Plenty ofTV showsaren’t appreciated in their time, going painfully underseen despite just how great they really are. I have very particular tastes when it comes to TV shows, with many of my favorite series being utterly unknown to most people. I can certainly appreciate the morepopular TV seriesthat gain their notoriety for a good reason, such asBreaking BadorSeverance, but much of my taste is informed by shows that feel like I was the sole viewer of.
Part of the reason many of these shows have such small fanbases is just how soon many of them were taken off the air, joining the long graveyard line ofshows that were canceled too soon. Other shows are more obscure simply due to the network they aired on, a lack of advertising, a or a lack of general appeal, apparently only able to capture my attention. Whatever the case, I’m still astounded that these series in particular aren’t talked about more.
Baggage
Cast
In this reality dating show, contestants reveal personal secrets concealed in suitcases, ranging from minor quirks to major confessions, in a bid to win the interest of a potential partner. As secrets are unveiled, contestants must defend their disclosed “baggage” to remain in the competition.
Starting with a guilty pleasure,Baggagewas an interesting game show that made for some great hotel-room low-brow-entertainment fodder. Hosted by Jerry Springer ofJerry Springerinfamy,Baggagewas a dating show that thrived on shock value. The format posited one contestant as the primary bachelor or bachelorette, with three possible romantic interests presented to them. Each suitor would bring with them three pieces of “baggage”, suitcases containing red flags for their dating life that would increase in severity as the rounds went on.
The series did okay with a modest four season run and a single-season spin-off seriesBaggage on the Road.
As the rounds progressed, the bachelor or bachelorette would vote out contestants until one remained, with the catch being that the winner could then choose to accept or reject a date based on the reveal of the primary contestant’s big piece of baggage.Far from cerebral entertainment, I’m still surprisedBaggage’s simple format and variety of players didn’t attract a wider audience.The series did okay with a modest four season run and a single-season spin-off seriesBaggage on the Road, but never became a household name likeThe Price is RightorFamily Feud.
Wayne
Wayne is an action comedy television series that initially aired on YouTube Premium and stars Mark McKenna as Wayne, a teenager who heads out on an action-fueled quest to get back his late father’s stolen car. With nothing more than a dirtbike and his friend Del, the two hit the road from Massachusetts to Florida to find his father’s Pontiac.
Getting into the realm of truly obscure and bitterly underappreciated TV,Wayneis one of thebest shows to only last one season.The series revolved around the titular Wayne, an unruly Boston teen with poor social skills, an odd ability to withstand pain, and a violent hatred for bullies. After his father dies of cancer, he absconds with his girlfriend on a cross-country trip to Florida to steal back his father’s 1979 Pontiac Trans Am from his mom’s criminal new boyfriend in Ocala, Florida.
Waynewas a brilliant series that had true heart, with Wayne himself being an amazing protagonist that’s hard not to sympathize with.The characters are some of the funniest I’ve ever seen on TV, from the kindly Boston sheriff who had secretly done time in a Thai prison to Wayne’s terrifying yet dimwitted step-brother.Full of great jokes, hard-hitting emotional beats, and hectic action scenes, it’s an absolute crime thatWayne’s cross-country road trip was canceled after one season, left to languish on YouTube in obscurity.
Wilfred
Wilfred is a 2007 Australian comedy television series created by Jason Gann, Adam Zwar, and Tony Rogers. The series, directed by Tony Rogers, stars Jason Gann as Wilfred, a dog seen as a man in a dog suit by his owner’s boyfriend, Adam, played by Adam Zwar.
Wilfredis an odd case for a series that I’ll argue nobody talks about anymore.The quirky, offbeat comedy starred Elijah Wood as Ryan, a neurotic former lawyer who attempts suicide only to find his sister has replaced his medication with sugar pills.When he comes to, he finds that his new neighbor’s dog appears to him as a talking Australian man in a dog costume, becoming his best friend and getting dragged into all sorts of mind-bending adventures.
Wilfredhad a kind ofRick & Morty-style charm that was ahead of its time, and it certainly had a degree of popularity as a series on FX starring a well-known actor.
Yet I never hear anyone talk aboutWilfredanymore, no matter how well-rendered the jokes and intrigue of Wilfred’s mysteries were.With a respectable four-season run,Wilfredcertainly had its time in the spotlight, but it can’t seem to escape the early 2010s in terms of relevancy.
