It’s not uncommon for successful and popular TV shows to get reboots, but some of them almost ruined the original show. Most of the best TV shows of all time had satisfying endings that left no loose threads or room for any type of continuation. However, their popularity was such that networks and studios found a way to bring them back.

Reboots have become a divisive practice on TV, as, arguably, most TV shows that get this treatment don’t need it. Surely, there have been some cases, like Doctor Who and One Day At A Time, where a reboot has been successful, but others were so bad (and unnecessary, in most cases) that they almost ruined the original show.

Charmed

2018-2022

The original Charmed is a fantasy drama TV series that aired on The WB from 1998 to 2006, and it follows the Halliwell sisters – Phoebe (Alyssa Milano), Prue (Shannen Doherty), and Piper (Holly Marie Combs) –, who discover the family’s Book of Shadows. As it turns out, the sisters are the most powerful witches of all time, and use their combined Power of Three to protect their community.

Charmed is one of the most popular TV shows of the late 1990s and early 2000s, and in 2018, it got a reboot also titled Charmed. The show follows the same premise and concept as the original one, though with more diversity than it. However, this wasn’t enough to save the new Charmed from controversy.

The show was accused of colorism, and fans (as well as cast members) from the original show expressed their disapproval of the reboot. In the end, the Charmed reboot didn’t offer anything new, nor did it add to the original show, and its controversies also ruined both shows.

Heroes Reborn

2015-2016

Heroes is a superhero drama TV series that aired on NBC from 2006 and 2010. Heroes is one of the best TV shows of the 2000s, and it didn’t take long for it to get a reboot. The original Heroes follows ordinary people who discover they have superpowers, and explores how these unique abilities affect their lives and how they use them to save the world.

In 2015, Heroes Reborn arrived as a 13-episode miniseries. Heroes Reborn reunites viewers with this universe’s superpowered individuals, who are now being hunted after being blamed for a terrorist attack. As a result, they have become vigilantes, while new heroes emerge, and they must join forces to stop a global catastrophe.

Heroes Reborn couldn’t match the quality and success of the main show as it had undeveloped characters, lacked the original show’s grounded tone, had convoluted storylines, and felt rushed. Heroes Reborn is a revival that fans would like to forget, and many choose to stay with the original show.

Are You Afraid of the Dark?

2019-2022

Are You Afraid of the Dark? is one of the best TV shows of the 1990s, and it’s an anthology horror series aimed at a young audience, thus being the first approach to horror for many kids. Are You Afraid of the Dark? follows a group of teens who call themselves “The Midnight Society” and who gather in a secret location in the woods at midnight to share scary stories.

Every episode is a story told by a different member of the Midnight Society, and despite being aimed at kids, it has various episodes that are quite scary even for adults. Are You Afraid of the Dark? was successfully revived in 1999, but the same can’t be said about its 2019 reboot.

The biggest problem with the Are You Afraid of the Dark? reboot is that it changed the original show’s format, following one mystery every season. The stories also lacked the grounded tone of the original show, which, despite dealing with fantasy elements, managed to make its stories believable and scary.

And Just Like That…

2022-2025

Back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Sex and the City arrived and quickly became quite popular, becoming one of the best TV shows of all time. Created by Darren Star and based on Candace Bushnell’s 1996 book of the same name, Sex and the City followed Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) and her friends as they navigated love, friendship, and work in New York City.

Sex and the City stood out for how relatable, grounded, and direct it was, and after two movies, it got a reboot/sequel series titled And Just Like That. The reboot reunited viewers with Carrie and her friends (except Samantha) and introduced new characters as they navigate the modern world in all respects.

And Just Like That lacked everything that made Sex and the City so popular and successful, had a tremendous lack of character development (and some even went back many, many steps), nonsensical storylines, unlikable new characters, and was not relatable anymore. It doesn’t take away all the greatness of the original show, but it definitely makes one want to forget the reboot ever happened.

The X-Files

2016-2018

The X-Files is one of the best sci-fi TV shows of all time, and as such, the idea of a reboot was exciting and promising – unfortunately, it didn’t quite deliver. Created by Christ Carter, The X-Files follows skeptic FBI agent Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) and conspiracy theorist and fellow agent Fox Mulder (David Duchovny), who are assigned to unsolved cases involving paranormal phenomena.

The X-Files ran for nine seasons and ended in 2002, but in 2016 it got a reboot with a 10th season, followed by an 11th one in 2018. Although these seasons followed the same concept as the first nine, the X-Files reboot was convoluted, poorly written, and Mulder and Scully felt very out of character and inconsistent.

As the X-Files reboot is counted as seasons of the original show, it didn’t quite ruin the entire show, but it’s two seasons that fans usually choose to skip.