10 Ditched TV Storylines That Thankfully Never Happened
3. Sam Has An HIV Scare - Cheers
The original plan for Cheers' season six finale was to reveal that one of protagonist Sam Malone's (Ted Danson) ex-girlfriends had been diagnosed with HIV, leaving viewers to ponder whether Sam himself may have become stricken with the virus ahead of the season seven premiere.
Ultimately those plans were handily scuppered, however, by the 1988 Writers Guild of America strike, which resulted in the episode's scheduled shoot being delayed and creator Les Charles ultimately deciding during rehearsals that the plot killed the episode's comedic momentum.
While it's admirable enough that Cheers even considered addressing one of the most topical issues of the 1980s, it just would've been too much of a cruel, jarring bummer to deal this hand to Sam, no matter his womanising ways.