Firefly

They say that only the good die young – and that can be applied to TV shows as well. Which series have faced an unwelcome early demise?

E4 has a history of uninspiring US imports with the likes of One Tree Hill, The Cleveland Show and Samantha Who? all finding a home on our green and pleasant shores via the broadcaster’s schedules.

But with Charlie’s Angels, an unwanted and entirely unnecessary update of the cult 70s show of the same name, they may have outdone themselves.

The Angels lasted just four episodes (eight were eventually aired) before being axed by ABC, becoming the latest in a long line of series to have come a cropper at the hands of US TV’s chop-happy execs.

While Charlie’s Angels fully deserved its fate, the annals of US TV history are littered with superb shows that despite audience appeal and critical acclaim got canned after just one series. These one-season wonders lived fast and died young, leaving behind an army of enraged fans to baulk at their fate.

So in honour of US TV’s latest short-lived series join us as we glance through the best one-season wonders from across the pond. Do you agree with our choices? Or do we deserve to be taken off the air for omitting your favourite episodic? Let us know in the comments section below.

Firefly (2002)

A mash-up of wild west and science fiction from the brilliantly addled mind of Joss Whedon, Firefly had a great cast, great writing and lashings of Buffy The Vampire Slayer style ironic asides. What it didn’t have however was an audience, as the mainstream failed to cotton on to the concept that cult fans were lapping up in their droves. To be fair, Fox didn’t help matters. They showed the episodes out of order and repeatedly shifted the series around the schedules. Firefly was inevitably sent to the small screen scrapheap, but thanks to astronomical DVD sales it was eventually resurrected for the silver screen in the altogether less enjoyable Serenity.

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