33 Godawful TV Shows That Thankfully Couldn’t Stand the Test of Time

Welcome to the bottom of TV’s barrel
33 Godawful TV Shows That Thankfully Couldn’t Stand the Test of Time

Well, our appreciation for good TV is at an all-time high. Maybe it takes a trip down the brutal TV lane to make you extra grateful for the shows that nailed it season after season.

It seems like networks love throwing a ton of stuff at the wall, hoping something sticks. We had our baskets under that wall today, and boy did we catch a bunch of shows that slid right down.

The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer

THE SECRET DIARY OF DESMOND PFEIFFER 4 stayed mostly unread EPISODES CRACKED A freed black slave is the serious butler to a wacky version of President Abe Lincoln - need we say more?

Pauly

PAULY 5 was washed up EPISODES GRAGKED Not every comedian can be the lead of their own TV show, and Pauly Shore found that out the hard way.

Supertrain

SUPERTRAIN 9 jumped the tracks EPISODES GRACKED The most expensive show ever made at the time was about... a luxury train? The model train crashed, and so did the series.

Viva Laughlin

Memento mori, 2 VIVA LAUGHLIN EPISODES CRACKED A musical show starring Hugh Jackman sounds like a surefire hit, but once the music stopped, people tuned out.

Nearly Departed

NEARLY 4 DEPARTED EPISODES got and all the way gone CRACKED This 1989 sitcom starring Eric Idle as a friendly ghost who haunts a family just didn't have the (Beetle)juice.

Amanda’s

Nobody comes to 10 AMANDA' S EPISODES CRACKED This American remake of Fawlty Towers starring Bea Arthur reminds us that not all US versions can be The Office.

On the Air

The inaccurately named 3 ON THE AIR EPISODES GRACKED After Twin Peaks, David Lynch made this show about a TV station in the 1950s - not much chance of it coming back in style.

The Paul Reiser Show

Not so mad about 2 THE PAUL REISER SHOW EPISODES OUR CRACKED The TV veteran wanted a less mean version of Curb Your Enthusiasm - taking that out meant there wasn't much left.

Baby Bob

Disastrous Comedy 2002 Baby Bob Food Turning an ad into a sitcom, this talking baby got his own CBS primetime show after a string of Freelnternet.com commercials. It's 14 episodes of Wait, that baby can talk? moments that got old right away. CRACKED

Alienators

Disastrous Comedy 2001 Alienators: Evolution Continues The raunchy sci-fi comedy Evolution was not for children, but the spinoff cartoon series tried to make it for kids by ripping off Real Ghostbusters and releasing a toy line. The movie wasn't all that memorable, so no adult or child ever asked for this. CRACKED

Comedians Unleashed

Disastrous Comedy 2002 Comedians Unleashed Not to be confused with Comics Unleashed, this was Animal Planet's attempt at a stand-up comedy show. Here's the kicker: It was only animal-themed jokes. They only aired one episode. CRACKED

Dot Comedy

Disastrous Comedy 2000 Dot Comedy As the internet was still this new and exciting thing, ABC tried to capitalize by having a terribly unfunny host show off silly computer products, like a mouse that doubles as a deodorant stick. It aired one episode and was canceled two days later. CRACKED

Emily’s Reasons Why Not

Disastrous Comedy 2006 Emily's Reasons Why Not The ABC sitcom starring Heather Graham was canceled after one episode. Programming chief Steve McPherson said, It's not going to get better. Apparently ABC committed to the show without even seeing its pilot. CRACKED

George

Disastrous Comedy 1993 George Thinking he was a draw, ABC gave former heavyweight champion George Foreman a TV comedy about a retired boxer running a youth center, forgetting that he's not an actor or comedian. The show bombed and was canceled in two months (leaving one episode unaired). CRACKED

Rainbow Brite

Disastrous Comedy 1984 Rainbow Brite The Hallmark-owned Rainbow Brite started out as a line of greeting cards, and was made into an animated series in 1984. Mattel introduced a line of dolls for the show, but the show only lasted eight episodes and was a complete flop. CRACKED

