From one-season wonders to long-running shows that still had great potential, the list of painfully canceled television shows could run a lot longer than we have time to cover here.
But we polled many on the TV Fanatic staff and came up with a rundown of sitcoms and dramas that we still can't believe have been shut down.
Some of these go back many years. Some of these just recently occurred.
But all of them hurt. A lot.
Gather up your strength, break out the tissues and don't give up hope: heck, if Full House and The X-Files can come back in some form, who knows what the future holds for these favorites...
1. Firefly
Admittedly I didn't watch Firefly until fellow Castle fans compelled me to buy the dvds, but by 30 minutes into the pilot I knew I'd be broken hearted by the end. The writing, the characters, the unique setting, I fell in love with it all. I laughed out loud during "Our Mrs Reynolds" gasped during "War Stories" and almost cried during
"The Message" Like a leaf on the wind, I will always get a wistful ache in my heart that there isn't more Firefly to enjoy. -- Christine Orlando
2. Veronica Mars
The modern day answer to Nancy Drew. Veronica Mars only lasted 3 seasons, but became a cult hit and eventually became a highly successful and much talked about movie. Veronica was everything missing from other female characters on TV. She was a complicated, tough, smart, witty, resilient, emotional, badass who just happened to be a teenage girl. The series followed Veronica as she tried to solve various mysteries in the fictional Neptune, California. This show may have seemed like a teenage show on the surface, but the writing was so brilliant and way darker than one would expect dealing with rape, murder, abuse, class warfare, and race. The show was cancelled after 3 seasons, but thankfully fans got closure when the Kickstarter funded movie came to fruition last year. -- Amanda Steinmetz
3. Happy Endings
The cast was ah-mah-zing, as was their undeniable chemistry. When it got unceremoniously canceled, all I wanted to do was crawl into a Max-like hibernation until Jane and Brad had their Annual Spring Smackdown on ABC and got them to reverse its decision. That sadly never came to pass. But at least there's the DVDs! -- Winston Rice
4. Ghost Whisperer
The show aired on CBS for five years and never got below 7 million viewers on average. While it was being aired on the Friday night death slot, seven episodes of the fourth season garnered more than 11 million viewers. Unfortunately, in 2010 it was canceled and viewers, characters and ghosts were all left with some unfinished business. -- Amanda Wolf
5. The Finder
A fun, quirky spin-off to Bones, The Finder is a show that should have lasted longer than one season. Its cast was dynamic, and its concept was unique. Geoff Stultz played Walter, an odd war veteran with an uncanny ability for finding almost anything. He solved crimes, helped find prized possessions, and got himself in plenty of trouble. The worst part is that the season finale ended with a pretty serious cliffhanger as Walter was sent to jail. The show began as an episode of Bones, and also featured crossover episodes with visits from Jack Hodgins and Lance Sweets (RIP). -- Ashley Bissette Sumerel
6. The OC
Ryan, Marissa, Seth, Summer, Sandy, Kirsten, Julie Cooper-Nickel! We watched as Ryan's life was turned around by his being brought into the Cohen household, and none of us were ever the same. Ryan Murphy wasn't afraid to kill a main character, so we said goodbye to Marissa Cooper at the end of Season 3. Then we said goodbye to everyone else when the series was canceled at the end of Season 4, just 8 episodes shy of syndication. Sigh. Californiaaaaaaaaa! -- Miranda Wicker