c/ended-too-soon-club

Found out my favorite show was canceled because of a single lawsuit

I was looking up why "The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr." only got one season, and I stumbled on a fact that blew my mind. Turns out, the show had a budget of around $1.5 million per episode back in 1993, which is huge even now. But what really got canceled was a lawsuit over the rights to the character name or something with the crew. I found this deep in a forum thread from 2018 where a former assistant writer spilled the tea. The show was supposedly doing fine in ratings but the legal mess killed any chance of season two. I always wanted to see how the Orb chase would wrap up and if Brisco ever got that bounty. Did anyone else dig into why their favorite early cancel went down? What did you find out?

The note that made me stop binge-watching my favorite shows

A buddy of mine told me I was ruining shows by watching them all in one weekend. Said I was missing the whole point of letting episodes sink in. After he pointed out I couldn't remember character names from a show I finished three days ago, I had to admit he was right. So now I cap myself at 2 episodes a night, max. Has anyone else had someone call them out on their viewing habits like that?

Warning: The OA got canceled after just 2 seasons and I'm still not over it

I watched season 1 in 2016 and season 2 in 2019 and the jump in scope was insane, they were clearly building to something huge with the whole multiverse thing... then Netflix just axed it with zero warning. Anyone else think the writers had like 3 more seasons planned based on all those unanswered questions from the finale?

The one show I still can't believe got axed after one season

I still think about 'Terriers' from 2010. It ran for 13 episodes on FX and got canceled even though critics loved it. I found it on Hulu about 4 years ago and binged the whole thing in a weekend. The ending wrapped up the main mystery but left so much hanging about the characters and their future cases. Has anyone else watched it and felt like it deserved at least one more season to close things out properly?

Noticed a pattern in how I talk about canceled shows

Used to just say 'it got canceled' and move on. Now I catch myself naming the specific episode where I knew it was doomed, like the time in 'The OA' when they introduced that new dimension out of nowhere. Anyone else track the exact moment a show started to lose its footing before the plug got pulled?

The day I binged "My So-Called Life" and got stuck in the 90s for a week

I finally decided to watch "My So-Called Life" last month, knowing full well it got canceled after one season. I told myself I'd just watch one episode on a Tuesday night. Instead, I plowed through all 19 episodes in three days, and by Friday I was walking around my house in flannel saying "as if" under my breath. The worst part was realizing there was no more Jordan Catalano angst to look forward to. I actually googled if there were any scripts for a second season, which is how I found out the creator had a lot of stories left to tell about Angela and her friends. What I wouldn't give to see what happened after that finale where she dances with Jordan at the school dance. Does anyone else still think about what Rayanne and Rickie would be doing as adults?

Started watching "The Get Down" three years after it was canceled

I finally binged that Baz Luhrmann Netflix show about hip-hop in the 70s last month and now I'm mad it only got one season. They literally stopped mid-story with the kids forming their crew and everything. Has anyone else accidentally fallen in love with a dead show way after the fact?

Wasted $200 on a streaming service for one show that got canned

I signed up for Quibi back in 2020 just to watch 'Chrissy's Court' because I thought it was hilarious. Paid $5 a month for like 4 months before the whole service shut down. That show ended on a cliffhanger with no second season coming. Now I'm stuck with $20 down the drain and nothing to show for it. Anyone else got burned by a platform dying before a show finished?

Everyone loves the Firefly revival hype but I think the original run was actually the right length

I know I'm in the minority here but hear me out. When Firefly first aired back in 2002 I watched every episode as it came out. I was a big fan but honestly after 14 episodes and a movie I felt like the story arc had a natural ending. The crew got their closure with Serenity. I keep seeing people say they wanted 5 more seasons but isn't that just wanting more of something you already liked? What would a season 2 even have looked like that wasn't just repeating the same bounty hunter chase plots?

The debate that got me thinking about Firefly again

My buddy claimed the show was just Western in space and never had more to say, but I argued the whole point was how the Alliance crushed individuality and that the canceled second season would have explored the Reavers' origin more - what side are you on, was it deeper or just a fun ride that ended too soon?

Hit 100 cancelled shows logged in 2024 alone and I'm honestly questioning my life choices

Was just tallying up every series I've started that got axed before its time and realized I've got a whole spreadsheet now with seasons, network, and what cliffhanger it left me on - anyone else keep a running list or am I just a magnet for heartbreak?

My buddy made me rethink whether Firefly actually needed more seasons

Watching old episodes of Pushing Daisies makes me miss that whole whimsical vibe

I was rewatching the first season on streaming last night and it hit me how nothing on TV now has that same colorful, quirky feel - the narrator, the sets, the whole tone just disappeared after 2009 when the recession killed off all the creative risks. Does anyone else remember when networks actually let shows be weird instead of just copying whatever's trending on TikTok?

