10 TV Shows Cancelled Before Their Time

An unfortunate victim of the current climate of buy-outs and absorptions in the media industry, Swamp Thing was a short-lived hidden gem amongst the recent slate of sub-par comic TV shows. Produced for now-defunct streaming service DC Universe, Swamp Thing split early from the norm by taking place in a separate universe to other DC originals, and set out to present the titular character in an environment grounded in true sci-fi horror, with a three season arc and potential expansion into a Justice League Dark spin-off planned.

Swamp Thing found critical success with this approach, and the resulting show is a believable, emotionally-driven, creeping-vine-filled spook fest - largely thanks to its eerie Louisiana location and powerful performances from leads Crystal Reed and Andy Bean. Alas, the first signs of unease came when the production order for the series was truncated from 13 episodes to 10 mid-way through shooting, leading to rewrites of the latter episodes to retain a satisfying conclusion.

While the gaps this shortening created are felt, the show still holds up as an excellent, alternative comic book adaptation. Sadly, viewers were not given the chance to see this for themselves before the show was unfairly axed a only week after the release of the very first episode! Production was purportedly not told this ahead of time, and as yet an official explanation for the cancellation has not been issued. Funding issues were originally speculated, but we can now assume that the show was abandoned in the face of the future collapse of its dedicated host in favour of HBO Max, leading the studio to cut their losses early.

Poor Swamp Thing. You made our hearts sing while it lasted.