Have you ever had a favorite TV show canceled for no good reason? I’ll never forget watching this show in the ’90s called Model’s Inc. The finale was a cliffhanger, and I was so disappointed when it was not brought back to resolve the — who did it! After someone asked an online entertainment community which television shows didn’t serve to be canceled. Here are their top picks. Do you agree?
1. Star Trek (1966 – 1969)
One Trekkie elates, “This answer is the king of all answers to this question. Sure, other series mentioned were cut short too soon, but no other TV series in history, before or since, gave birth to one-tenth the content Star Trek did. Movies, series, cartoons, webcomics, etc., in the thousands of episodes. There are still spin-offs over 50 years later.”
2. Last Man on Earth (2015 – 2018)
Several critics concur that Last Man on Earth was a great show and should not have ended the way it did. They chimed in and said, “I don’t think it was no good reason because I believe the ratings weren’t phenomenal, but Last Man on Earth with Wil Forte and Kristen Schaal was an absolutely fantastic show that deserved at least another season or two!”
3. Max Headroom (1987 – 1988)
Many stated how, despite having two seasons, they still felt like the show was canceled prematurely. Several commenters said, “It felt like the show got canceled after season two the way it ended. Was that not the case? Season three felt like…. Somehow, all the characters have returned
4. Lie to Me (2009 – 2011)
I absolutely love this show. Tim Roth definitely gained my respect with his role as a dying undercover cop in Reservoir Dogs, but his role as Dr. Cal Lightman in the hit show Lie to Me. In the show, he portrays an expert in the science of microexpressions and body language.
Making him extremely useful to federal and local law enforcement agencies. He typically assists in the investigation of law enforcement through applied psychology, which is usually heavily doubted by those requesting his assistance to begin with. I thought it was an amazing show and was truly sad to see it was canceled.
5. Chuck (2007 – 2012)
I will admit that I had no idea about this show until I met my wife in 2016. And it took me a whole additional four years to watch it after that. I’m so glad she put this show on my radar “Would have loved for them to have made a Chuck movie after the series ended like they were teasing the idea of for a while there! It would have wrapped it up perfectly. That’s all the show really needed!”
6. The Twilight Zone (1959 – 1964)
A classic science fiction anthology series, The Twilight Zone has transcended time and sprouted two movies and multiple reboots of the series. I recall days as a kid walking past my dad watching The Twilight Zone on the living room TV and decided that was my queue to go outside.
But as I got older, I gained a level of respect for the show that can’t be duplicated. I mean, I haven’t tuned in in years, but I can definitely agree that the original run was gone too soon.
7. Avenue 5 (2020 – 2022)
Other critics express their feelings about the cancellation of the show by saying, “They claim it was the pandemic, but they could have brought it back. Such a fun show.
Many more quoted, ‘Because we got delayed by the pandemic by about 18 months, we knew that meant everyone’s contracts would run out because they’re contracted for a certain period. We just thought everyone’s got 101 other things to be doing, so it would be unfair to kind of keep them on hold in limbo.'”
8. Police Squad! (1982)
One film lover, in particular, alleges, “Allegedly, the spoof comedy cop show was canceled because it ‘contained too many jokes.’ Leslie Nielsen in his deadpan comedy prime, a show that subverts almost any expectation, comedy that is surely serious in its approach (don’t call me Shirley), and more fast-hitting jokes than clowns vs world heavyweights.”
9. People of Earth (2016 – 2017)
“I knew at least one other person had to have watched that show,” one TV lover exclaimed. “Dry, gentle humor, but also, everyone was just bonkers. Amazing cast. I’d read it was picked up for a third season and didn’t find out it was canceled until I’d binged the first two seasons in preparation for the third to come out in the fall. Just gutted when I started looking to see when it would start.”
10. Quantum Leap (1989 – 1993)
This science fiction TV series premiered on NBC back in 1989 and got off to a slow start but eventually won over the hearts of the age group of 18 – 49 in American households. The finale had a total of over 13 million viewers nationwide.
Not only was the show canceled too early, but it gained a cult following not too long after it was nixed. In 2004 and 200, Quantum Leap made TV Guides “Top Cult Shows Ever.”
11. Inside Job (2021 – 2022)
One series fanatic wholeheartedly nominated “Inside Job. Absolutely loved it, and I still mourn the loss of it. I will personally fight every staff member on the Netflix board to make sure Reagan’s sacrifice wasn’t for nothing!”
12. The Mick (2017 – 2018)
My wife absolutely adored this show. I was a witness to the sincere disappointment she experienced once we came to find out the series was getting renewed. Full transparency: I began to like the show a little bit myself.
