BANGALORE: Most of us have grown up watching a large volume of television. From sitcoms that we've followed through entire seasons to the subsequent sprout of dramas that vary from serial killing good guys to chemistry teachers that cook meth part time, to a bunch of nerds playing dungeons and dragons, to a drug addict doctor - we've watched them all.
Somewhere hidden beneath all this is a whole plethora of television series we'll never get to watch on television, just because they got cancelled too early - much before they could even realise their full potential. These shows would have run for no longer than two seasons and now enjoy a cult following of sorts. You can find them quite easily online.
So let's explore some of the best TV shows that got cancelled after their first or second season. Because what would our lives be without extended hours of TV addiction driving our long suffering non ambitions while we spend hour after hour, hooked face first to large screens? All for the sake of miserable nostalgia?
Freaks and Geeks
Judd Apatow is the one-season wonder man as far as television series are considered. Both his now cult classic TV series - Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared, were cancelled just after one season of running time each. Freaks and Geeks is a lovable combination of dazed narrative, a certain wistful smudge of rebellion and oodles of angst.
The show turned out to be a launching pad for a lot of actors like James Franco, Jason Segel, Seth Rogen, Busy Philipps and more. While the show follows the learning curve of two siblings, both geeks trying to make it in a world of freaks; what is so brilliant about the show is the way they decide to portray the slow transformation of these kids. So realistic, it gets difficult to watch sometimes.
Life
Starring Damien Lewis of Homeland fame, Life follows the story arc of Lewis who plays Charlie Crews, an LA cop, One who spent 12 years in jail for a murder he didn't commit. After spending an entire decade and more imprisoned, Charlie Crews comes back to a world that is quite alien to him - he can't seem to get his head around the concept of cell phones or even the Internet.
Spending quality time in prison also taught him to live his life via a Zen credo which in turn produces the most quizzically calm cop ever shown on television. Lewis' portrayal of Charlie Crews is top notch, marked by subtlety and beautifully restrained humour.
The storyline is quite gripping too, as Crews sets about to unravel the very same case he was falsely implicated for, and at the same time solving day-to-day crimes along with his partner Dani Reese, played by Sarah Shahi.
Spaced
Spaced co-stars and co-writers, Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson have created a jewel here, possibly one of the best Brit television series (and there are quite a few great television series). Laugh out loud funny, inventive, smart, politically incorrect at all times and just plain bizarre - this show can be watched repeatedly and will never ever lose its charm. Watch out for the clinically deranged, mad painter dude Brian, who manages to evoke the angst and heart wrenching confusion of an artist without the unnecessary sense of entitlement that it can so easily stray into.
Caprica
This prequel to Battlestar Galactica (BSG) comes as welcome relief after one has finished watching BSG. Much like BSG, Caprica touched upon some pretty weighty issues ranging from religion to corporate crime to racial issues and spins them quite seamlessly into the pre-apocalyptic script. What was missing though was the kind of ka-pow awesomeness that one gets used to while watching Battlestar. There's drama, intrigue and enough science-y material to keep the geeks drooling - just no spaceships and things blowing up and all that major sci-fi stuff we were looking to see post BSG.
Firefly
Another sci-fi television series, Firefly was created by Joss Whedon, the same man who brought to life one of the best television series of all time, Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Although sci-fi, Firefly makes most of the Western genre. Set 500 years into the future, it tells the tale of a motley crew of nine passengers, aboard the Serenity transport spaceship, led by Captain Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion, of the Castle fame). They are all trying to keep off the radar of the new Central government (the Alliance), and spend the next 11 episodes exploring various galaxies. Each character is moulded with an engaging back story and story arcs that could have been great spin-offs, if the show hadn't been prematurely cancelled. A movie based on the series was later written and directed by Joss Whedon himself, titled Serenity.