Big Lake

Disastrous Comedy 2010 INGS Big Lake It was originally a vehicle for Jon Heder, but he left due to creative differences. Produced by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay, it was canceled after 10 episodes, because the original draw was that it would feature that guy from Napoleon Dynamite (not the up-and-coming Chris Gethard). CRACKED

The California Raisin Show

Disastrous Comedy 1989 The California Raisin Show The claymation Motown group had a string of successful '80s ads. CBS aired the TV special Meet the Raisins! in 1988, they released a Saturday morning series in 1989, and a sequel to the special in 1990. Wow, they really kept trying to make it work! CRACKED

Rubik, The Amazing Cube

Disastrous Comedy 1983 Rubik, the Amazing Cube He-Man was a highly successful show based on a toy, because look at the characters they had to work with. Giving a Rubik's Cube an alien-like face and random powers only lasted 13 strange episodes, and did nothing to help hawk the product. CRACKED

AfterMASH

Disastrous Comedy - - 1983 AfterMASH M*A*S*H is arguably the most beloved series of all time, so producers obviously wanted to keep the money train rollin'. The brutal spinoff put a few of the co-stars in suburbia after they got home from battle, but audiences were content with how M*A*S*H concluded. CRACKED

Heil Honey I’m Home!

Disastrous Comedy 1990 Heil Honey I'm Home! A British sitcom involving Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun not being able to get along with their Jewish neighbors aired one episode, but everyone wondered how the highly offensive show ever aired at all. This shock value was out of touch. CRACKED

Cavemen

Disastrous Comedy 2007 Cavemen Geico's original so easy a caveman could do it ads were pretty funny, but did not warrant their own show. The ABC sitcom only lasted six episodes, and was dubbed one of the worst ever. CRACKED

Jingles

Jingles 4 300- Like 5.75 The Voice, but for commercial jingles, and starring Gene Simmons. CRACKED.COM

The Singles Table

The Singles Table 18 A 2007 attempt A to fill the hole that Friends left behind, about a crew of singles who meet at a wedding. This was at least the second starring role that John Cho had cancelled on him. CRACKED.COM

Star Trek: Phase II

Star Trek: Phase II JON 771 This was the 4 flagship show for Paramount's brand new TV network in 1978, before they changed their mind and scrapped it. CRACKED.COM

The Grubbs

The Grubbs An unauthorized knock-off of a popular British show, starring Randy Quaid, Carol Kane, and Michael Cera. It was canned just 2 days before airing, and is said to be the worst sitcom ever produced. CRACKED.COM

All My Babies’ Mamas

All My Babies' Mamas 5.75 3,00 A 2013 reality show that followed rapper Shawty Lo, who had 11 kids by 10 women. CRACKED.COM

Thick and Thin

Thick and Thin A 2006 sitcom about 300 a once-overweight woman struggling to maintain her new lifestyle. CRACKED.COM

Heads Up!

Heads Up! Cat 00:47 575 We'd hereby like to thank 300 HLN for never airing the 65 episodes they shot of... people just playing a popular mobile app? CRACKED.COM

Day One

Day One A 2010 sci-fi drama about about apartment dwellers who survived a mysterious apocalypse. It was slowly demoted from series to mini-series, to TV movie, to dead in the water. CRACKED.COM

Heavens to Betsy

Heavens To Betsy 5.75 3.00 Dolly Parton is dead country singer who has to fix some family she doesn't know in order to get into Heaven. They later reused the concept for a tv movie: Unlikely Angel. CRACKED.COM

What the Blank!

What The Blank! MICHA ENNIS LAND EAVER 300 This remake of Match Game from the '70s, hosted by Fred Willard, was inexplicably dropped by 3 different networks! CRACKED.COM

The Mayor

The Mayor People in 2003, adorably, thought political corruption was a source of comedy. This Happy Madison show was about an 18-year-old goofball becoming mayor and saving the the town from the deep state. CRACKED.COM

Mail Order Family

Mail Order Family MAIL ORDER FAMILY 3.00 A widower orders a mail-order bride from the Philippines. Human trafficking victim advocates had to remind NBC that, um, there's not a ton of comedy there. CRACKED.COM

Tags:

Scroll down for the next article

Must Read

VIRAL ON CRACKED

A WEEKLY
NEWSLETTER OF
JOKES + TRIVIA

Forgot Password?