It's hard to keep up with all the new shows constantly arriving at our screens. Whether it be a sit-com, an animated adventure, or the latest entry the MCU, there's too much TV to keep up with.
As a result of this, some excellent shows fail to attract the audiences they deserve simply because they weren't marketed enough or released at the same time as an established fan favorite. Low viewing figures are a curse for TV shows in their first season, often resulting in cancellation, a fate that many entertaining, groundbreaking shows have sadly met.
'Freaks And Geeks'
Freaks And Geeks was a show plagued with the threat of cancellation throughout its entire production, making it unsurprising that the series was eventually canceled before fans could see what a second season would have entailed. The series told the story of a high school athlete who begins hanging out with a group of burnouts while her younger brother and his friends navigate the terrors of their freshman year.
Despite its premature cancellation, the show has become a cult classic that helped launch the careers of many of its cast members, including Seth Rogen, Linda Cardellini, Busy Philipps, and Jason Segel, to name just a few.
'Crashing'
Before she rose to superstardom as the creator and star of the critically-acclaimed and universally beloved Fleabag, Phoebe Waller-Bridge created a heartfelt comedy about a complex group of characters living in an abandoned hospital. Filled with Waller-Bridge's trademark wit, Crashing was a triumphant success that mixed romance and friendship in an intoxicating mixture.
Waller-Bridge also starred in the show alongside an exceptional cast of British talent, including Jonathan Bailey, Adrian Scarbrough, and Amit Shah. Thankfully, Waller-Bridge is currently developing a new series for Amazon Prime, so we'll have a new series to fall in love with pretty soon.
'Firefly'
Despite airing only fourteen episodes, Firefly has become one of the most popular TV shows ever made, currently sitting comfortably at number 26 on IMDB's list of Top-Rated TV Shows. Created by Joss Whedon, the show was set five hundred years in the future; the crew of a small spacecraft tries to survive as they travel through a galaxy full of warring factions and authority agents out to hunt them down.
Firefly helped launch (no pun intended) the careers of Nathon Fillion, Alan Tudyk, and Morena Baccarin, and talk of a revival is never far away. Fillion gave his take on the prospect during an interview with Collider in 2018.
'Whiskey Cavalier'
In the weeks leading up to its release, Whiskey Cavalier seemed to have everything to guarantee that it would be a hit. The show's leads both joined the project on the back of incredibly popular shows, with Lauren Cohan coming off the back of The Walking Dead and Scott Foley having just left Scandal. Moreover, the show's premise, an FBI agent who teams up with a CIA agent to save the world, although they can't stand each other, seemed like something audiences could get behind.
Unfortunately for all involved, the show never attracted the ratings that its solid reviews suggested it deserved, and the show was not picked up for a second season.
'Undeclared'
Seth Rogen had a tough time with his first two TV shows. After Freaks And Geeks, the Canadian comedian teamed up with Judd Apatow for the college comedy series, Undeclared. Yet, despite boasting a hilarious cast including Jay Baruchel, Charlie Hunnam, and Carla Gallo, Undeclared was never picked up for a second season.
Undeclared follows college freshman Steven Karp (Baruchel) as he tries to navigate his way through college while saddled with his dad, whose recent divorce has triggered a massive midlife crisis. Thankfully for Rogen, his most recent show Pam & Tommy is one of the most acclaimed series of the year so far.
'Selfie'
Selfie was a show ahead of its time, but even still, it's hard to believe it wasn't renewed for a second season. The series follows Eliza Dooley (Karen Gillan), a woman obsessed with social media who, after being the subject of an embarrassing viral video, enlists the help of marketing expert Henry Higgs (John Cho) to revamp her image.
As she grows closer to Henry, Eliza begins to realize that there's more to life than likes, comments, and shares. The show consisted of thirteen episodes but was, unfortunately, canceled after only seven had aired, making Selfie another short-lived John Cho series.
'Constantine'
John Constantine is one of DC's most popular anti-heroes, who has featured rather prominently in the comics since his first appearance in 1985. The character has also appeared in two live-action adaptations, firstly in a feature film that saw Keanu Reeves play the titular character and secondly in a TV series that saw Matt Ryan step into Constantine's shoes.
The series was well-liked by fans, as was Ryan, who would later reprise the role in various shows throughout the Arrowverse. While any hope of seeing this series revived has long expired, it was recently announced that a Constantine reboot series is headed to HBO Max, though it's unlikely either Reeves or Ryan will be involved.
'Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip'
Created and written by Academy Award winner Aaron Sorkin, Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip offered audiences a behind-the-scenes look at a fictional sketch-comedy TV show similar to Saturday Night Live. Sorkin assembled some of the finest television actors of the era, including Matthew Perry, Bradley Whitford, Amanda Peet, and Sarah Paulson.
Almost everybody involved with the show has gone on to achieve great success, most notably Sorkin, who has written and directed three critically acclaimed films: Molly's Game, The Trail Of The Chicago 7, and Being The Ricardos.