10 Underhyped TV Shows That Blew Everyone Away

7. Dead Like Me

Barry HBO
Showtime

For whatever reason, networks have been greenlighting projects for Brian Fuller for years, only to tank them before they come to a natural conclusion. It's weird, to say the least, and two of his series appear on this list because the networks simply didn't have faith in them.

Dead Like Me is one such series, as it was only able to release a total of 29 episodes across two seasons. The show was critically acclaimed, but Showtime didn't do much in the way of promoting it. Dead Like Me is about a young woman who died and became a reaper, which is a person who helps transition the souls of people shortly before they die.

Dead Like Me ran on Showtime for two seasons between 2003 and 2004. Despite Emmy Award nominations, Satellite Award nominations, and many more, the series wasn't allowed to continue with a third season. While Showtime didn't release their ratings for the series, a leak suggested it had ratings three times the network's primetime average.

Whatever Showtime's reason for canceling and failing to promote Dead Like Me, it had a loyal following. Five years after the show went off the air, Dead Like Me was able to close out its plotholes with a DVD release titled Dead Like Me: Life After Death.

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Jonathan is a graphic artist, illustrator, writer, and game designer. Jonathan retired from the U.S. Army in 2017 and enjoys researching and writing about history, science, theology, and many other subjects. He writes for ScreenRant, CBR, NerdBastards, Listverse, Ranker, WhatCulture, and many other sites online. You can check out his latest on Twitter: @TalkingBull or on his blog: jonathanhkantor.com