilberis, unfortunately...
she worked so hard to give the magazine a freshness that it had lost in the late 70s-80s, and while i loved the kate betts era, it was such a departure from what had been done before...it was off in a completely new and jarring direction...
with covers like paris & nicole and a pregnant and nude britney, it has yet to recover...

YES. The fashionable life feature was my favorite and I bought it every month. I have lost complete interest now, I've bought maybe two issues in the last 12 months.

And ugh, I agree with Luxx about LLohan. Elle also has a weird fixation with her. Please let her pass into oblivion with Tara Reid.

 

[from: sophia]

Nylon loved it 2 or so years ago get it sometimes but rarely. I do like dazed and confused though. I thing Vogue has lost its touch as well the editorials are just getting so dull. I did like the couture ones that showed all of the dress makers.

 

[irulan]

I'm really in fear for Vogue Paris. When I got my hands on it for the first time, it was a big thing for me. If I remember correctly, it was May or June 08, Kate Moss was on the cover, but the insides really took me. There was an ed with Daria Werbowy shot by Inez & Vinoodh (?). I had never before seen something like that in a fashion magazine. The same with Guinevere Van Seenus' fantasy ed.
So I suscribed to it and all the following copies, they were ok, but something was missing, it wasn't new and fresh anymore and I came to realise that it had just seemed new and fresh to me. It was the same thing every month. It was chic and snobbish and arrogant and radical. That Raquel Zimmermann ed with the furs, oh, how it made me angry!
And with the Christy Turlington issue it was all over. I actually started to think it was a bit of a joke. I think it's a good thing when a magazine has high expectations on its reader, but the Vogue Paris woman is just to much for me. And she lacks some humour. The fun part of fashion has flown out of the window at VP and that has to be long time ago, for when I flip through my first issue of it now, the couture ed with Sasha P. shot by Hedi Slimane makes me angry, so do the fuzzy shots of that amazing Rodarte collection.
There is just no need to take fashion that seriously. And to take it away from real, living women. I won't put on something with my nipples sticking out, no matter how often you put it in your magazine, Carine...
I don't say it has jumped the shark. It has some good articles and interesting features. But just take it a bit more easy, please!

 

[nyc_art_style]

I feel like LOVE is over, and it's only two issues in.

I feel that a magazine risks going under when the editorial staff forgets the underlying message that the magazine is suppose to send every issue. Or when the editorial staff runs out of ideas, or when they give into dollar signs instead of creativity.

p.s.: i hope no one minds i bumped this thread.

 

[VogueParisLover]

^ I totally agree. Love will be another magazine that I wont buy. It's already annoying, and I think Katie should've stayed with Pop.

I also think that US Bazaar has gone down the toilet. It's became more of a tabloid. An example might be the yellow in the Newest, Hottest, Latest section. They've also played up that Fabulous At Any Age thing, it's so annoying and redundant. I miss the 2006 - 2008 issues.

 

[wednesdays child]

I love this thread! its an interesting topic.. and I feel sometimes its when the magazine becomes like a bad parody of itself ...

 

[vogue28]

I feel like LOVE is over, and it's only two issues in.

I feel that a magazine risks going under when the editorial staff forgets the underlying message that the magazine is suppose to send every issue. Or when the editorial staff runs out of ideas, or when they give into dollar signs instead of creativity.

I couldn't agree with you more on this. The whole "young scene" has been done before and it never works for me.
It's just another recycled magazine.
I'm glad Katie left POP, because that was becoming terrible. I'm looking forward to seeing what Dasha has instore for us.

 

[hautechild]

I feel like LOVE is over, and it's only two issues in.

I feel like LOVE jumped the shark as soon as #1 came out

Possibly it could never have lived up to the hype, but it was just so disappointing and that was down to the content.

 

[VogueParisLover]

I'm really in fear for Vogue Paris. When I got my hands on it for the first time, it was a big thing for me. If I remember correctly, it was May or June 08, Kate Moss was on the cover, but the insides really took me. There was an ed with Daria Werbowy shot by Inez & Vinoodh (?). I had never before seen something like that in a fashion magazine. The same with Guinevere Van Seenus' fantasy ed.
So I suscribed to it and all the following copies, they were ok, but something was missing, it wasn't new and fresh anymore and I came to realise that it had just seemed new and fresh to me. It was the same thing every month. It was chic and snobbish and arrogant and radical. That Raquel Zimmermann ed with the furs, oh, how it made me angry!
And with the Christy Turlington issue it was all over. I actually started to think it was a bit of a joke. I think it's a good thing when a magazine has high expectations on its reader, but the Vogue Paris woman is just to much for me. And she lacks some humour. The fun part of fashion has flown out of the window at VP and that has to be long time ago, for when I flip through my first issue of it now, the couture ed with Sasha P. shot by Hedi Slimane makes me angry, so do the fuzzy shots of that amazing Rodarte collection.
There is just no need to take fashion that seriously. And to take it away from real, living women. I won't put on something with my nipples sticking out, no matter how often you put it in your magazine, Carine...
I don't say it has jumped the shark. It has some good articles and interesting features. But just take it a bit more easy, please!

You are talking about April 2008. That was my first issue of VP, it took my breath away.

 

[irulan]

^yeah, you're right, it was April. It took my breath away, too, like I said Daria or Guinevere, I still look at these eds sometime.
But then there's such things as that Sasha ed that simply has everything I hate in fashion photography.
I think once you have grasped that VP formula, it begins to annoy you quickly. Once you overcome that chicness shock, it's the same every single issue.

 

[gimmethatbag]

A magazine is over when they print the same articles and the same editorials over and over and over again, a la Allure. Allure has not printed anything new in about three years.

 

[xerq]

I think ALL magazines jumped the shark when they focused more on celebrities than fashion and models. let's face it celebs aren't usually built like models.if I wanted to see celebs in HF clothing their is always InStyle magazine.

 

[cottonmouth13]

for me, it's US Harper's Bazaar. except for the editorials. but for their covers, BLAH. it's like a tabloid celebrity cover loaded with so much text. plus the repetitive use of "Fabulous at Every Age", "Best Beauty Buys", etc. i just keep buying US Harper's Bazaar because of the editorials.

 

[Fini]

Magazines that put Beth Ditto on the cover annoy me. The first time it was okay, but afterwards it just became old. And so not edgy nor cool.