Like any TV network, NBC has constantly got to make difficult decisions about which shows to cancel or renew. The decisions are particularly difficult after just one season because shows that haven’t yet made a major impact could yet pick up business and hurt a massive number of people if the show is canceled.
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For that reason, many shows that could have become major NBC hits likeFriends,The Office, andThe West Wingnever had the opportunity and were canceledafter just one season. Whether they didn’t make a big enough splash immediately or whether the cast and crew had to move on to other projects, some NBC shows never got a real shake of the dice.
6Freaks and Geeks (1999)
Freaks and Geeksis one of the most beloved NBC shows of all time in spite of the early cancelation. This sitcom came out in 1999 but was set at a high school in the early 80s and centered on a group of kids that weren’t overly popular but managed to get by anyway.The shocking thing about this show,looking back now, is the massive cast it managed to have.
Freaks and Geeksstarred Jason Segel, Linda Cardinelli, Seth Rogen, James Franco, Shia LeBeouf, and more actors that have gone on to be massive stars. Paul Feig and Judd Apatow helped create and write the series, and they too have garnered huge reputations since the release of this show, which was easily good enough to become one of the most legendary of all the famous NBC sitcoms if it had been given more of an opportunity.
5Constantine (2014)
Constantinewas one of the few attempts NBC has made thus far to delve into the superhero genre. While NBC is known as the home of many famous comedy shows, it hasn’t delved into the big-budget world of superheroes very often. However,Constantinewas one swift attempt they had, and it could have been truly great.
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A darker side of the DC world, Matt Ryanstarred as John Constantine, a demon hunter, and exorcist who went after some of the creepiest things that go bump in the night. However, the show didn’t make it very far and wasn’t given enough of an opportunity to shine, getting canceled after a 13-episode first season. In spite of this, the popularity of Ryan’s take on the character led it to a new life as part of theLegends of Tomorrowshow on the CW where he appeared for many episodes in the later seasons.
4My Own Worst Enemy (2008)
After the recent success ofMoon Knight, it isinteresting to remember this series,which starred Christian Slater in two roles. He played both a secret agent and the cover of that agent, who had no idea about his double life. The handlers in control of the agent were able to switch his personality without him having any idea.
The mild manner of one man and the dashing, devious nature of the other was perfect and a lot of fun as a show, but it was unfortunately canceled after only four episodes had aired, finishing out the nine-episode season before disappearing entirely. Also featuring Bella Thorne, Taylor Lautner, and Alfre Woodard, it is hard to believe that the series didn’t manage to make more of an impact or get a better chance at success.
3Awake (2012)
An incredibly strange premisefor a police procedural broughtAwaketo life. Jason Isaacs appeared as a police detective who got into a car accident with his wife and son and began switching every time he slept between realities where one or the other had died in the accident.
He then begins to use clues from one reality to solve cases in the other and gets to spend time with both his wife and son, albeit never together, causing problems in both cases. The series was critically-praised but never managed to retain enough audience and was canceled after one season.
2Cobra (1993)
An ex-Navy Seal nicknamed Scandal goes AWOL after refusing to destroy an enemy building because he knows it houses civilians, and his past catches up to him after he moves to Alaska to live in peace. After he is shot and rescued, he is offered a job at COBRA, an undercover agency that seeks justice for those the justice system has been cruel towards.
Cobrawas just the kind of relicthat deserves to be rememberedfor the fun flair it had, as well as the set of intriguing stories it managed to tell. Unfortunately, it never managed to make enough of an impact and was canceled after 22 episodes in the first season.
1Kingpin (2003)
Although shows like Breaking Bad would later find huge success and love from audiences,Kingpinwas an early case of a TV Network canceling a show because they felt uncomfortable about airing a show that featured a drug kingpin as the protagonist.
Kingpinstarred Yancey Arias as a Mexican drug trafficker, and though his workwas a part of the show,it also focused a great deal on his family life and the problems therein. It was an interesting show but only ran for six episodes of its first season before it was canceled and instead is now viewed as more of a miniseries run than a real series.
