Streaming services provide a very different way to engage with normal TV storylines than old cable distribution methods allowed for. You can watch shows on demand now, and you can easily catch up with a show from the beginning. This makes modern TV shows more like serialized movies, while older episodic forms of storytelling are less popular. Here are 15 older shows that would have benefited from a streaming distribution model.
House
Medical drama House focused on the titular character, a foul-mouthed and short-tempered doctor who nonetheless cured patients no matter what mysterious illness they were battling. This show was ahead of its time and would have benefitted greatly from finding its wider audience if it was made in the era of streaming services.
The X-Files
The X-Files embraced a combination of episodic and serialized storytelling to bring its spooky mythology to primetime TV. It was a decidedly weird show, inspired in no small part by Twin Peaks and The Twilight Zone, and performed quite well back in the 90s. Streaming service demand for the show helped convince Fox to revive it for a modern audience, too.
Dallas
Dallas was one of the first big American shows to take a chance on serialized storytelling. The famous “Who Shot JR?” publicity stunt the show pulled with its notorious cliffhanger ending one season was an early example of “appointment watching” for an ongoing storyline.
Heroes
The first season of NBC’s Heroes ably converted comic book storytelling to prestige drama TV in a way that no other show has ever matched. Even Heroes itself never reached the highs it hit in its first season, partly because of a writers’ strike. Had the show been made in the era of streaming, it would have had more flexibility to take some time off until its writers’ room was back in order, preventing it from having such disastrous seasons after the first.
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 started its run as a mostly episodic show but pivoted to almost entirely serialized storytelling by its fourth season. The show was a niche hit, but it might have found its dedicated audience much faster if it had been released in the era of streaming. Still, as a compelling piece of TV sci-fi, it’s impressive that it drew the fan following it did when it was up against 90s-era Star Trek.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Saying that Buffy could have been bigger than it was is kind of funny, given that the show was a rating smash hit and propelled most of its main cast to stardom. It also put Joss Whedon on the map, and his TV storytelling basically defined the late 90s and the entire 00s. Still, if Buffy had released in the streaming era, it would have basically been another Game of Thrones monocultural behemoth.
The Sopranos
HBO’s late 90s and early 00s output helped create the prestige drama format that many streaming services still use. As such, shows like The Sopranos still feel fresh and modern when you watch them today on streaming services. It’s easy to see how a dark, gritty, serialized show like The Sopranos would have still done just fine today on a streaming platform.
24
Fox’s 24 was released as a miniseries event and was a huge hit with audiences and critics. The riskiest thing about it was how serialized it was, requiring careful attention from audiences to pick up on its intricate plot details. It’s even better to watch back in a binge session on streaming services, as you can fully appreciate the complex inner workings of its storyline.
Sex and the City
The very ahead-of-its-time Sex and the City was one of HBO’s surprise hits in the 90s. The smart, savvy show knew how to be provocative and funny while still being alluring and likeable for a mass audience — something that might sound familiar to fans of the shows it inspired, like Desperate Housewives, Gossip Girl, and Pretty Little Liars. Suffice it to say, the show would perform well even as a new entry in the streaming landscape.
Freaks and Geeks
Freaks and Geeks struggled to find its audience back when it aired in 1999. It only lasted one season, but it was a hugely influential show. Had it been released in the age of social media and streaming services, it would have quickly caught fire and become the biggest show around for a certain type of nerd.
Classic Doctor Who
Classic Who is an odd case, as many of its episodes are missing due to poor archiving at the BBC. As such, watching entire serials from back in the day is sometimes impossible. That means the show would be a perfect candidate for a “what if” story in which streaming services had existed in the 60s and 70s, as fans would be delighted to still be able to access Who’s missing back catalog.
Deadwood
Deadwood is another gritty HBO drama series that would have likely been an even bigger hit than it was had it debuted in the era of streaming. This gripping western series was way ahead of its time, using complicated plot points and gripping performances to complete immerse the viewer in its vision of the late 1800s in Deadwood.
Lost
Lost took serialized storytelling to new heights when it debuted in 2004. Its mystery-laden storytelling and detail-oriented plotlines rewarded the most eagle-eyed of viewers, and the ability to pause and focus on specific background details would have been a huge boon to fans back in the day.
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Twin Peaks
Twin Peaks is the poster child of “shows that were ahead of their time,” and, as such, would have been a perfect fit for the streaming era. Its dreamlike logic, bizarre plotlines, and rich mysteries would have basically made it catnip for theory-hunting online fans. It’s a shame the show was cut short during its original run, but its phenomenal third-season revival made things right.
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Firefly
Speaking of shows that were unfairly cut short, Firefly is the most criminally underappreciated TV series in human history. Fox bungled the show’s broadcast in every conceivable way, airing episodes out of order and not even showing the pilot first. The network then had the audacity to pull the plug on it after not giving it a fair shot. In the era of streaming, when you can see a show’s exact episode order and watch it from front to back with the push of a button, Firefly would have been the next Star Wars.
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