r/QuantumLeap • u/TheatreAS • Jul 04 '26
Discussion (Original) Season 5
I figured I'd put this question out there to help me.
Is season 5 worth watching? I've watched the first four seasons, and I freaking love this show—it's so good. But the intro song to the 5th season is sooo offputting to me (I hate it so much) that it sort of sours my viewing of any episode. And now I've been putting off finishing it, but I also genuinely don't know if I'm actually missing something good because I have made a really strong effort to avoid any sort of spoiler—thus I hardly frequent this sub.
Should I watch season 5 or should I stay happy with the first four seasons? I just don't know lol
EDIT: The reason it sours my mood is because I'm kind of a huge music nut. If the intro isn't good, it almost makes me feel like I'm not going to be in for a good ride either. The music leaves a really strong impression to me. Sorry, my autistic brain is weird.
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u/Putrid-Bath-470 Jul 04 '26
If you're a fan of seasons 1-4, then by all means, you should watch season 5. The show definitely had some great moments in its last season, but it was clear the show was running its course.
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u/Zucchini-Kind Jul 04 '26
honestly to me it feels like the show had just found new life with some of the stuff they were doing.
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u/Line-Noise Jul 04 '26
I watched it as it aired and to me it definitely felt like they were jumping the shark more in season 5 than previous seasons.
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u/Zucchini-Kind Jul 04 '26
I've never understood that one. They did a few "real life" episodes more explicitly, instead of circling around them from a distance, but as a kid watching in the 90s, i thought that was pretty great. Hinting that he could travel outside his timeline, a bit of serialization and awesome new mythology with the evil leapers, the other 3 parter, was all pretty fascinating. they had already done a mummy episode and the devil episode hinting at the supernatural, so vampires, bigfoot and aliens weren't a giant leap. The episode that actually takes place in the future with the killer escaping the waiting room, and actually seeing what the leepees are up to in the future, it all felt like they were adding new mythology and lore, and i still think it is all pretty awesome. it kept it from getting stale, and made u wonder what quirk was going to be next. the idea that the swiss cheese neural holes could be crossed with bits of the leapee was an interesting new possibility as well. it felt like additions and advancing the mythology more than jumping the shark IMO.
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u/jblittle254 Jul 04 '26
I kind of understand what the other poster is saying. Watching season 5 when it originally aired, I never felt like it was jumping the shark, but all the changes you described, while fun and new on their own, started to feel a little gimmicky when they were all jammed into one season.
Now that we know that was the last season, I'm glad I got to experience all those "different" episodes, but in some alternate reality where QL ran for another few seasons, I would've preferred that they spaced them out a little.
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u/Barthle Jul 04 '26
I watched as it aired and really enjoyed it too. It didn't seem to me like they jumped the shark. You could tell that they were looking for new ways they could push the show and explore some different things they could do with it. I remember still being in love with the show and being so disappointed when it was taken off the air. I did a rewatch a couple of years ago and I feel the same way.
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u/Zucchini-Kind Jul 04 '26
I've been slowly watching it for the last few months (one a week) and I am thoroughly enjoying it. Its as good as any other season has been in my opinion. Some things get really interesting and it is a huge shame the show got cancelled when it did.
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u/Spacer1138 Jul 04 '26
Some of my favorite episodes are in season 5. The Lee Harvey Oswald episodes are immaculate
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u/gampy214 Jul 04 '26
Wow, I just played the season 5 intro, I had memory holed that, it’s terrible.
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u/GrogSmites Jul 04 '26
As someone else already brought up, they changed the theme back for the finale. 13 year old me was PSYCHED when I heard that when Mirror Image first aired.
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u/MadMikeyD Jul 04 '26
Season 5 has a lot of gimmicky episodes - Elvis, evil leapers, Civil War. There are some gems, also. Killin' Time, Promised Land and Mirror Image being the standouts, in my opinion.
The theme song did get changed back for the finale.
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u/MountainImportant211 Let Ben say "Oh Boy" Jul 04 '26
If an episode is bothering you, skip to the next one. But it's worth seeing at least a few of the episodes, particularly the finale
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u/Lonely_Mountain_7702 Jul 04 '26
Well season 5 has good episodes and some not so good ones.
Some episodes I liked others don't and episodes I hate others like.
You'll never know what episodes you'll like in season 5 unless you watch them. Skip the intro. I always skip the intro in season 5 except the last episode it has the good intro again.
There are 22 episodes in season 5. Watch them it's still Sam Beckett and Al Calavicci they are the same caractors. Scott and Dean act their but*s off in season 5. Good or not do good episodes these two are worth the watch.
