4 Amazing Sci-Fi Shows That Fell Apart Horribly After Season One

Science fiction is a groundbreaking genre that many fans adore, especially when it comes to sci-fi television. Like any other genre, sci-fi has some fantastic long-running series that fans will never forget about. It also has plenty of shorter series, for good or for ill. Sci-fi is full of amazing series that didn’t get a chance to shine, meeting their end far too soon. However, the reverse is also true, with a few series that started out great, only to get worse as time went on. Most fans have seen an amazing premise turn sour, either due to outside circumstances or a different problem. No matter the cause, fans are still disappointed by the direction these shows took.

Some of the most beloved sci-fi series never made it past one season (looking at you, Firefly), while plenty of others had lukewarm starts, leading up to unforgettable later seasons. These are not those shows. These shows started out strong and petered out. We still love those first seasons, but fan reactions to later seasons vary drastically.

4) The OA

If you’re looking for a sci-fi series that divided its audience, be sure to check out The OA. This mystery drama seamlessly blended supernatural and sci-fi elements together to create something that felt wholly new. The story revolves around Prairie Johnson, a young woman who is back after having been missing for years. Her return isn’t the only drastic change, as Prairie can now see.

Season 1 of The OA was grounded, emotional, and mysterious, putting it high on the rankings of best modern sci-fi shows. However, Season 2 didn’t hit quite the same tones. While the later seasons leaned more into sci-fi and surrealism, it wasn’t done in a way that fans felt connected to. It introduced a lot of complex things in rapid succession, causing pacing problems and losing impact. Unsurprisingly, this tore the fandom into two sides: those who were disappointed and those who wanted to see where the series would lead. Sadly, The OA was cancelled after two seasons, leaving a cliffhanger for all eternity. So far, fans have not successfully revived The OA, despite petitions and other attempts.

The OA is available to stream on Netflix.

3) Westworld

Westworld is a heavy-hitting dystopian sci-fi. Since it combines Western drama with sci-fi, fans were immediately drawn to this series. It didn’t hurt that it was loosely based on Michael Crichton’s 1973 film of the same name. The story begins in a fictional amusement park, complete with androids that keep everything running. If you’ve experienced enough sci-fi, you can probably predict what happened next.

To be fair, there’s a lot of Westworld that works. The first season was met with heavy critical acclaim, and the second season did almost as well. Season 3 is a bit more mixed, getting worse comments and ratings the farther it went. However, the fourth season is where most criticism lies, with concerns about the plot being too confusing or muddied.

Unsurprisingly, the whole of Westworld is still worth watching, which explains why it has such consistently high viewing numbers. Sadly, that didn’t keep Westworld from getting cancelled before it could release Season 5. Viewers still desperately want to see what would have happened with this sci-fi tale.

Westworld is available to rent through Amazon Prime Video and YouTube.

2) gen:LOCK

gen:LOCK is an animated sci-fi series that only got two seasons, and boy, could those seasons not be more drastically different. This series embraced the world of mecha, diving deep into debates about the sense of self while heroes battled to protect the planet. Notably, gen:LOCK had a star-studded cast, including the voices of Michael B. Jordan, Maisie Williams, Kōichi Yamadera, Golshifteh Farahani, Asia Kate Dillon, and David Tennant.

It was easy to fall in love with gen:LOCK Season 1. The stakes were high, the mechas impressive, and the characters were carefully crafted, as were the mysteries revolving around them. The finale had the sort of twist that made readers desperate for the next season. Sadly, Season 2 was a bit of a letdown. Part of the problem is that the entire creative team (minus the voices) changed, as gen:LOCK was transferred from Rooster Teeth to HBO Max. The second season lost the heart of the series, throwing characters out the window to try and tell a different story. To put this in perspective, many die-hard fans joke that there is no Season 2 of gen:LOCK.

gen:LOCK is available to stream on HBO Max, Crunchyroll, and Hulu.

1) Heroes

Heroes was a superhero drama that seemingly took the world by storm. Most people have at least heard the phrase “save the cheerleader, save the world.” That’s how far-reaching Heroes was. The critically acclaimed series tells the tale of ordinary people who one day wake up and realize they actually have superpowers. Naturally, not all powers are created equal, which is something the characters in this series learned the hard way.

Sadly, Heroes is the victim of the Writers’ strike. Rather than waiting for the creative team, the second season was cut down to just 11 episodes. Since they were abruptly cut, these stories felt pretty disjointed to the fans. Fans also didn’t love the direction some characters had taken, from romantic paths to arcs lacking context. Ultimately, Heroes was cancelled after Season 4.

Heroes is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.

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