It’s time to induct some new members into the Should Have Been One and Done club.
Earlier this year, we revisited a dozen TV series that ought to have ended with their first, often-spectacular seasons, instead of falling into the sophomore slump (and beyond) that plagued Revenge, Prison Break and more shows in their later years. (See the full list here.)
Thanks to the impassioned suggestions of TVLine readers, that list has now doubled in size: Below, you’ll find 12 more titles that, according to our comments section, also should have packed it in after Season 1. After all, think of the fever-dream song covers we could have been spared if Glee had been a one-season wonder, or the convoluted plot twists that would have been avoided if Scandal, Killing Eve and others were conceived as miniseries instead.
Alongside the 12 suggestions listed below, you’ll find direct quotes from our readers, who sum up the reasons (better than we ever could) why The Following, Once Upon a Time and more series would have been better off as one-and-dones. (Just imagine: In an alternate universe somewhere, How to Get Away With Murder and Lost are on our list of TV’s Best One-Season Shows. Strange!)
Keep scrolling to see all of our readers’ picks, then drop a comment with the shows you’d add.
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BIG LITTLE LIES
Image Credit: Courtesy of HBO “The first season was just fine. Told a complete story. It ended great. No second season necessary.” — EvaBaby
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DESIGNATED SURVIVOR
Image Credit: Courtesy of Netflix “Once the conspiracy was solved, there was nothing left to do.” — TerRip
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THE FOLLOWING
Image Credit: Everett Collection “The main character goes from being a charismatic, Hannibal Lecter-type serial killer in the first season to an ineffectual and insecure joke in the second season.” — Stan
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GLEE
Image Credit: Everett Collection “Fantastic first season. First few of Season 2 were okay, and then the logic of the plotlines dropped into a Mariana Trench-type crevice.” — Nick
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HOMELAND
Image Credit: Courtesy of Showtime “If it ended with Brody pulling the trigger, or if he hadn’t, it would have been nearly perfect TV. Instead they decided to continue and turn it into the cringiest love story of all time, that even Rupert Friend’s Quinn couldn’t save.” — Bels
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HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER
Image Credit: Courtesy of ABC “Viola Davis shone through the entire run of the series; the story, not so much.” — Alexander
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KILLING EVE
Image Credit: Courtesy of BBC America “Obviously they couldn’t leave it on that cliffhanger, but the show never recaptured the verve of the first season — maybe Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s absence?” — Chris
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LOST
Image Credit: Everett Collection “Not a popular opinion, I’m sure, but if they had planned the whole thing as a tight, one-season miniseries — instead of the meandering mess it became — it would have been the greatest thing ever.” — Simon
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ONCE UPON A TIME
Image Credit: Everett Collection “Once Upon a Time was clever and almost perfect in Season 1 and did have a proper conclusion. But they decided to keep going with a new Disney tie-in every season. I checked out when they wandered endlessly around Neverland. Never, no more.” — Grant
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SCANDAL
Image Credit: Courtesy of ABC “It went from being about a political fixer who handled everything well to a poorly written spy show [bordering] on torture porn… And why was Jake still around long after the love triangle fizzled out?” — Melissa
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SLEEPY HOLLOW
Image Credit: Courtesy of Fox “It seemed that the rest of the show was spent on, ‘How can we keep Abbie away from Ichabod?’ But the first season was magical.” — Martin
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TWIN PEAKS
Image Credit: Everett Collection “Once the mystery of who killed Laura Palmer was solved, it just went into Wackyville. I know most folks liked it; I was over it after Season 1.” — Dee
