One of the greatest assets television entertainment has is its capacity for long-form storytelling, the ability to allow a narrative to unfurl over the course of multiple seasons as it invests in exploring its characters and subplots in great detail. While this is a strength that is a defining feature of many series,the allure of extending a show in order to get to the minutiae of every facet of the story can also be a trap.
Whereas a timing miscalculation in a film can lead to 20 minutes of wasted screen time, the same misjudgment on the small screen can be truly cataclysmic, leading to seasons of diminishing returns. From teenage dramas that outstay their welcome to dystopian thrillers that should never have gone beyond one season, these series all offer ample proof that sometimes less really is more.
10’Killing Eve' (2018-2022)
Created by Phoebe Waller-Bridge
An engrossing spy thriller series,Killing Evefollows the deadly rivalry between Eve (Sandra Oh), a newly inducted member of a team of MI6 experts striving to apprehend international mercenaries, and Villanelle (Jodie Comer), a psychotic and supremely skilled assassin working for a covert organization known as The Twelve. As the series goes on, the connection between the two women grows more nuanced and complex as both of them lose sight of their initial missions through their encounters.
Based onLuke Jennings’ novel “Villanelle” and thriving withPhoebe Waller-Bridgewriting, Season 1 is a wickedly entertaining spectacle of spy-vs-spy intrigue that revels in every enthralling twist. While Season 2—overseen byEmerald Fennellwith Waller-Bridge stepping back from creative control of the series—still had plenty of great moments, the series began to wane in Season 3 beforecollapsing in on itself in Season 4. Given its twisty story, one can’t help but thinkKilling Eve’s premise would have been better realized in a sharp and concise miniseries, one that did away with the excessive subplots of the latter seasons and, ideally, was handled entirely by Waller-Bridge.
Killing Eve
9’Altered Carbon' (2018-2020)
Created by Laeta Kalogridis
Altered Carbonhas ultimately come to be regarded as a series with an intoxicating aesthetic and some solid narrative ideas that simply wasn’t able to make the most of its basis onRichard K. Morgan’s cyberpunk novel of the same name. Whereas Season 1 suffers from some poor plotting and an overindulgence in its setting’s grimy vibrancy, Season 2 has a more disciplined narrative focus but is undone by the quality of the story itself.
While the series as a whole is probably most accurately viewed as a missed opportunity,one can’t help but ponder what could have been had the plot progression and characters of the first season been handled with the insight and attention of Season 2. Had all the resources poured into the 18-episode run ofAltered Carboninstead been funneled into a tight and focused miniseries with a closer tie to Morgan’s original novel, it could have made for one of the greatest sci-fi stories the small screen has ever seen.
Altered Carbon
8’Wayward Pines’ (2015-2016)
Interestingly,Wayward Pineswas originally conceived as being a miniseries based ontheBlake Crouchnovel of the same name, and Season 1 is largely standalone in this regard and can be enjoyed on its own merits. It follows U.S. Secret Service agent Ethan Burke (Matt Dillon) as he is sent to the small town of Wayward Pines to investigate the disappearance of two fellow agents. When he finds himself trapped and unable to make contact with the outside world, Burke tries to uncover the secrets of the eerie town.
In the wake of the success of the first season,Wayward Pineswas renewed for a Season 2. Unfortunately,it was unable to escape the feeling that it had been willed into existence without much planningas a means to capitalize on the popularity of Season 1. It ended up being an abysmal misfire that actually tarnished the entire show in the eyes of many fans who wish it had remained a singular series release.
Wayward Pines
7’Scream Queens' (2015-2016)
A refreshing and decadently camp offering that features many of the stylish flourishes ofRyan Murphy,Scream Queensthrived as a delightful meshing of teen satire and horror throughout its first season. Set on a college campus, it follows the members of a sorority house who find themselves being targeted by a serial killer known as the Red Devil.Season 2 utilizes the same cast to explore the same story, albeit with different charactersand set in a hospital.
While a similar approach worked for Murphy onAmerican Horror Story, the two seasons ofScream Queensare simply far too similar to make the return to the series anything other than confusing and somewhat cheap. Keeping Season 1 as a contained miniseries would have been perfect, especially as its camp tone and satirical bite were always going to struggle to age gracefully over the course of multiple seasons. The only other alternative would have been to do something similar toThe White Lotusand recast for Season 2 while changing up the dynamic between characters.
Scream Queens
6’Riverdale' (2017-2023)
Developed by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Based on characters from the Archie Comics,Riverdaleis one of the CW’s most well-known series. It also stands as one of the network’s most derided hits, with the camp aura and mystery intrigue thatdefined the guilty pleasure allureof its first season gradually succumbing to the utter ridiculousness that became increasingly apparent with each passing season.
