It isn’t just the movie industry that’s obsessed with reviving old, beloved films; it happens a lot in television, too, with a recent example being the return of Jackass. While the series is now best known for being a movie franchise, it started out as a TV series on MTV, and the show is being revived for Paramount+.
While that sounds exciting, especially as Jackass Forever introduced new members of the crew, tons of other shows deserve a revival, too, and Redditors have some strong opinions about which. Between a coming-of-age sleeper hit, a sitcom that ended on a cliffhanger, and a cartoon that continued as a comic, these potential revivals could be incredible.
Updated on August 20th, 2022 by Tanner Fox: Reboots are an oft-discussed topic among moviegoers, principally because, in recent years, they seem to have become Hollywood’s money-making modus operandi. Dozens upon dozens of franchises have been restructured, reshaped, and rebooted over the past decade, but some fan-favorite outings have yet to receive such a treatment.
From Firefly to Fraiser, some television series, for whatever reason, either linger in development hell or just lie dormant. For dedicated fans, seeing longtime favorites remain forgotten for so long can be tough, so it may be time to give even these less-than-well-remembered shows another shot.
Charmed (1998-2006)
Charmed had a long run, lasting eight seasons and reaching 178 episodes, but that isn’t enough for some Redditors. Randommook wants to see the witch-oriented supernatural drama get revived, positing “it was still a fun show to watch whenever I got bored, and while it had its dry spells, it also had some pretty amazing episodes.” There will undoubtedly be a few dud episodes when a show lasts as long as Charmed did, but, along with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, it provided great supernatural entertainment in the 2000s.
The show did get a reboot, which lasted for three seasons, but it wasn’t as positively received, and it didn’t have the same charm as the original. However, maybe after the success of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and the upcoming Hocus Pocus 2, desire for similar projects will breathe new life into Charmed.
Batman Beyond (1999-2001)
After the original and inventive Batman: The Animated Series ended, it wasn’t all bad news. The show had something of a continuation with Batman Beyond, as it featured Kevin Conroy reprising his role of Bruce Wayne, only much older and more grizzled. Bruce took a younger and athletic teenager under his wing, Terry McGinnis, who became the Batman of the Future, and it introduced some creative new villains and a fascinating futuristic depiction of Gotham.
Randommook wants to see the series return, claiming, “I loved it as a child and I even went back and watched it now, and I still found myself enjoying it.” The show did continue as a comic book series, so there’s a lot of material a revival could pull from. However, many fans would much prefer a movie adaption of the series, and a live-action Batman Beyond remake would look incredible.
My Name Is Earl (2005-2009)
My Name Is Earl lasted for four seasons before it was canceled by the network. Since season 4 ended on a cliffhanger, it’s one of the many canceled shows for which fans never got closure. The series follows the titular character, a petty criminal who decides to right all of the wrongs in his life upon winning the lottery, getting hit by a car, and learning about karma. Earl created a list of all the bad things he had ever done, but, as the show ended too soon, fans never got to see him cross everything off his list.
But Bikinigirlout also points out, “I don’t see why they can’t revive this so we can find out who Earl Jr.’s dad is.” Season 4 ends with the reveal that Darnell isn’t actually Earl Jr.’s father. However, creator Greg Garcia’s following series, Raising Hope, hinted that Earl did finally complete his list, but there was still radio silence on who the child’s dad is, so the jury’s still out there.
Sliders (1995-2000)
Sliders has a similar premise to the more popular Quantum Leap, as the show follows a group of people who can’t make their way home and are traveling through different dimensions trying to find it. AdrianMonk thinks the show is in dire need of a revival but notes that “it needs to have all the elements that made the original great.”
Each episode saw the team travel to a new and bizarre dimension, and it was endlessly entertaining. However, it isn’t all that well-remembered, and very few viewers have any kind of connection to the original cast. In this case, Sliders may serve better as a reboot than a revival.
Stargate: Atlantis (2004-2009)
The Stargate franchise is one of the rare cases of the a TV show being better than the movie it’s based on, as the spin-off series was vastly superior to the messy action disaster movie directed by Roland Emmerich. But, interestingly, TurretX would prefer a revival of Atlantis, which itself is a spin-off of the original series, Stargate SG-1, a show that was much more acclaimed and loved by fans.
