As the television dial is turned (not so much of that anymore with new technology) there is an anticipation for that show that was so wonderful last season. The wait is over. Finally, the new season is here. But, discouraging enough, that new favorite show has been canceled. Often, there is no warning.
It is not there anymore, vanished. Or it is announced after spending numerous hours with the beloved newfound characters that they will not be there next year because someone or something has determined that the show is no longer worthy.
Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (2006 – 2007) - 8.2
Matthew Perry (of Friends fame) stars with Amanda Peet, Bradley Whitford, Steven Weber, and D.L. Hughley in this show within a show about the production of a live comedy series similar to NBC’s Saturday Night Live.
TV critics raved about the series' pilot, claiming it to be one of the best new shows on television. Created and written by Aaron Sorkin, the five-time Emmy nominated Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip ran for 22 episodes before it was canceled in April 2007.
Kitchen Confidential (2005 – 2006) - 8.2
What did Bradley Cooper do before he became a mega Hollywood superstar, Oscar-Nominated actor who starred in such huge hit films as The Hangover and A Star is Born? He played Jack Bourdain, a playboy chef of a New York restaurant in Fox’s television show, Kitchen Confidential. The show was based on Anthony’s Bourdain’s bestselling book, Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly.
After the first three shows, it went on hiatus because of the baseball playoffs. Fox aired one more show before the series was canceled.
Wonderfalls (2004) - 8.2
Wonderfalls is about college graduate Jane Tyler (Caroline Dhavernas) who talks to animal figurines that give her idiosyncratic advice about people who need help. In 2013, TV Guide included it in their lists of shows that were canceled too soon, dubbing it “The little show that could have been.”
The 2004 television show had positive reviews from critics but had trouble identifying itself with a dedicated audience needed for longevity. It was canceled after its fourth episode. Despite the small number of loyal fans wanting to finish out the rest of the episodes, it was not until the release of the DVD that they got a chance for closure.
Kings (2009) - 8.2
Kings is based on the book of King David that starred Christopher Egan as David Shepherd, who rises to become king of his nation. Other cast members included Deadwood’s Ian McShane and Susanna Thompson (Arrow’s Moira Queen) as Queen Rose Benjamin.
Kings premiered with high ratings in the spring and audiences seemed to like it. Viewers stated it was aesthetically pleasing and well-acted with a generally good cast. Unfortunately, the storyline was not taken seriously and sent mixed messages to audiences.
Was it a soap opera that was meant to be seen as overdramatic or something that was viewed as real and intriguing? The show faded quickly and was canceled in the summer.
Nowhere Man (1995-1996) - 8.3
Bruce Greenwood plays a documentary photographer who has his life erased and no one seems to know him. He believes that he is part of a conspiracy and must find out the who and why behind it.
The United Paramount Network (UPN) believed that Nowhere Man was going to be the network’s newest sensation, and although it was critically acclaimed it did not generate an audience and got canceled in 1996 after one season. And ten years later, UPN would become extinct along with The WB, replaced by The CW.
My So-Called Life (1994 – 1995) - 8.3
Claire Danes (of Homeland fame) stars as a 15-year old Angela Chase, whose anguish as a high school teenager is unveiled in her relationships with friends, her parents, and boys. My So-Called Life also stars Beth Armstrong, Wilson Cruz, and a young 21-year old Jared Leto.
The series ended in a cliffhanger believing that it would be back next season. Unfortunately, that was not to be. When it was rumored that Danes did not want to come back for another season because of the stress of balancing schoolwork and rehearsals, the show was canceled.
Profit (1996 - 1997) - 8.7
Adrian Pasdar stars as John Profit, a charismatic sociopath who carries an awful childhood secret that fuels him to climb the corporate ladder by any means necessary including blackmail, bribery, and murder.
Compared to other dark TV melodramas like The Sopranos, Nip/Tuck, Dexter, and Breaking Bad, most believed that it was ahead of its time and would have had longevity if it was created ten years later. Fox’s uncomfortable and unusual television series lasted only four episodes including the pilot.
Freaks and Geeks (1999 – 2000) - 8.8
Lindsay Weir (Scooby Doo’s Linda Cardellini) plays an accomplished high school student who befriends a group of students who are not so gifted and considered “freaks.” Her younger brother Sam (John Francis Daley) has a set of friends labeled “geeks.” This short-lived offbeat comedy series tells the story of their adventures as they maneuver through the trenches of high school drama.
Created by Paul Feig and produced by Judd Apatow, Freaks and Geeks appear on several lists of the greatest television shows of all-time even though it was canceled after 12 episodes.
Death Note (2006 – 2007) - 9.0
After discovering a notebook belonging to Shinigami Ryuk that grants the reader the ability to kill anyone whose name is in it, a brilliant high school student goes on a stealth mission to get rid of all criminals in this animated television series. In trying to create paradise on earth, Light Yagami's only opposition is an elite task force of officers led by L Lawliet.
Death Note has received worldwide critical acclaim inspiring video games, several live-action movies in Japan, and an American film adaptation on Netflix.
Firefly (2002-2003) - 9.0
Starring Nathan Fillion as Captain Malcolm “Mal” Reynolds and Gina Torres as Zoe Washburne, Fox’s Firefly is a space western television series that only lasted one year but was loved by everyone who watched it. Set five hundred years in the future, it is about the survival of a crew of outlaws aboard a spacecraft traveling to remote parts of the galaxy who must avoid other galaxy bandits as well as the authorities that are chasing them.
It was canceled after airing 11 of its 14 episodes and in 2013, TV Guide ranked Firefly number five on their list of the top sixty shows that were “Canceled Too Soon.”