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As a Fan of Fantasy, These 7 Fantasy Shows Have Aged Poorly
There is little question that the fantasy genre is a favorite among TV viewers. Given everything that’s happening in the real world, we could all use an escape to a world that is radically different from our own, which fantasy shows provide. Thanks to the rise in streaming, we have a litany of fantasy shows to choose from to provide us with that essential escape from reality; and while some have held up well over the years, others, sadly, have shown their age.
This is not to say that the following fantasy shows we’re about to list are “bad.” Far from it. They each have qualities that are still beloved by TV audiences today, but we can’t overlook the fact that there are elements within each of these series that have aged quite poorly.
1
Once Upon a Time (2011–2018)
Created by Edward Kitsis and Adama Horowitz
This show is personal to me. When Once Upon a Time premiered in 2011, it had me, and a lot of viewers, in a chokehold, and I was there for every episode, every week. For those who are just learning of this show for the first time, Once Upon a Time tells the story of the residents of Storybrooke, Maine, a town in which every resident is a fairy-tale character that was sent here and stripped of their memories by the Evil Queen, Regina (Lana Carlye), and also happens to be the town’s mayor, and most of the show’s conflicts center around the need to break the curse and send the characters back to where they came.
While my 26-year-old self was enthralled by the plot of Once Upon a Time, present-day-me now see the huge plot issues that have made this show age poorly. For example, some of the cast made some unbelievably poor choices for the sake of the plot, and the introduction of Wonderland in season one felt very underwhelming (how did I miss this?). There are other elements that have seriously dated this once-popular show, and it’s a shame because it had the potential to be one of the great modern fantasy shows of all-time. If there’s one thing I can’t stand is wasted potential, and, sadly, Once Upon a Time is riddled with it.
2
Roar (1997)
Created by Shaun Cassidy and Ron Koslow
Fun fact: Did you know that the late Heath Ledger starred in this obscure Fox fantasy series? Neither did I until I learned about it while doing research for an article years ago. To say my mind was blown was an understatement. Before he became the best Joker of all-time, he starred in the little-known, obscure fantasy series Roar, which premiered on Fox in 1997, and told the story of Conor (Leger), as he set out to save his land from the Romans in the year 400 AD by trying to unite the Celtic clans.
There was a big reason why Roar didn’t last a season on Fox, and that was thanks to its bland writing and plot. There was nothing interesting or groundbreaking about Roar, and the budget for this show was bare-bones, and it showed. Not only that, but Roar was a fantasy show that really wanted viewers to take it seriously, which was impossible given its super-simplistic storyline. That, and its shoddy budget, was always going to make Roar feel outdated, even by ’90s standards.
Editor’s Note: Roar is currently not available for streaming or purchase.
3
Charmed (1998–2006)
Developed by Jennie Snyder Urman, Jessica O’Toole, and Amy Rardin
This one is going to hurt, because I was (and still am) a huge fan of Charmed. No, we’re not talking about the underwhelming 2018 reboot, but the OG Charmed, starring Alyssa Milano, Holly Marie Combs, Rose McGowan, and the late Shannen Doherty as the Halliwell sisters, who were also witches, tasked with protecting the world from various demons and warlocks in modern-day San Francisco. The early seasons of Charmed (with Doherty as Prue Halliwell) were the absolute peak of this series, with great writing and storylines that kept viewers coming back week-to-week.
However, once Doherty left the show, the quality of Charmed left with her, and no magic potion could save what had been lost. The quality just wasn’t the same, the writing wasn’t as strong, and by Season 8, the show just felt tired, and limped to an underwhelming ending, which hasn’t held up in the years since the final episode aired. Poor and uninspired writing can easily tank a great series and make it age poorly, which was the sad case for Charmed.