The long list of Mickies shared in dismay, “It just didn’t have the numbers for Fox to renew its contract. I watched it when it originally aired and was so mad when I found out the show wasn’t getting renewed. However, that ending was kind of perfect for the show it was.”
13. GLOW (2017- 2019)
“It makes me genuinely angry when I think about it too much. I don’t even recommend it to people because I don’t want them to be angry it ended either.” One GLOW aficionado suggested, “When I did recommend it, I advised them to watch it like how we did; season one, then the documentary about the real girls, then season 2.”
14. Carnivàle (2003 – 2005)
“God, the costuming and attention to detail was nothing short of exquisite… If I could will one show back into existence, it would probably be Carnivale! I must’ve seen the two “Babylon” episodes thirty times at this point, as the storyline was just art.
You don’t see too many period shows that treat history with such deference and respect, nor do you see such creativity often these days.” This sounds like someone who was really invested in the show, and thousands of cineast agree.
15. Jericho (2006 – 2008)
I loved Jericho during its original run, but I couldn’t give the show the proper attention it deserved at the time. Once I was able to finally sit down and binge the show as it deserved, I learned it was canceled after two seasons, so I quit watching before I finished. That’s how hurt I was to learn of the cancellation of the show, and I was like two years late.
16. Teen Titans (2003 – 2006)
“Not Teen Titans Go, but the original one. It was much better and really did not need to be ended. It had great fights, appropriate levels of humor, and it had an actual timeline.”
On this next point, I agree with this critic on a molecular level, “The reboot that is Teen Titans Go was an absolute disappointment. Too much humor, and its action is too mundane. Not to mention, it is advertised for kids but with humor that does not fit.”
17. Deadwood (2004 – 2006)
There was a large number of movie critics who deemed the movie unacceptable by stating, “The movie they didn’t do it justice. They really should have done a limited series to tie everything up because the movie felt like a long episode, and they tried to cram everything in there. It just wasn’t worthy of the series.”
18. Dead Like Me (2003 – 2004)
“Mandy Patinkin rules on screen, and this show was really well cast in general,” One Patinkin crusader communicates. “Can’t believe a show with basically no production costs but tons of good content and ideas ever seemed like a bad investment, but here we are!
19. Arrested Development (2003 – 2019)
Due to my all but sporadic schedule, I stream shows like there’s no tomorrow, and I completely second this next critic’s opinion, “It really was a streaming-type show made before streaming was a thing.
I could definitely see someone not getting the whole picture without getting to see the episodes back to back. That show is wall-to-wall inside jokes and callbacks. One of my favorites of all time.”
20. Rome (2005 – 2007)
“It was insanely expensive. The only reason it got made was because it was a BBC joint production. $100 million a season in 2007 dollars.” Multiple series viewers denote, “Even for a flagship show, which this wasn’t, that’s a ton of money.”
21. King of the Hill (1997 – 2010)
“It was canceled not because of low ratings or controversy, but because Fox wanted to make room for the new and upcoming comedy…The Cleveland Show (that’s not a joke, by the way; that’s actually the reason King of the Hill was canceled).” You read that right, The Cleveland Show!
22. Twin Peaks (1990 – 1991)
Many Peakers felt the show was canceled before its time and would have gladly watched ten more seasons had there been any more. Other Twin Peaks fans annotate the prequel movie, “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, and the third season that came out recently, 25 years later. And if you want to read Laura Palmer’s diary, then you absolutely can.”
23. Space: Above and Beyond (1995 – 1996)
I personally have never watched the show growing up, but many followers of the series deemed the episode “Who Monitors the Birds” as the one to take the cake. The Space lover recalled, “‘Who Monitors the Birds,’ if I recall correctly.
Rodney Roland carried that episode so, so well. They really explored his identity as an in-vitro in the show overall, sure, but that episode –and he barely said any lines, too– really made the character whole, in my opinion.”
24. The Glades (2010 – 2013)
A jovial Floridian expressed, “I loved the show, but as a Floridian, I found their treatment of Florida hilarious. Like he was in South Florida, and they would have him in Cassadega 250-300 miles north like it was nothing or even in the same jurisdiction. Or they would reference surfing in Sebastian earlier in the morning, which is at least a two-hour drive from south Florida.”
25. The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (1993 – 1994)
I have a Briscoe branch on my family tree, so this TV show was definitely a joy to be had, albeit the short time that it ran for. I have an uncle who I can recall being referred to as Brisco County for at least five years, and he loved it! I don’t remember the show vividly, but I do remember great family memories of watching the show together.
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Elizabeth Ervin is the owner of Sober Healing. She is a freelance writer passionate about opioid recovery and has celebrated breaking free since 09-27-2013. She advocates for mental health awareness and encourages others to embrace healing, recovery, and Jesus.