Jersey Shore ends forever in 10 days, on Dec. 20, three years and 17 days after it debuted to controversy and low ratings in 2009. In the NEw York Times today, the cast members reflect on their experience, but they may be the only ones who care.

That’s because the show is back to where it began, at least with its ratings: the episode that aired a week ago Thursday was watched by “only 2.4 million total viewers, barely half as many as the 4.7 million who watched the Season 6 premiere on Oct. 4,” The New York Times reports, adding that the viewership was “the lowest total for the series since the first season, when the Dec. 17, 2009, episode drew 2.5 million.”

Consider that in August 2011, the show debuted to 8.8 million viewers, that’s a pretty huge plunge. More importantly, is anyone talking about the show or its cast in the same way any more? MTV’s decision to cancel the show seems like a smart one.

As it rocketed to popularity, and because of its popularity, the show also became an increasingly inauthentic “farce”, and that’s the opposite of what drew people to it in the first place.