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6 Canceled TV Shows That Were Great From The First Episode To The Last
A show being canceled doesn’t necessarily mean that it is bad. In fact, some of the best TV shows of all time were once considered flops, but found an audience following years after they ended. Shows can come to an end for a variety of reasons, including ratings and behind-the-scenes changes, regardless of their quality.
Certain TV shows that ruled the world while airing were later canceled, pulling the rug from under audiences and leaving everyone confused. At a time when so many shows get cancelled without being given a fair chance, it’s worth looking at series that, despite their short run, were able to leave their mark on television.
6
Arrested Development (Original Run)
3 Seasons, 2003-2006
8/10
- Release Date
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2003 – 2019-00-00
- Network
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FOX, Netflix
- Showrunner
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Mitchell Hurwitz
- Directors
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Troy Miller, Mitchell Hurwitz, Joe Russo, Paul Feig, Anthony Russo, Lee Shallat Chemel, Jay Chandrasekhar, Robert Berlinger, Greg Mottola, Peter Lauer, John Fortenberry, Lev L. Spiro, Patty Jenkins, Andrew Fleming, Jeff Melman, Jason Bateman, Danny Leiner, Arlene Sanford
- Writers
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Dean Lorey, Abraham Higginbotham, Gareth Reynolds, Hallie Cantor, Jake Farrow, Karey Dornetto, Brian Singleton, Chris Marrs, Maggie Rowe, Barbara Adler
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Jason Bateman
Michael Bluth
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Portia de Rossi
Lindsay Bluth Fünke
Arrested Development focused on the Bluth family, a group of overly rich socialites who spent most of their time avoiding responsibility, except for middle child Michael (Jason Bateman). While Arrested Development was canceled after season 3, it did return over seven years later, but seasons 4 and 5 were nowhere near the same standard. However, seasons 1 to 3 were perfect.
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Every episode was rife with recurring gags, and there was barely a moment that went by without another hysterical joke being fired off. The show’s earlier content created some of the very best memes on the internet, and Arrested Development’s Bluth family members, like Lucille (Jessica Walter), will forever be remembered for quotes such as “Good for her.”
In these episodes, many fantastic moments stuck with audiences forever. The Motherboy competitions, Gob (Will Arnett) trying to throw a letter into the sea, and Maeby’s (Alia Shawkat) secret life as a movie producer were all beautifully funny gags, and what made them even better was that they weren’t just one-off jokes; they became staples of the show.
|
Arrested Development Season |
Rotten Tomatoes Rating (As Of June 2025) |
|---|---|
|
Season 1 |
100% |
|
Season 2 |
94% |
|
Season 3 |
100% |
|
Season 4 (Fateful Consequences Remix) |
25% |
|
Season 5 |
55% |
It was gutting when Arrested Development was initially canceled in 2006, especially as the ratings weren’t terrible, at least in comparison to some other shows that stayed on the air longer. Arrested Development didn’t have the cult following that it has now when it was originally broadcast, but it did receive critical acclaim, and it shaped the future of sitcoms massively.
5
Vicious
2 Seasons, 2013-2016
Ian McKellen’s underrated British sitcom, Vicious, was unfairly canceled after season 2. Vicious followed McKellen and fellow theater star Derek Jacobi as Freddie and Stuart, respectively, a couple living in Covent Garden who constantly bickered and spent most of their time with their friends and neighbor, Ash (Iwan Rheon).
Vicious ran for two installments on ITV from 2013 to 2015, and after the network announced the show’s end, it wrapped up with a final one-off special in 2016. Vicious was hilarious, but it also touched on some more serious subject matter at times, too. For example, Freddie and Stuart often reflected on their decades-long relationship and the hardships they’d faced.
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This provided some incredibly powerful messaging, which proved the importance of LGBTQ+ representation in the media. Freddie and Stuart were older characters who had experienced real-life events that have impacted the queer community, so it was amazing to see this topic depicted from their point of view.
Vicious was canceled due to slowly declining ratings, and the finale was adapted from the already written season 3.
There was never a complete dip in quality in Vicious. Every episode was funny, even when the topic changed and focused on something a bit more profound. From Violet’s (Frances de la Tour) never-ending relationship problems to Freddie and Stuart’s attention bouncing between Ash and their seemingly immortal dog, Balthazar, Vicious never failed to keep audiences laughing.
4
Human Resources
2 Seasons, 2022-2023
Big Mouth’s spinoff Human Resources only lasted for two seasons before it was sadly canceled in 2023. Human Resources followed the non-human characters of Big Mouth (as well as some familiar human faces from the main show, too), who worked at the titular organization and were responsible for maintaining their clients’ lives in different areas.