Pushing Daisies
Created by Bryan Fuller, Pushing Daisies stars Lee Pace as Ned, a baker who can inexplicably bring people back from the dead with just one touch. With the help of a private investigator and his previously deceased childhood girlfriend who he has rescued from death, Ned uses his ability to help solve murders. Anna Friel, Kristin Chenoweth, and Chi McBride also star.
WhileWilfredindulged in the realm of large overarching mysteries, a betterdetective-oriented seriesI was a massive fan of wasPushing Daisies.The ABC comedy-drama centered on a lonely pie shop owner, Ned, with the miraculous ability to revive the dead with his touch, though with several stipulations: when he touches something again, they die permanently, and they can only exist for 60 seconds before absorbing the life force of something else to stay alive. Ned is recruited by an eccentric private investigator to help him solve murders.
The genius, airtight premise was only the foundation for a wonderful show.Between the fairy-tale narration, gorgeous cinematography, shocking revelations, and quirky sense of humor, there was so much to appreciate aboutPushing Daisies.The facts were these: despite accruing a litany of awards,Pushing Daisieswas canceled all-too-soon, leaving me as one of the sole remaining fans still championing its quality over ten years later.
Xiaolin Showdown
Xiaolin Showdown is an animated television series that follows four young monks in training—Omi, Kimiko, Raimundo, and Clay—as they search for mystical artifacts called Shen Gong Wu. Guided by their wise master, the monks use these artifacts to combat the evil boy genius Jack Spicer and other villains. The series showcases their journey to protect the world while mastering their elemental abilities and growing into Xiaolin warriors.
Pivoting further into my childhood, my favorite cartoon as a kid was easilyXiaolin Showdown.The martial arts movie-inspired show centered on four young martial artists from around the world recruited by a Xiaolin master tasked with gathering the awakened Shen Gong Wu. These magical artifacts could provide all sorts of fantastical abilities, and it was up to the elemental Xiaolin warriors to nab them as they appeared before the evil boy genius Jack Spicer and the phantom witch Wuya.
The magic system of the Shan Gong Wu had a great collect-em-all flair to it, with episodes usually culminating in a titular Xiaolin Showdown, in which both sides enter a magical contest for possession of the treasure.
The lore, worldbuilding, and art style ofXiaolin Showdownwere an awesome blend of early-2000s modernity and ancient Chinese aesthetics, elaborating on its surprisingly rich universe. The magic system of the Shan Gong Wu had a great collect-em-all flair to it, with episodes usually culminating in a titular Xiaolin Showdown, in which both sides enter a magical contest for possession of the treasure.Sadly, being aired primarily on Kids' WBrather than Cartoon Network hurt its chances of relevancy, and todayXiaolin Showdownis remembered by few.
Sealab 2021
Sealab 2021 is an animated television series that parodies the 1972 series Sealab 2020. The show is set in the titular underwater research station and revolves around its incompetent crew, led by Captain Murphy, as they encounter various absurd and often dangerous situations. Known for its satirical humor, the series is part of the Adult Swim programming block and showcases a blend of dark comedy and surrealism.
Moving on to cartoons I enjoyed more in my teen years, Adult Swim was a regular source of entertainment for a late middle school to early high school sense of humor.In this space, my heart is still ruled bySealab 2021, whose very name is a hilarious joke now, joining the manyscience fiction universes whose futures have passedalready.Sealab 2021used footage from a failed pilot of a Hanna BarberaJohnny Quest-era series calledSealab 2020, parodying the animation with new dubs and cheap changes.
This lean approach led to many hilarious quirks, like characters staring at the camera in a vaguely-optimistic default facial expression, or Sparks, who was never drawn standing up and thus always appears in a rolling chair no matter the situation.The real star of the show was the bombastic Harry Goz as the deranged Captain Murphy, who sadly died halfway into the series, taking with him much of the comedic appeal. Other than a small cameo in the more popular adult animated comedyArcher, Sealab 2021is practically unheard of.
A heartfelt family comedy that was rough-around-the-edges
Raising Hope
Raising Hope is a family comedy series that aired on Fox for four seasons between 2010 and 2014. The series centers on Jimmy, a man who finds himself as a single parent after his one-night stand goes on death row. Raising Hope stars Lucas Neff as Jimmy and was created by Gregory Thomas Garcia.
