With 2000s nostalgia at an all time high right now, here are some adult animated series that were cancelled way too soon and need a revival to get a second chance. You might have noticed how many classic animated series have been returning with new projects of some kind, and it’s been especially notable for the world of adult animation as well. As new projects continue to release, there is a chance that some previous work might find a whole new audience with a revived project. At the very least, they deserve more attention.

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The 2000s had a ton of animated shows that had quite a lot of promise, but never quite found an audience. Cancelled way too soon before we got to see what they were really made of, the world is a lot more open thanks to all of the potential streaming platforms and more that offer an opportunity to find new fans. These seven shows in particular needed way more attention before their cancellation, and would do very well in the modern day with a new revival.

7). God, the Devil and Bob

Created by Matthew Carson in 2000, God, the Devil and Bob had one of the messiest runs on this list with only four episodes getting to air before being cancelled and completely taken off of TV. The final nine episodes of the series weren’t aired until 11 years later when it was picked up by Adult Swim, and fans got to see what they missed. It’s a big idea with a small package as it places Bob in the middle of a major debate between God and Devil.

With God wanting to start life over, Bob is chosen as humanity’s representative. The three end up spending a lot of time in a bar, and it goes through some weighty subjects. Its cancellation was brought about by a mix of both lower ratings and complaints about its religious content, and a revival could really tap into what this show was trying to do back then. The world would be more open to such an idea now.

6). Drawn Together

Debuting on Comedy Central in 2004, Dave Jeser and Matt Silverstein’s Drawn Together is kind of an odd ask for a revival. It’s so emblematic of the 2000s as it’s based on a reality show idea that’s no longer notable (celebrities living in a house together), and it’s got so many jokes and ideas that have aged terribly. But that’s also what makes the idea of a revival such an interesting prospect for it.

It used animated characters to push the boundaries of what was acceptable on Comedy Central, and there’s just something so intriguing about the idea of it getting another shot at it with some kind of revival to push those boundaries even more. It might be a total wreck, and not be a good idea at all. But we kind of need to see it happen anyway.

5). Xavier: Renegade Angel

Created by John Lee, Vernon Chatman, Alyson Levy and Jim Tozzi for Adult Swim in 2007, Xavier: Renegade Angel is another one of those shows that we kind of just need to see a second attempt at. It’s such a wild series that episodes didn’t really have a plot, nor connect to one another. You kind of found it airing at a weird time in the middle of the night, and your life was changed in its short 11 minute runtime.

Its aesthetic and writing were so surreal that there’s a certain energy about it that we’ve seen other shows like Smiling Friends, YOLO, and more that follow in that same spirit later to success as well. In weird times, you need a weird show like this back with another round.

4). Titan Maximum

Tom Root and Matthew Senreich’s Titan Maximum never took off to the kind of success that Robot Chicken did with Adult Swim, but the 2009 does deserve another shot at finding the audience. Taking on popular Tokusatsu shows like Power Rangers, and inspired by the likes of anime like Voltron, it was a parodical take on a colorful team uniting to fight bigger baddies.

It might not have taken off due to the weakness of the core cast, but with some retooling the idea would do very well right now. It at least deserved another season to see what ideas of jokes could have come out of it.

3). Baby Blues

But when talking about one season long animated shows cancelled before they truly got a chance, Baby Blues is high up on that list. Based on Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott’s comic strip of the same name, this show was criminally cut short and taken off the air on The WB after just nine episodes. Fans didn’t get to see the final episodes of the series until reruns were licensed by Adult Swim a decade later, and even more cruelly was the fact that a second season was produced by never aired even after all this time.

The show had a ton of major names in the voice cast for the time, and really tapped into the animated sitcom family vein that we’ve seen continue with the likes of The Simpsons, Family Guy, and Bob’s Burgers. The episodes have aged incredibly well despite when they were released, and that really does seem to indicate that a revival would be able to get right back into the same rhythm. It just deserved way more attention.

2). The Oblongs

Angus Oblong and Jace Richdale’s The Oblongs made its debut with The WB in 2001, and was also cancelled before it aired all of its episodes. It wasn’t until it was picked up by Adult Swim a decade later that fans got to see the final episodes, and it was there that the true potential of the series was revealed in full. With a stellar voice cast like Will Ferrell, Jean Smart, and Pamela Adlon leading the way, it’s wild how this one never really got a fair shot.

It was way ahead of its time. It was an average family dealing with average issues, but in a very wacky world of extremes thanks to all of the pollution in their area. It tackled quite a few societal issues, and had a lot of fun ideas that would likely hit even more so with a revival. We need to see a second season of this show would look like. Just have more wacky adventures.

1). Mission Hill

But if there’s one cancelled animated series from the 2000s that is a perfect fit for a revival, it’s Mission Hill. Yet another example of a show airing a few episodes with The WB before getting to air its final episodes years later with Adult Swim, the Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein series was truly ahead of its time. It’s a story about two brothers reconnecting at an older age as the older slacker pushes away his nerdy younger brother, but city life brings them closer.

It’s a series that we only saw the potential of as it was just starting to scratch the surface of its massive roster of fun characters. Mission Hill would also fit with the kind of revival we get these days that feature older versions of a classic show’s characters too. It would be cool to see what Andy and Kevin are up to now. Heck, it’d be great to see them at all as it’s not streaming anywhere. Bring this one back!

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