Interestingly, the series was originally conceived as being a feature film to be realized in a similar style as theJohn Hughesteen movies of the 1980s, before it was shopped around as a possible series and eventually landed at the CW. In a sense, it is clear that the series was intended to be a shorter format story, withthe camp gleam of Season 1 quickly washing away in ensuing seasons. While much of the phenomenon ofRiverdalewas found in its polarizing audience feedback with each season, one can’t help but feel ending Season 1 as a miniseries would have been a more graceful way to conclude the story.
5’Once Upon a Time' (2011-2018)
Created by Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz
The premise ofOnce Upon a Timeis quite engaging, easing fairy tale legends into the modern age of television as it sees such iconic characters as Prince Charming and Snow White living in current times due to an evil witch’s curse that makes them forget their past lives. There is plenty of intrigue and wonder as the series follows bail bond agent Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison) in her efforts to break the curse,but the 155-episode, seven-season arcbecame excessive even for the show’s biggest fans.
As it expanded to incorporate more fairy-tale lore—and even dipped into such modern releases as animated films likeBraveandFrozen—Once Upon a Timebegan to lose grasp of its identity in the midst of its own sheer magnitude.Couple this with the fact that Season 1 does actually end with the curse being broken, andOnce Upon a Timeis a series that could easily have concluded as a one-off miniseries.
Once Upon A Time
4’Big Little Lies' (2017-)
Created by David E. Kelley
Season 1 ofBig Little Liesis nothing short of a miniseries masterpiece; an engrossing murder mystery that blends exceptional performances and enriched characters with a sinister gleam of black comedy that arguably surpasses its source material—Liane Moriarty’s best-selling novelof the same name. Originally billed as a miniseries, it follows the lives of three mothers in the idyllic coastal town of Monterey as a murder investigation begins to expose many private issues and tear at the seams of the happy community.
The first season ends where the book ends, andgiven there is no follow-up novel, there was seemingly no merit in returning to the series. However, HBO announced a new season in the wake of the series’ success at the Primetime Emmy Awards. While many fans went in optimistic at the prospect of returning to all the scandal and luxury, the second season clearly strained in search of a new plot and struggled to weave its elements together with the class of the first season.
Big Little Lies
3'13 Reasons Why' (2017-2020)
Developed by Brian Yorkey
Not too dissimilar toBig Little Lies,13 Reasons Why’s first season was based on a novel—that beingJay Asher’s “Thirteen Reasons Why”—only to then sprawl off on other tangents in the following seasons. Not only did thisdrag the series out far beyond its expiration date, but it also reeked of a particularly distasteful form of commercialismgiven its narrative revolves around the suicide of a high school student.
While Season 1 did attract some criticism for how it handled its most sensitive and confronting moments, the boldness of the story gave such disturbing scenes a certain gravitas and impact. The following seasons earn no such leeway; with Season 2’s wafting aimlessness andSeason 3’s pivot to murder mystery—not to mention the increasing emphasis on moody melodrama—ensuring13 Reasons Whyonly grew more egregious and inappropriate the more it expanded from its challenging and frank first season.
13 Reasons Why
2’Heroes' (2006-2010)
Created by Tim Kring
As far as television series go, there may be no greater nor more dwelled-upon casualty of the 2007-08 Writer’s Strike thanHeroes. Launching in 2006 with an incredible first season, it blends superhero narrative with dramatic intrigue as it follows the lives of several ordinary people who learn that they each possess superhuman abilities. While their reckoning with their newfound powers takes a toll on each of their personal lives, the group must band together to save humanity from looming catastrophes.
WhereasSeason 1 presents a lively and engaging high-stakes story, the following seasons struggled to maintain that defining flair. Season 2 was significantly slower in pace, while the last two seasons were overbearing in their dreariness and drama. While there haven’t been many miniseries that have come in at 23 episodes,Season 1 ofHeroesis such a hidden gem of 2000s television—and so far superior to the rest of the series—that it would have thrived had it been given such a release format, including a conclusive finale for each of its main characters.
1’The Handmaid’s Tale' (2017-2025)
Created by Bruce Miller
Based onMargaret Atwood’s novel of the same name,The Handmaid’s Taleenchanted millions from the outset with its grueling dystopian world and its commanding thematic might. Set in a bleak future where the drop in fertility rates has led to the rise of a tyrannical regime of religious fanaticism and the enslavement and ritualistic rape of fertile women known as “Handmaids”, the series follows June Osborne (Elizabeth Moss) as she is made a Handmaid to a high-ranking official in the government.
While such qualities permeate throughout much of the series, Season 1 ofThe Handmaid’s Taleis revered for its striking brutality and its keen narrative focus, two strengths derived directly from Atwood’s novel.The series’ evolution beyond the end of the book in Season 2 is intriguing though aimless. While the show has refrained from capitulating in its five-season run thus far, there are definitely those who feelSeason 1 in itself was a masterpiecethat the remainder of the series will never surpass, one that should have stood as a standalone miniseries.
