10 Amazing TV Shows You Won't Believe Only Had Two Seasons

3. Enlightened

Enlightened is a HBO comedy drama that ran for 18 episodes between 2011 and 2013. The series was created by Mike White (who also stars in the second season), who wrote every episode, and like so many HBO productions, Enlightened really is consistently excellent, an instant and constant critical hit throughout its short run. The show was going from strength to strength before its cancellation after the second season. Enlightened follows Laura Dern€™s Amy Jellicoe, who after the implosion of her career goes into rehabilitation and comes out with a whole new philosophical view of life, and a much more positive attitude to everything. Season 1 mostly saw a great development of her character from an angry, negative person into a real go-getter and people person. Season 2 decided to think bigger, however, giving Jellicoe a plot involving the take-down of the company she works for when she finds out that they are into some nasty business. So much of the show's greatness rests on Dern and she absolutely kills it. It helps that Mike White is an excellent writer and, when he himself joins the regular cast in season 2, it really becomes the Laura Dern and Mike White show.