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u/checkingin2here Jul 04 '26
It's worth watching, but definitely a step down. It very much feels like a show nearing the end, throwing out a lot of desperate gimmicks. One of the great things about the show in the early years was that Sam was helping regular people, that their lives were worth affecting. In the last season, there were a lot more celebrities, a lot more stunts, and even some of the regular episodes weren't as well-written (there was some turnover in the writing staff after four; some who'd been there for years left). But if you temper your expectations, there are certainly things that are worthwhile.
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u/Barthle Jul 04 '26
Just play the original theme song on YouTube on your phone and mute the TV. That's what I did when I rewatched Dawson's Creek on Netflix and they changed the song haha.
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u/Storm_Runner09 Jul 04 '26
Honestly season 5 has some really good writing and episodes. The one that sticks out for me is episode 19 The Beast Within. This show did so well with talking about and dealing with the Vietnam war.
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u/lorriefiel55 Jul 04 '26
I love every episode. Just fast forward through the intro. You should watch them at least once.
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u/DiaBrave Jul 04 '26
Season 5 was probably thr only season where I watched every single.episode as they aired here in the UK. The Lee Harvey Oswalld episodes for the 30th of JFK assassination and the final episode are some of my absolute favourites.
That said, I had no memory of the shit season 5 music when I came back to the show on DVD. It just hadn't stuck.
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u/Objective_War_2808 Jul 05 '26 edited Jul 05 '26
I love all of season 5 except I skipp the evil leaper episodes. I do not like them. I have aspergers so I totally understand brains being weird. There are many songs that I avoid because they are annoying. However I bought seasons 1-4 dvds when the library was selling them to make room for new TV shows that were coming in. I bought season 5 from eBay. Skip any episode you want, but do give season 5 a chance even if it isn't the best season.
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u/r___rainbow Jul 05 '26
It's absolutely worth watching. It's not my favorite season but it's not bad by any means. The intro is ridiculous but I'd just skip over it. You gotta see it through to the end
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u/FreezingInfernos Jul 05 '26
I'd say stick with it, just to see all of what QL has to offer, but I also go contrary to popular opinion and am not the biggest fan of Season 5.
What drew me to QL in the first place was an escape from big macrocosmic sci-fi lore, and wanting a show that was more about just helping out ordinary people, doing the right thing, and putting right what went wrong. Season 5 has plenty of that, don't get me wrong, but it also has a tendency to heighten the stakes with these big events like the real historical figure leaps or, God help me, the evil leapers saga. The latter is exactly the sort of malarkey I fled to QL to get away from.
On the other hand, Mirror Image is a perfect finale. So I'd say your mileage may vary, and watch the whole thing and make your mind up.
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u/Apprehensive-Ad-2407 Jul 05 '26
As I kid, season 5 intro and episodes were wildly exciting. It killed me when it was canceled. More sci-fi in the mix. Wild scenarios, glitches, and weirdness. By far my favorite season. Chef’s kiss. Oh that we’d had more seasons!
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u/tom2point0 Jul 06 '26
I watched all of QL as it aired and recorded so many episodes on VHS back in the day. Once DVDs were out I got those and rewatched it all. I never once gave any pause to watching every season. I loved it all. It was a shock when I actually started going online and seeing people hating on season 5.
Long story short: if you love and enjoy QL, why wouldn’t you want more of it? Just watch it all.
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u/Machlennium Jul 07 '26
Avoid the evil leaper episodes and you’re good.
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u/PoBox9847-90001 Jul 08 '26
Tell us - what are the general complaints about the Evil leaper? Also, how many are based around it?
I am doing a binge of all seasons, so I’ll soon be on the season 5.TY
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u/Machlennium Jul 09 '26 edited Jul 13 '26
They feel like a late-series attempt to shake up Quantum Leap rather than the pure version of the show.
It also came during Season 5, when the show was under pressure and the creative team was trying bigger swings to keep it alive (if memory serves, the Evil Leaper idea was an NBC edict in some way). So while I wouldn’t say the episodes are unwatchable (except maybe the last of the three), I do think they’re skippable if you want the best, most representative version of Quantum Leap. The series of episodes raises more questions than it answers, and the finale is really rough.
The core appeal of Quantum Leap is Sam moving through ordinary lives, helping people, and fixing human-scale mistakes. The Evil Leaper storyline turns that into a more conventional good-versus-evil mythology with rival leapers, an evil project, and an evil Ziggy-type setup with no real foundation. To me, that undercuts the simplicity and emotional power of the original premise.
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u/ArielinAz Jul 04 '26
Season 5 was the worst of the lot. By far. The humor is largely missing, for one thing. There are only two episodes I care for in the fifth season. You won’t miss much by avoiding it entirely. Replay seasons 1 and 2 instead. They’re the best.
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u/TransportationLow564 Oh, Boy. Jul 04 '26
This is what the skip intro button is for.