It’s a sad reality for chronic TV viewers that a great show sometimes gets the axe prematurely. Quality is unfortunately only one component when it comes to networks and streaming services deciding what to keep on their rosters. It’s possible that very few people checked it out in its initial run, but it garners a cult following later on. Occasionally, trouble behind the scenes or outside factors (most recently, COVID-19 lockdowns and the dual Hollywood strikes) can force a studio’s hand and end a show even though it had everything going for it. 

TVLine has already written at length about all the TV shows that ended way too soon. But for this piece, we specifically want to hone in on the shows that only needed one more season to feel complete. These are the shows that got dealt a bad hand and ended even though there was every indication it could keep going, and interest was there. Oftentimes, these shows already had multiple seasons under their belts and just needed a few more episodes to completely round out the story. With just one extra season, these shows could have gone from just good to simply amazing.

“GLOW” had everything one could want out of a prestige dramedy. It followed a fictionalized version of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling promotion in the 1980s, following new friendships forged while mending the one between former best friends Ruth (Alison Brie) and Debbie (Betty Gilpin). But the series became a true ensemble piece, as we got to know the other lady wrestlers and explored their home lives, their dreams beyond the ring, and how they confronted misogyny. 

“GLOW” Season 3 concludes with Debbie and Bash (Chris Lowell) buying a TV network, so they can make a TV version of “GLOW” rather than sticking with purely live events. Debbie, long reconciled with Ruth, runs to her at an airport in classic rom-com style to tell her that she can direct the new show. But Ruth refuses, instead wanting to keep trying to be an actor. It’s a gut-punch of a split, but Netflix renewed “GLOW” for Season 4 in 2019. Fans eagerly awaited how Ruth and Debbie would come back together, but that would never happen. 

As everyone knows all too well, COVID-19 lockdowns shuttered film and television productions for much of 2020, forcing shows like “GLOW” to be suspended. Surely, fans would’ve been happy waiting, but in October of that year, Netflix announced “GLOW” would officially not return. Brie called the cancellation the “great heartbreak” of her career, and it still stings for many fans. All signs pointed to Season 4 being the final outing anyway, so the story could’ve been wrapped up with just one more season.

“My Name Is Earl” was a comedy without any nihilism. Instead, its focus on Earl Hickey (Jason Lee), who wanted to make amends with all the people he had wronged earlier in life, had all the makings of a long-lasting hit. Earl’s list could’ve been never-ending, but the forces behind the scenes seemingly wanted to call it a day after five seasons, and only managed to get four.

“My Name Is Earl” initially got a renewal, but the studio at Fox reportedly wanted more money, and the network (as two separate entities) wouldn’t budge. The studio was willing to move forward without the additional funds, but it was all over at that point. It’s an anticlimactic ending for a great show that came down to business dealings rather than the series’ overall quality. As for what the final season would’ve been about, series creator Greg Garcia mentioned in a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” that the show would’ve paid off the Season 4 cliffhanger that suggested Earl Jr. was not Darnell’s (Eddie Steeples) biological son. Instead, he suggested it would’ve been someone famous like “Dave Chappelle or Lil Jon.” 

Additionally, he had an ending in mind for Earl, where he gets frustrated about an item on his list he can’t fix. But he revealed what would’ve happened next: “[Earl] runs into someone who had a list of their own and Earl was on it. They needed to make up for something bad they had done to Earl … Earl eventually realizes that his list started a chain reaction of people with lists and that he’s finally put more good into the world than bad.” The cast of “My Name Is Earl” has reunited over the years, but sadly, a reunion special doesn’t seem likely.

For a while, The CW was the go-to destination for DC live-action properties. The Arrowverse tied together all kinds of superpowered characters, including Green Arrow (Stephen Amell), The Flash (Grant Gustin), and eventually Supergirl (Melissa Benoist) after a brief stint on CBS. Plus, we got Supergirl’s cousin, albeit in a separate continuity. Showrunner Todd Helbing told TVLine the decision was made early on to keep “Superman & Lois” separate from the other CW DC shows so that the series could focus on its own stories without too much interference.

