TVSquad

I'd pick the X-Files. It started to get stale and the constant teasing with the UFO conspiracy was getting tiresome, but it got better when Mulder left.



I'm not saying it was Duchovney's fault, it could have been Scully who left, in either case, bringing Robert Patrick in breathed new life into a show that desperatley needed a shakeup and took it in a different direction that could have been real good if it lasted a few more seasons.

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When my wife and I first started dating we would watch "Mad About You" together and the similarities between us and the Buchmans were uncanny. When that show was good, it portrayed married life better and more acurately than any show in the history of TV. I'd love to see more episodes, when the show was at its best, pre-baby that they chose to ignore in later seasons.

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I'll agree about Angel; it had a lot more life in it at cancellation. And so did its characters, even the ones who didn't make it out of the finale.



My own list would start with Farscape, a show that never stopped surprising me. To that I'd add Coupling and Red Dwarf, two of the best Britcoms ever made.

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Farscape.



Please don't mention Dead Like Me. It makes this noob cry bitter, bitter tears.

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"Strangers with Candy." It was slow at start to find its footing, but by the end these sketch comedy writers found their footing in a 22 min format. I love TV that parodies overly righteous programming, and spoofing the genre of the after school special was as good as it gets.

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A lot of fairly recent shows there. I'll go back farther with my one choice:



"Bret Maverick" - can't get enough of TV's original Garner; can't get enough of 'Maverick'



The reason I wouldn't add 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show' and 'The Prisoner', my top two favorite series, is because both had fantastic finales. MTM nearly ruined my memories by coming back in a TV movie, but it survived. I don't want to tempt Fate by hoping for another shot at it.



There's still a possibility 'Columbo' (My number 3 fave) has at least one last hurrah in him, based on what frequent guest actor John Finnegan has told me.

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Farscape

Quantum Leap

Arrested Development (I miss is already)

Chappelle's show (ditto)

Deadliest Catch (someone else please show this program some love)

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"My So-Called Life".



But really, I'd rather have a show end before it jumps the shark than drag on for years past its prime.

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Dead Like Me. Man I miss that show. I still can't believe it's gone without so much as a closer and that even if they somehow brought it back, all the good people wouldn't even come on.



What is Ellen Muth doing now?

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XiFiles--especially the first few seasons with Scully 7 Mulder. The Monster of the Week episodes and the early hints of the conspiracy were must see. I get that fix from Lost, but it is not the same. I can't watch Bones for the same reason. it seems like a cheap copy.



Crusade--The Babylon 5 sequel left us hanging with a story arc that was never completed. No one writes space opera like JMS.



MacGyver--Yes, it was dumb, but it was fun, especially the older globe-trotting episodes. With the declining ratings of Alias, I'm guessing it will be a long time before we see another spy show like it.



Magnum PI--Best private investigator show ever.



The West Wing--No, it is not still on the air. It died when Aaron Sorkin left.

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Dead Like Me had a noticeable drop in quality in its second season.



The show I miss the most is Sorkin-era West Wing.

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I'm gonna have to vote for Spenser: For Hire.

Not only was it an awesome show, it was canceled in it's prime. However, this prompted the network (ABC I think) to make four TV movies, which I got for Christmas! Hawk is one bad mutha.

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Carnivale....which HBO dumped without so much as a warning or a finale, and which was one of the quirkiest, most intense and utterly addictive shows ever....HBO seems to do this alot, as we now hear they may do the same thing to Rome. Bite me, HBO!!

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Hmm... Should I, or shouldn't I?



Okay, yes, I'm going to say it. Not like it needs a plug, but... Wonderfalls. Wonderfalls is (and may always be) at the top of my list. It's the only show I can think of -- and I say this with a lot of confidence -- that I would watch religiously, reruns included, were it still on the air.

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If I were a better person, I'd say I missed some cancelled-too-soon cult show. Alas. I have to say that I miss old school A Baby Story. Daytime TV just isn't the same without it.



--I do miss DS9, though. It got so good and so complex in its final years, and I would have loved to see the war storyline play out, and particularly how they would have put the Trek universe back together after such a cataclysmic event.

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No Firefly? *shock* Talk about an obvious choice.



I will second Crusade. A show that had so much potential, and would have gone in a different direction.



I think the X-Files had a good long life, and I think they ended it before it could get too bad. It had potential for more, and some plotlines that would have been great, but they never delved into them (Reyes background with the occult as a prime example.) I do think the show was kinda ruined with Mulder and Scully getting "together".



#15, I think it would have been good for DS9 to resolve the way, and have another series pick up after with the rebuilding. Could have been very interesting. I guess it is still possible...someday.



I do miss Sorkin-era West Wing as well.



Farscape and Angel, as well, and Arrested Development, but I'm not ready to accept defeat.



How about a list of shows that need to be ended? Sure there are a lot of shows that end before their time, but I think there are a lot that should end, or shows that should have ended earlier.

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for those interested, there is a new fan project to ressurrect the original star trek over at http://www.newvoyages.com/



i haven't personally seen it, but it was recently featured in wired magazine with a 4 or 5 page article... interesting stuff :-)

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I will sorely miss THE COMEBACK, as will many, many others. It was a brilliant series cut short just as it was finding its loyal fanbase. Lisa Kudrow was nothing short of sensational. Too bad HBO didn't give it another season.

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I can't believe nobody else misses Sports Night.

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Natrino -- I'd actually put Firefly on my list, but I figured mentioning one short-lived cult show was plenty. But now you've made it acceptable. Thanks.

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