Raising Hopecan perhaps best be described by its relation to its more famous older sibling,My Name Is Earl.Both shows were created by Greg Garcia, and his fingerprints will be immediately obvious to anyone who manages to watch one after the other. I enjoyedMy Name Is Earljust as well, but somehow,Raising Hopegot consistently overshadowed by it.Raising Hopecenters on a clueless 23-year-old who suddenly finds himself a father after a one-night-stand results in a baby girl, who is named Hope.
It turns out that Hope’s mother was a serial killer on the run who gets sentenced to death, leaving the hapless Jimmy to raise her as a single father.Moving to a rural Virginia town to get support from Hope’s grandparents, Jimmy is a great focal point around which all sorts of rugged comedy can unfold. I loved the sweetness ofRaising Hopeand its depiction of working-class Americans, but it could never measure up to Garcia’s more famous works.
The River
This thriller series follows the perilous quest of a family and crew as they venture into the Amazon jungle to search for missing wildlife expert and TV personality Emmet Cole. Their journey unfolds into a mysterious and dangerous exploration, blurring the lines between reality and the supernatural.
Today, horror series are all the rage, fromMike Flanagan’s retinue of book adaptationsto the enduring popularity of the anthology science fiction horror seriesBlack Mirror.This makes it all the more confounding to me that ABC’sThe Rivernever quite took off. The found-footage horror series centered on an expedition down the mysterious unexplored sectors of the Amazon River, begun when the mother and daughter of a late famous scientist suddenly find his distress beacon going off in the uncharted territory.
The Riverabsolutely terrified me with the various horrors it unleashed on the hapless boat crew, from unsettling zombies to unseen demons that ominously whistled as they whirled along the Amazon River’s surface.The found-footage format was quite unique for a TV show, and the narrative did a good job balancing an overarching story with monster-of-the-week antics.Perhaps the single most obscure series I still champion, it’s bizarre to me thatThe Riverwent so under the radar, canceled after only a single season.
I Am Not Okay with This
I Am Not Okay With This is a Netflix series centering on the complicated life of Sydney Novak, played by IT star Sophia Lillis. Sydney is a teenager who is juggling life as a high schooler, family issues, and her sexuality. To top things off, she’s also starting to develop mysterious superpowers.
Yet another coming-of-age black comedy,I Am Not Okay With Thiswas something truly special. Starring Sophia Lillis ofITandDungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thievesfame, the series centered on a teenage girl with telekinetic powers that are triggered by turbulent emotions.Considering turbulent emotions are a huge part of being a teen girl, she has to learn fast to not only navigate the complex relationships of her life, but to control her dangerous abilities, as well.
I Am Not Okay With Thistruly had the potential to rival something likeUmbrella Academyas a grounded realism approach to people with superpowers, being more about the relatable human drama than anything else.Sadly, the series was a victim of the COVID-19 pandemic, with tricky set conditions leading to an early cancellation after just one season. I’m not okay with the fact thatI Am Not Okay With Thisnever had the chance to snowball into more viewership, which I’m positive it could have.
The Mighty Boosh
The Mighty Boosh is a British television series that blends surreal comedy and adventure. Created by Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding, the show follows the eccentric exploits of Vince Noir and Howard Moon, two employees at a dilapidated zoo. Accompanied by a cast of peculiar characters, they embark on fantastical journeys, often encountering bizarre creatures and mystical phenomena. Known for its unique visual style and quirky humor, the series has gained a cult following.
I’m usually not the biggest proponent ofBritish comedy series,butThe Mighty Booshis a very formative influence on my sense of humor. It’s hard to even describe the offbeat show, but the best I can do is to call it a live-action version ofRegular Showwith an adult rating. The series centered on the beautiful, but vain and dimwitted Vince (played by Noel Fielding) and the socially awkward jazz-loving Howard as they get into all sorts of supernatural hi-jinks.
The banter ofThe Mighty Booshis second-to-none, doing irreparable damage to my vocabulary with its unique slang and absurd witticisms. The humor can certainly be dated at times, but the low-budget charm and genuinely catchy musical elements always win me back over, taking the spot of a prime comfort show. Other than some scenes from a certain episode involving a funky merman going viral,The Mighty Booshnever achieved mainstream appeal, leaving it as one of my precious obscureTV showfavorites.