- Release Date
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1998 – 2005
- Network
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The WB
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Darcas Macopson
Uniformed Cop
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Holly Marie Combs
Piper Halliwell
-
-
4
BeastMaster (1999–2002)
Created by Alice “Andre” Norton
Back in the ‘90s, mythological fantasy shows were all the rage. We had Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules dominating the syndicated airways. We also had BeastMaster, which joined the fray in 1999, and told the story of a shirtless man that had a connection with animals. I have to give BeastMasters its props for how it looked. It didn’t feel like a low-budget syndication series. The set designs were beautiful, the effects were decent, and the show was a nice piece of fan service that served its purpose.
That dedication to fan service, however, is what seriously dates BeastMaster. Much like its counterparts, when you put BeastMaster up against other modern-day fantasy classics, it looks seriously dated, even campy to a degree. Modern fans are now used to a show having a plot, a roadmap to how it wants to tell its story. That isn’t the case with BeastMaster, in which its week-to-week storyline makes the show feel aimless and only aims to be fan service and nothing more.
5
Highlander: The Series (1992–1998)
Created by Davis-Panzer Productions
In the ‘90s, TV execs went through a phase in which they thought that popular ‘80s films would also make for popular television. One of those shows that was adapted from its big-screen counterpart was Highlander: The Series, which had a pretty decent run in the mid-’90s on syndication. To be honest, we didn’t require much to be entertained during this time, and that’s the main downfall with Highlander: The Series.
The show, while decent, didn’t strive to tell a new story featuring everyone’s favorite highlander, Dunca MacLeod (Adrian Paul). No, it stuck very close to its source material, so close that the show sometimes felt like the classic 1986 film, except broken up into multiple episodes. Fun fact: The show was actually better received than the movies at the time, but rewatching it today, it’s pretty clear that the movie aged far better than its TV counterpart.
- Release Date
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1992 – 1997
- Network
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Syndication
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Adrian Paul
Duncan MacLeod
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Adrian G. Griffiths
Richie Ryan
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Alastair Duncan
Tessa Noël
6
Heroes (2006–2010)
Created by Tim Kring
Words simply cannot describe how massive Heroes was when it premiered on NBC in 2006. The first season was simply amazing, and, back then, there was little doubt that Heroes was going to have a long and fruitful shelf-life. After that amazing first season, however, the flaws began to show in the series, and this show dated fast. Ironically, it wasn’t elements within the show that made it age poorly. In fact, I’d argue that Heroes is a series that mostly aged well.
No, this show aged poorly, in large part, thanks to the rise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. You would think that a show based on superheroes would catch the wave of the MCU, like The Vampire Diaries did with the Twilight saga. However, that was not the case for Heroes, as the MCU made this series feel like a Marvel knock-off, with its unrecognizable heroes with powers that made little sense, and were made even more glaring with the rise of the MCU. Case in point: Isaac (Santiago Cabrera), who was a painter who could paint visions of the future, but only when he’s high. Please tell me how that makes sense? I’ll answer this for you: It doesn’t. We would have been OK with this if it wasn’t for Iron Man, but once that movie dominated the box office in 2008, people looked back at Heroes with a different set of glasses. They wanted their superheros to be believable and have a consistent storyline, and Heroes was simply not going to fulfill that.
7
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys (1995–1999)
Created by Christian Williams and Robert Tapert
Earlier in this story, I described the mythological fantasy era that dominated syndication in the 90s. We had BeastMasters, and Xena: Warrior Princess, doing battle against evil in questionable costumes. It was certainly a time, and when Hercules: The Legendary Journerys hit the syndication airwaves in 1995, it was turbocharged. Starring Kevin Sorbo as the titular character, Hercules was a pretty aimless series that focused on its main character saving villages from all sorts of evil, from monsters to warlords.
That aimlessness and singular focus is what severely dates this series. Remember, this was the ‘90s, a time when the one-off episode was all the rage, and Sorbo’s biceps were enough to get people flocking to the TV. There’s nothing wrong with this, but audiences today want their TV shows and heroes to have an arc, a story, a place where they’re going and how to get there. Hercules was just there, and in the absence of any major storylines, this show was always destined to age rather poorly.