Therefore, when the likes of “Arrow,” “The Flash,” and “Legends of Tomorrow” ended, fans could hold out some hope that “Superman & Lois” could stick around. After all, Tyler Hoechlin made for a superb Man of Steel, and with him as a father, we got to see a new side of the character that normally isn’t portrayed in adaptations. It felt like the show could’ve kept going, but it was ultimately canceled so that it wouldn’t compete with James Gunn’s “Superman” movie.

The world certainly feels big enough for two Superman stories running concurrently, but it would appear the powers that be didn’t want Hoechlin’s version sticking around. But at least one more season could’ve brought some bigger Superman villains into the fold like Brainiac or Darkseid. Four seasons just weren’t enough for how good this show was. 

With David Fincher (director of “Se7en” and “Fight Club”) helming multiple episodes, “Mindhunter” instantly attracted notice from cinephiles. And its two seasons didn’t disappoint, as the series followed the FBI during the 1970s where Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff), Bill Tench (Holt McCallany), and Wendy Carr (Anna Torv) began developing better criminal profiling techniques to stop serial killers before they got too far in their murder sprees. It was riveting television; even though most episodes merely followed the agents interviewing convicted criminals, the tension was still palpable.

And the show was building up toward something big. Many real-world cases were brought to the forefront, and Season 2 really teased the FBI digging into the case regarding Dennis Rader, aka the BTK Killer. That’s to say nothing of the other serial killer cases that could have cropped up around that time period, like the Sunset Strip Killers. After Season 2, Fincher seemed to want to do other things, but fans probably would’ve been fine waiting.

In 2023, Fincher spoke out regarding “Mindhunter” again, seemingly confirming it was done for good. He offered additional information that it was an expensive show to make without the viewership to justify more episodes. But if it were to miraculously return, fans would likely welcome it back with open arms.

Unlike “Superman & Lois,” it appears as though “Titans” was not a victim of new DC leadership. James Gunn even put out a statement confirming that canceling “Titans” after Season 4 predated his tenure as co-head of DC Studios. Still, it was a letdown for fans, as the show steadily grew out of its “Teen Titans but gritty” aesthetic into something pretty fun. Season 4 delved into a lot of comic book lore, with Brother Blood (Joseph Morgan) and Mother Mayhem (Franka Potente) being the main villains with an overarching plot to resurrect Trigon (Seamus Dever) from back in Season 1. 

There are plenty of classic Teen Titans characters that had yet to enter the live-action series, and there were plans to get them off the ground if Season 5 ever happened. Showrunner Greg Walker told Screen Rant about some fan-favorite characters potentially in the mix: “The Fearsome Five got mentioned, and Tara got mentioned. We were playing around with some ideas there.” The Fearsome Five are classic Teen Titans villains and would’ve presented an opportunity to get multiple bad guys in the mix, like Jinx, Mammoth, and Shimmer.

But undoubtedly, fans would’ve loved to see Tara (read: Terra) in the mix. The animated “Teen Titans” on Cartoon Network had a whole Tara arc where she infiltrates the team on behalf of the villainous Slade, and her struggle between good and evil makes her an incredibly compelling character. Seeing Tara’s storyline get adapted would’ve been a great way to close out “Titans,” but fans will need to stick with the cartoons to see her. 

“The Evil Dead” is the perfect horror movie to turn into a terrifying TV series. “Ash vs. Evil Dead” brought all of the gore and mayhem from the films (and notably the comedy from the later installments) and turned it into gold. We caught up with an older Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell), still adjusting to a world where his older-school sensibilities don’t necessarily get a warm welcome. But none of that mattered because Deadites were still lurking around, so it was up to him and some new companions to save the world. 

After defeating a big, bad demon, Season 3 could’ve been the end for “Ash vs. Evil Dead.” But then, it led viewers to a cliffhanger where Ash got sent into a post-apocalyptic future filled with “Dark Ones” that he had to stop. That’s a set-up we could totally get behind, but the show got canned due to low ratings. 

