25 shows we wish were still on the air

25. Firefly

Years it ran: 2002-2003

Who was in it: Nathan Fillion, Alan Tudyk, Gina Torres, Morena Baccarin.

Why it was canceled: Firefly is one of those shows that was a victim of low live ratings. This was before the time of streaming services, which made it harder to justify keeping good shows on the air. Sci-fi and fantasy shows cost a lot to produce so the ratings have to be good or it has to be on the right network to get the boost.

Of course, something that didn’t help with the show was FOX’s schedule. It didn’t give the series the best chance of success with an on-off schedule and some episodes seeming to be aired out of order. FOX canceled the show before the finale even aired.

Why we still wish it was on the air: While the live ratings weren’t great, the show has a major fan following. Campaigns continue even today to get the show back on the air, and we’re looking at almost 20 years since it’s been canceled.

We’d love to see more adventures from the crew. There were plenty of more stories to tell, and the world was only just developing. These space adventures are always entertaining, and we need shows like this on the air right now. Sometimes we just want our content to be pure entertainment.

One of the great things is that many of the cast remain connected, and you’ll see them pop up in each other’s shows now and then. Nathan Fillion and Alan Tudyk are the most common pair to appear in their shows with Tudyk appearing in an episode of The Rookie and Fillion voicing a character in Resident Alien.