In my opinion, as someone who has both watched every episode from the start, and who has done a big re-watch of the whole thing all the way up to the end of season ten a while back, I find that to be utter bollocks personally. And I swear people look back at the early seasons with rose coloured glasses that seem to conveniently make them forget just how many truly mediocre monster of the week episodes there were back then, and how much of a grind some of them actually were. Much like how many point towards Bobby being a big part of the show in the early years as to why those seasons are allegedly so much better, despite the fact that in the first five years he was in less than twenty episodes, and appeared in almost double that amount in the years that followed. People are entitled to their opinions, of course, but it does make me wonder how many of those who proclaim that the early seasons were
so much better have actually gone back and re-watched them, or if mostly a lot of people just remember the 'greatest hits' and forget most of the misses, or just repeat a mantra because that is what conventional internet wisdom has decreed.
Either way, to me, the overall hit rate of quality episodes has actually remained remarkably consistent for the vast majority of the run, with even the lesser seasons having a better hit rate for good episodes than most shows manage. Some of the overriding arcs are better than others, sure, but I still enjoy the show as much as I ever have. That's just me, though. And I'm about as far from the 'tumblr' generation as it gets.
Mind you, I also think that shows, and characters, need to evolve over time, or else they stagnate and die. Still, to each their own.
EDIT - Really not trying to offend anyone who has different opinions, so I hope it doesn't come across that way. Just sharing my own personal observations and thoughts is all.