Fans had reason to keep hope alive when it was announced that an animated revival was in the works to close out Ash’s story. That was back in 2022, and things stayed quiet on that front for a while. In October 2024, Campbell offered this update to Forbes: “It doesn’t really have anything to do with any of that world. It will be a different scenario [that’s] not necessarily directly connected.” Campbell continuing to play Ash is always going to be a good thing, but it is a bit of a letdown that “Ash vs. Evil Dead” seems dead for good.

Was there a grand conspiracy afoot that forced Netflix to cancel “Inside Job” after one season? Was the show getting too close to an uncomfortable truth? Eh, probably not. But it doesn’t make its premature cancellation any less painful.

“Inside Job” had a great first season (divided into two parts) and ended with a promise of more to come. Reagan (voiced by Lizzy Caplan) got an offer to work with the Shadow Board, which was what she’d always wanted, but then it’s revealed the offer was merely a distraction for something else. We never learned what that was, though, even though Netflix initially renewed the series for Season 2. Unfortunately, months after that renewal, series creator Shion Takeuchi revealed Netflix had gone back on its decision.

It’s possible Netflix had more time to look at the show’s viewership metrics and perhaps decided it wasn’t worth it to bring “Inside Job” back, after all. The whole thing’s as murky as a government cover-up. But there was still a lot of fun to be had with one more season exploring even greater conspiracies.

“Pushing Daisies” was a great show that never really got a fair shake. There was really nothing else like it on TV in the late 2000s: Pie-maker Ned (Lee Pace) helps solve murder cases after discovering he can bring the deceased back to life with his touch. It was quirky yet dark; it could make you laugh one minute and have you reflecting on all your previous mistakes the next. And due to when it came out, it was pretty much doomed from the start.

“Pushing Daisies” was canceled after only two seasons, running from 2007 to 2009. The show premiered in late October 2007, and a few weeks later, the Writers Guild of America strike would begin. That halted production, and as a network television series, “Pushing Daisies” had some episodes finished, but the rest of Season 1 wasn’t quite fleshed out yet. That meant Season 1 only received nine episodes, but it did well enough to warrant a second outing. Ratings fell for Season 2, and ABC was ready to ship the show off to the morgue after that. (Producer Barry Sonnenfeld also blamed the show’s quirky scripts for its cancellation.)

The X-Men aren’t hurting for great cartoon adaptations, but “Wolverine and the X-Men” deserved more than it got. The series centered on Wolverine (Steve Blum), who led the X-Men following an explosion that sent Charles Xavier’s (Jim Ward) consciousness into a dystopian future. Xavier communicated with Wolverine so that his new team could stop Master Mold (Gwendoline Yeo) and the Sentinels from controlling the planet. The show offered great serialized storytelling and had fun mixing up the team, like putting Emma Frost (Kari Wahlgren), who’s normally a villain, into the hero roster. 

The writing team clearly had plans for more adventures within this continuity: The first season ended with the reveal that while Wolverine and the team prevented Master Mold from taking over, a new dystopian future was on the horizon, with Apocalypse and Mister Sinister (Clancy Brown) now being imminent threats. Seeing as the show came out in 2009, when the Marvel Cinematic Universe was in its infancy, many have speculated that the show was canceled to bring greater synergy to the franchise. The truth, though, is far less exciting. 

The real reason “Wolverine and the X-Men” got canceled came down to financing issues. Multiple parties couldn’t figure out who would pay more, and the whole thing fell apart. It’s a shame, because Season 2 could’ve brought even more mutants into the mix and at least paid off that Apocalypse tease. 

“The Wheel of Time” was the rare show that got better with each passing year. Season 1 was a bit rocky as the show struggled to adapt the massive world presented by Robert Jordan in his books. But things began course-correcting in Season 2, and Season 3 was received even better. This was a show that grew more confident in both its storytelling and characters as time went on, so everything was in place for a Season 4. Unfortunately, Prime Video didn’t let that come to fruition, as “Wheel of Time” came to a screeching halt after Season 3… despite the fact that there was still plenty of source material to adapt.

With 14 books total in Jordan’s series, “The Wheel of Time” would’ve needed a lot more time to tell everything. But even just one more season, with a show finally finding its footing, could’ve been enough to tie a bow on this epic adventure.