TV Shows That Never Had a Better Season Than the First

Do you have a show you wish you could watch for the first time? Or specifically a first season? Some first seasons just can’t be beat. As a story or show complicates itself with new episodes and long plot lines, the main heart of the show is hidden.

So, which TV shows never had a better season after the first? Probably one of the more popular series on this list is “The Flash.” This exciting superhero TV show centered around Barry Allen as he accidentally becomes the Flash. This series went on for nine seasons. The first season was released on October 7, 2014. It had stellar reviews. Over four million people tuned in to watch the first season. By the last season, viewership dwindled to a little less than 1 million. Still, this is impressive!

“The Flash” is just one example of a TV show that had an excellent first season. The same goes for “Riverdale.” So many fans loved the drama, beautiful outfits, and interesting characters in the beginning. The first season of “Riverdale” attracted millions of viewers. By the last season, less than half of a million viewers were tuning in.

It’s hard to replicate the magic of a show’s first season. During the first season of a show, the audience is introduced to the main characters and the ‘meat’ of the story. Characters are what makes a TV show great. ( Click here for the most despicable TV characters ever .)

When the ‘meat’ or problem is solved, what’s next? Whatever comes next isn’t always smooth. Keep reading to discover TV shows that never had a better season than the first.

To determine the television shows that never had a better season than the first, 24/7 Tempo reviewed episode-level data on audience reception from IMDb . TV series were ranked based on the percentage difference between the average IMDb rating for episodes in the first season and the average across all other episodes. Only shows with at least 40,000 IMDb user reviews total were considered.

40. Legion (2017-2019)

Source: Courtesy of FX Network

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.6/10 (36,576 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 8.3/10 (36,590 votes)

39. Supergirl (2015-2021)

Source: Courtesy of CBS

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.7/10 (61,585 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.5/10 (169,924 votes)

38. See (2019-2022)

Source: Courtesy of Apple TV

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.0/10 (32,461 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.8/10 (26,359 votes)

37. A Discovery of Witches (2018-2022)

Source: Courtesy of Acorn Media Group

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.1/10 (15,839 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.9/10 (13,478 votes)

36. My Name Is Earl (2005-2009)

Source: Courtesy of National Broadcasting Company

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.9/10 (19,499 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.7/10 (40,388 votes)

35. Emily in Paris (2020-Present)

Source: Courtesy of Netflix

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.3/10 (15,548 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.0/10 (17,109 votes)

34. The O.C. (2003-2007)

Source: Courtesy of Fox Network

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.1/10 (19,233 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.8/10 (32,951 votes)

33. Servant (2019-2023)

Source: Courtesy of Apple TV+

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.8/10 (17,062 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.5/10 (25,430 votes)

32. Sleepy Hollow (2013-2017)

Source: Courtesy of 20th Century Fox Television

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.9/10 (14,920 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.6/10 (23,939 votes)

31. Narcos: Mexico (2018-2021)

Source: Courtesy of Netflix

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.4/10 (23,657 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 8.1/10 (29,379 votes)

30. Final Space (2018-2021)

Source: Courtesy of Turner Broadcasting System

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.5/10 (14,038 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 8.1/10 (19,384 votes)

29. Shooter (2016-2018)

Source: Courtesy of USA Network

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.0/10 (9,915 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.6/10 (10,871 votes)

28. Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1996-2003)

Source: Courtesy of American Broadcasting Company

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.4/10 (8,899 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.1/10 (28,568 votes)

27. Under the Dome (2013-2015)

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.2/10 (21,878 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 6.8/10 (25,776 votes)

26. Fargo (2014-2024)

Source: Courtesy of FX Network

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.9/10 (106,503 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 8.4/10 (215,596 votes)

25. Prison Break (2005-2017)

Source: Courtesy of 20th Television

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.8/10 (114,391 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 8.3/10 (249,373 votes)

24. The Walking Dead (2010-2022)

Source: Courtesy of American Movie Classics

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.6/10 (114,229 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 8.1/10 (2,012,639 votes)

23. American Crime Story (2016-Present)

Source: Courtesy of FX Network

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.6/10 (36,652 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 8.0/10 (33,045 votes)

22. New Amsterdam (2018-2023)

Source: Courtesy of NBC

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.3/10 (20,377 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.7/10 (34,103 votes)

21. Jessica Jones (2015-2019)

Source: Courtesy of Netflix

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.3/10 (75,197 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.7/10 (65,641 votes)

20. Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan (2018-2023)

Source: Courtesy of Amazon Studios

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.2/10 (34,383 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.6/10 (53,605 votes)

19. Designated Survivor (2016-2019)

Source: Courtesy of American Broadcasting Company

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.8/10 (39,910 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.2/10 (32,787 votes)

18. Westworld (2016-2022)

Source: Courtesy of Home Box Office

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.9/10 (194,681 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 8.2/10 (240,846 votes)

17. Doom Patrol (2019-2023)

Source: Courtesy of DC Universe

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.4/10 (40,918 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.7/10 (29,694 votes)

16. Empire (2015-2020)

Source: Courtesy of Walt Disney Television

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.2/10 (9,155 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.5/10 (19,973 votes)

15. American Gods (2017-2021)

Source: Courtesy of Starz

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.0/10 (28,256 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.3/10 (20,932 votes)

14. Titans (2018-2023)

Source: Courtesy of HBO Max

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.2/10 (47,558 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.5/10 (68,424 votes)

13. Quantico (2015-2018)

Source: Courtesy of Disney-ABC Domestic Television

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.3/10 (22,709 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 6.7/10 (16,137 votes)

12. The Rookie (2018-Present)

Source: Courtesy of American Broadcasting Company

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.1/10 (26,878 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.4/10 (75,425 votes)

11. Star Trek: Discovery (2017-2024)

Source: Courtesy of CBS

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.5/10 (80,695 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 6.8/10 (134,498 votes)

10. Riverdale (2017-2023)

Source: Courtesy of The CW Network

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 7.9/10 (33,099 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.1/10 (131,108 votes)

9. Heroes (2006-2010)

Source: Courtesy of National Broadcasting Company

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.2/10 (50,193 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.4/10 (65,485 votes)

8. Goliath (2016-2021)

Source: Courtesy of Amazon Prime Video

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.3/10 (10,142 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.5/10 (20,364 votes)

7. The Flash (2014-2023)

Source: Courtesy of The CW Network

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.7/10 (169,596 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.8/10 (470,038 votes)

6. The Sinner (2017-2021)

Source: Courtesy of USA Network

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.1/10 (25,536 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.2/10 (40,587 votes)

5. Killing Eve (2018-2022)

Source: Courtesy of American Movie Classics

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.4/10 (37,091 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.3/10 (67,352 votes)

4. The Morning Show (2019-Present)

Source: Courtesy of Apple TV

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.6/10 (38,791 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.4/10 (31,022 votes)

3. The Witcher (2019-Present)

Source: Courtesy of Netflix

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.3/10 (167,853 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.1/10 (150,737 votes)

2. True Detective (2014-Present)

Source: Courtesy of Home Box Office

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 9.2/10 (204,823 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 7.8/10 (192,585 votes)

1. 13 Reasons Why (2017-2020)

Source: Courtesy of Viacom

• Avg. IMDb user rating, season one: 8.4/10 (84,538 votes)
• Avg. IMDb user rating, rest of series: 6.9/10 (93,178 votes)

The post TV Shows That Never Had a Better Season Than the First appeared first on 24/7 Tempo .