However, there’s a fair reason why; just just like My Name Is Earl, “it got screwed out of its final season.” The Reddit user is referring to how the lead actor, Joe Flanigan, explained at a convention—which can be seen on YouTube—that there were plans for a season 6, but they never quite came to fruition.
Goosebumps (1995-1998)
Goosebumps is one of the most entertaining shows of the ’90s and holds a strong place in the hearts of kids from that era. Nodqfan thinks it needs to be revived more than any other show. There has been a movie adaptation of the R.L. Stine written source material, but that had no connection to the classic 1990s series.
Thanks to the movie’s success, there is a planned live-action show coming to Disney+, but it’s unknown if this will be a continuation of the prior series or something entirely new. The iconic intro and theme music alone are enough to warrant a proper revival of the original series.
Metalocalypse (2006 – 2013)
Running from 2006 to 2013 on Adult Swim, Metalocalypse followed the exploits of the fictional heavy metal band Dethklok. Adored the world over by legions of fans, Dethklok embark on all kinds of bizarre and brutal adventures across four seasons.
Following the show’s cancellation, a miniseries titled Metalocalypse Now was purposed by the show’s creator, but it was eventually rejected by Adult Swim. According to Reddit user u/CoolbreezeFromSteam, “the community even raised over a million dollars to have it produced, and the … network still said no.” Fortunately, a Metalocalypse film is currently in development and slated for release on HBO Max.
Scrubs (2001-2010)
It’d be easy to think that fans would just let Scrubs be, as it had the most perfect ending possible with season 8, and then it had the quasi-spin-off, Scrubs: Interns, which fans would much rather forget. However, Circleinthesquare still thinks there’s more of J.D. and co’s story to tell.
The Redditor posits “to see [how] JD, Dr. Cox, Elliot and Turk progressed in the interim would be neat.” The user also brings up an interesting season arc, pitching that it could be based on the COVID-19 pandemic. While Scrubs is a sitcom, according to Insider, the series was also surprisingly accurate when it came to medicine, so there’s no better time to revive the show than now.
Seinfeld (1989-1998)
Phenomoz82 wants to see Seinfeld revived, but it isn’t the first time the idea has been thrown around. The idea of a Seinfeld revival or at least a one-off reunion show has been discussed for decades at this point, as the beloved genre-defining sitcom ended twenty-four years ago. But, while the Reddit user wants a revival, it happened in a very meta way on Curb Your Enthusiasm.
As Curb follows Larry David, who created Seinfeld, season 7 sees him diabolically putting together a Seinfeld reunion to try and win back Cheryl, who left him in the previous season. Not coincidentally, it’s the best season of Curb, but, as even that was fifteen years ago now, it’s time to see the band back together once again.
Frasier (1993-2004)
Another beloved ’90s sitcom that has laid dormant for years is Frasier, the spin-off of Cheers that ended up being arguably better than its predecessor. One Reddit user wants to see the show get revived, stating “Frasier and Niles are strong characters and the show is incredibly witty. Would love to see a two or three season revival.”
It seems like the Redditor’s wish has come true—or it almost has, as a Fraiser reboot is currently in the works. However, there seems to be no solid release schedule, and the production has been fairly obfuscated. Hopefully, it’ll premiere sooner than later.
Freaks And Geeks (1999-2000)
Freak and Geeks was never a popular show when it was on the air, but it has since gained a massive cult following thanks to it launching the careers of now-famous actors like Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, Linda Cardellini, and so many others. The show is a coming-of-age comedy that follows different groups of high-schoolers dealing with the everyday problems and feelings of being a teenager.
Cucurucho78 thinks a revival of the show would work perfectly, as the characters were all so engaging. The Redditor especially notes, “What happened to Lindsay? Is Haverchuck now Gilfoy?” With all the actors now having such huge profiles, it could make for a great all-star line-up, and, as they’ve been perfecting their craft in the twenty years since, it’d be better than ever.
Firefly (2002)
With just a scant fourteen episodes to its name, the 2002 sci-fi series Firefly could easily have been forgotten by now, but it’s still among the most frequently-discussed shows among those who live for nostalgic television reboots.
A landmark effort for creator Joss Whedon, Firefly blurred the lines between sci-fi and western in ways that had never before been seen. Influencing popular modern-day series such as Westworld and The Mandalorian, Reddit user u/Cooper_brain believes that a reboot would be great, opining “I would love that, but I don’t think it would be the same without the cast members that have died.”