The night my DVR died on me mid-binge of Deadwood

I was three episodes deep into season 3 of Deadwood when my DVR just locked up and gave me an error code. I tried restarting it twice but it basically cooked itself, lost everything including the episodes I hadn't watched yet. Ended up ordering the box set off eBay that same night for $40 and power watched the rest over a weekend. Has anyone else had a favorite show's cancellation hurt worse because of a hardware fail timing?

Went to a local blanket drive and it crashed my whole idea about giving back

I showed up at the old rec center in Trenton last December to drop off coats, and they turned me away because I brought the wrong type of donation. Has anyone else run into strict rules at charity events that made you rethink how you help out?

My barber's take on why some shows get canceled changed how I watch TV

I was getting a haircut last Saturday at Frank's Barbershop on 3rd Street and he started ranting about how 'Terriers' got canned after 13 episodes. He said networks don't give shows room to breathe anymore, they want instant numbers or they pull the plug. That hit different because I realized I'm part of the problem - I binge stuff months later and don't watch live, so my views don't count for renewal. Has anyone else thought about how our delayed watching habits might be killing the shows we love?

My buddy made a crazy point about Firefly last night

He said the show didn't die because of bad ratings, it died because Fox never knew how to sell a western in space. That stuck with me because I always blamed the Friday night time slot, but maybe the network just didn't get what they had. Any of you ever hear a take that made you totally rethink a canceled show?

Stuck between Terriers and Rubicon after they both got canceled

I finally had time to binge two shows that Fox killed back in 2010, Terriers and Rubicon, but only had bandwidth for one. I picked Terriers because everyone said it was a hidden gem, and it was great but the ending left so many threads dangling. For someone who hates unresolved plots, should I still bother with Rubicon, which I hear had a similar fate?

Had to choose between rewatching Freaks and Geeks or finishing that sci-fi show deleted after one season

I was gonna rewatch Freaks and Geeks for the third time but I found this show called The Event that got yanked after 22 episodes. Gave it a shot and man, it hooked me with the twisty plot but left everything hanging. Anybody else find a buried show that had way more potential than the stuff that got renewed?

Just realized 'The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.' only had 27 episodes

I was looking up Bruce Campbell credits on IMDb last night and it hit me that show got canned after just one season. 27 episodes feels like so much wasted potential for a western sci-fi mashup. Anyone else wish they had done a second season with more time travel stuff?

My old film professor told me my edits were 'too safe' after I turned in a 5-minute short about a lost dog

He said I played it by the book and never took any risks with jump cuts or weird audio, so I went back and added this jarring silence right before the dog runs away. It totally changed the feel of the scene and actually made my classmates uncomfortable, but the professor finally nodded. Has anyone else gotten a criticism that made them rethink their whole approach to storytelling?

Drove 20 miles to a retro video store just to find the only canceled show DVD they had was 'Undeclared'

Last Tuesday I went to that big retro video place in Portland that's supposed to have everything, hunting for some old anime that got cut short. All I walked out with was a scratched copy of 'Undeclared' (only had one season back in 2001) and a weird smell on my jacket from the back aisle. Anyone else blow a whole afternoon chasing a show that barely got started?

Binged all of 'Journeyman' on streaming then found out it got axed after one season

Man I am still bitter about this. I sat through 13 episodes of that time traveling reporter show, got really invested in his whole family drama and the mystery around why he was jumping through time. Then I looked it up to see when season 2 was coming and found out NBC canceled it back in 2007. I wasted a whole weekend and like 12 hours of my life on a story that just stops dead with no real ending. They set up this big conspiracy with his brother and the government and then nothing. Has anyone else gotten hooked on a one season wonder only to hit a brick wall at the finale?

Unpopular take on Freaks and Geeks vs My So Called Life

I know everyone worships Freaks and Geeks as the best high school show that got canceled too soon, but I actually think My So Called Life was way better and its loss hurts more. Freaks and Geeks had funny moments and good characters, sure, but My So Called Life nailed the raw, uncomfortable reality of being a teenager in a way that show never touched. Angela Chase's voiceovers felt like actually being inside a 15 year old's head, not just jokes about pot and dodgeball. Plus the parent storylines actually had depth, like Patty learning she was jealous of her own daughter. Freaks and Geeks felt more like a comedy that got cancelled after one season, but My So Called Life was a drama that was just hitting its stride with themes like identity and abuse. I would have traded three more seasons of Freaks for just one more episode of Angela figuring out her life. Anyone else prefer the darker, more honest take on adolescence over the nostalgic comedy approach?

I watched 3 seasons of The OA before realizing I had the volume way too low

I kept seeing people rave about the dance moves in season 2 and I was so confused because I barely noticed them. Then my neighbor knocked on my wall last Tuesday and asked if I could hear the music from her apartment because I had it that low. That's when I realized I was missing half the sound design and the emotional payoff was totally flat without it. Has anyone else missed a key element of a show just because of bad setup on your end?