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The creatures and monsters in Human Resources were arguably even more interesting in this spinoff than they were in Big Mouth, mainly because they had the screen time to develop their characters, without the likes of Nick and Andrew taking up all the focus. Maury’s pregnancy storyline was a particularly prominent subplot, especially as it gave audiences more context on his relationship with Connie.
It was a big shock when Netflix announced Human Resources’ cancellation. The show was doing well ratings-wise, and Big Mouth was one of Netflix’s most popular titles at the time, too. However, the reason for this was that Human Resources’ stories would be implemented into the last two installments of Big Mouth, and so they didn’t feel the need for both shows.
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While this made sense to some degree, it was still disappointing. Human Resources was a fantastic watch, and while it was helpful to have seen Big Mouth to understand it, it wasn’t completely necessary, either. Plus, with Big Mouth’s ending approaching at the time, it would’ve made more sense to continue Human Resources to ensure every character got a satisfying conclusion.
3
Freaks And Geeks
1 Season, 1999-2000
While rewatching Freaks and Geeks reveals some harsh realities, it was still considered a perfect TV show to many, even with its flaws, and every episode was great. Freaks and Geeks was an amazing title that followed a group of teenagers, including Lindsay Weir (Linda Cardellini) and Ken Miller (Seth Rogen), as they tried to navigate high school.
The stories of Lindsay and her titular group of friends were stellar. Freaks and Geeks was frequently praised for its realism and attention to detail. The way it depicted the hardships and struggles of each of the characters was fascinating, and in general, Freaks and Geeks was an incredible coming-of-age title.
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Freaks and Geeks brilliantly tackled serious topics like teen pregnancy and drug use, but the show’s astounding comedic undertones never distracted from the subject at hand. It only ran for one season, which was why it was so frustrating that Freaks and Geeks was canceled.
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Although there were only 18 episodes of the show, which wrapped up in 2000, Freaks and Geeks became a cult classic over the following years. It was never made exactly clear why the show was canceled, but it seemed likely to be due to the awkward time slot, which didn’t help the ratings, and there were also some creative differences behind the scenes, too.
2
Pushing Daisies
2 Seasons, 2007-2009
Pushing Daisies ended 16 years ago, but audiences have continued to remember it fondly. Pushing Daisies followed Ned (Lee Pace), a pie-maker who had a strange ability which allowed him to bring back the dead, but only if someone else died in their place, or as long as he avoided touching them for a second time.
The show was renowned for its odd visuals and unique form of storytelling, with a dark comedic undertone that kept things interesting. Even with the bleak subject matter, Pushing Daisies’ light-hearted atmosphere won audiences over, and it was also one of the reasons the show became a cult classic.
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A lot of the show’s story focused on the main character reuniting with his childhood sweetheart, Chuck (Anna Friel), who died in place of his mother, and Ned working alongside PI Emerson Cod (Chi McBride), by reanimating murder victims to find out who killed them. Pushing Daisies, annoyingly, was a TV show canceled right when it was becoming great.
Pushing Daisies was still amazing throughout, but the show was truly reaching its peak upon cancellation. Unfortunately, this was attributed to the writer’s strike of 2007-2008. The strike impacted how the show was written, which subsequently affected the ratings while it was on the air.
1
Firefly
1 Season, 2002-2003
Even though Firefly got some closure with Serenity, it was still frustrating that the show was canceled in the first place, and forced to wrap itself up with a follow-up film. Firefly became a legendary title in the TV world years after it aired only a mere 11 episodes, which followed the nine passengers and crew members of the titular ship.
Firefly took audiences into the future to the year 2517, and was set in the deep depths of space after the fallout of a civil war, which would see the characters trek to different planets and systems. The show was cheesy, feel-good, sci-fi fun, and while it wasn’t the most polished title ever, that didn’t mean it wasn’t great.
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The Firefly cast of characters were unique and well-defined, and witnessing Nathan Fillion as the captain of the ship, Mal Reynolds, was a treat for everyone involved. Despite there being 14 planned episodes of Firefly, only 11 were broadcast. Firefly was canceled due to low ratings, but this was out of the show’s control.
One ridiculous Firefly decision made by Fox was to air the episodes out of order. Naturally, this made it harder for audiences to follow what was happening or who the characters were.
It also didn’t help that Firefly was an expensive title to make, and Fox failed to understand what the tone of the show was, too. Thankfully, DVD sales and a cult following helped its legacy, which then led to Serenity.
