While many shows got worse as they went on, some rare series just needed a season or two to find their voice. Whether it was the addition of a new character or simply the writers getting more comfortable with the premise, these ten shows aged like fine wine.
BoJack Horseman
The first season of BoJack Horseman basically plays as a run-of-the-mill adult animated comedy. However, it develops into a genuinely thought-provoking and potentially depressing meditation on fame, loneliness, addiction, and redemption. It’s a heavy watch in its later seasons.
Breaking Bad
The tale of unassuming chemistry teacher Walter White transforming into a vicious drug kingpin is a long, sad tragedy. It also starts a bit slow. Breaking Bad’s first season is excellent, but the show really hit its stride as its criminal underworld was slowly revealed in subsequent seasons.
Avatar: The Last Airbender
The first season of Avatar is amazing, by all accounts. However, it’s still clearly carrying some “children’s cartoon” awkwardness, with a few shoehorned jokes and obvious network-mandated goofiness. By its second season, the show matures into one of the finest Western animated shows ever made.
Parks and Rec
Parks and Rec eventually became one of the best sitcoms of the 2010s, but it took it a few seasons to find its voice. Thankfully, the writers figured out what they wanted to do with characters like Andy and Leslie as the show went on. When they added Adam Scott and Rob Lowe, things also took a turn in the right direction.
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
This one is hard to believe, but do you remember when Danny DeVito wasn’t in It’s Always Sunny? The first season of the show is much, much worse than anything that came after, and that’s largely because the core crew of loathsome misfits at its center needs Frank there to play off of.
American Dad
American Dad was forgettable Family Guy-adjacent nonsense in its first few seasons. However, as it went along, something unexpected happened. The writers found their own voice and the show became a genuinely excellent surreal comedy that has long since surpassed the show that spawned it.
The Venture Bros
Early Adult Swim show The Venture Bros began as a somewhat straightforward raunchy, cynical parody of Johnny Quest. However, each season after the first layered in more robust worldbuilding, unique characters, and deeply introspective storytelling. It morphed into one of the best animated shows ever made and a loving tribute to superheroes, comic books, and animation as a medium for storytelling.
The Good Place
Don’t get this one mistaken, The Good Place has an absolutely stellar first season. Somehow, the show manages to get better every season even after that now-famous twist ending in the first season’s finale. The ultimate ending will have you crying like a baby, by the way.
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Buffy the Vampire Slayer
What started as a simple monster-of-the-week show for Sarah Michelle Geller to show up and look great on slowly became a genuinely moving tale of growing up. Buffy eventually deals with heavy topics like first love, first breakups, and even themes like free will and the never ending nature of the fight against evil.
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Better Call Saul
It should come as no surprise that Better Call Saul is amazing. It stars the always-excellent Bob Odenkirk and was helmed by some of the best writing talent in Hollywood. Its first season is very good, but it’s a bit slow—especially if you watch it on the heels of its predecessor, Breaking Bad. However, throughout its run, its scope widens and it becomes one of the best crime dramas ever made.
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