Brilliant But Cancelled: Arrested Development and Firefly are not the only shows that didn't get a fair shot.

Memorial Day weekend gave TV fans the much salivated over return of Arrested Development. In an unprecedented move, Netflix has created a 16 episode season 4 that many marathon watched over the long weekend (although we will never know how many because Netflix doesn't release that information).

Fans of shows with short shelf lives are nothing new. The Browncoats of Firefly have enjoyed a decade long love affair with a series that had a brief 12 episode run. The fact that they were able to make a feature length film was miraculous by industry standards. Spend five minutes on the internet and you can easily see the enduring passion and love of Captain Mal and his crew. That fandom extends to all the fine actors who were a part of the show, sometimes superseding the work and success many have gone on to have in the decade since it's airing. I recently saw several interviews with Alan Tudyk promoting the film '42'. All inevitably asked a questioned that referenced Firefly. It is astonishing to see how this ambitious failure remains intrinsically connected to so many people. The affection the actors and creators have for Firefly is self evident. Watch the 10th anniversary Comic Con roundtable and fan event and you will see just how much loyalty, professional respect and creative harmony resonates with an audience. It was a brief moment in time by TV standards, but I think the real legacy of Firefly will be that good, inventive, original work succeeds, even if it initially fails commercially. Thanks to a combination of the internet, DVD release and Comic Cons rather than fading away into the fabric of TV history Firefly continues to grow in its mystique and fandom.

Firefly actually shares a similar (though less technological) path of films like Citizen Cane, The Wizard of Oz and more recently Blade Runner, all of which were commercial failures. You'd be hard pressed today to find someone who would call any of those films failures. Citizen Cane is often lauded as the finest film ever made. Not bad company to be in if you ask me. One of the best outcomes of DVD releases and now streaming is they have breathed new life into series that were broadcast failures but developed cult followings along the way.

I think the resurrection of Arrested Development is proof that technology has opened up an entirely new avenue for TV shows that were perhaps ahead of their time or the victim of an impatient network. One of the absolute best things about my Roku is bringing my favorites back to my living room. I can watch series I missed along the way and more importantly I can revisit shows that never quite got off the ground. Here are some of my personal picks. What would yours be?

For the purpose of this list any show that got less than a full three seasons qualifies and because they are already mentioned above I am not including Firefly and Arrested Development to the list below. They are the gold standard of brilliant but cancelled.

My list of Brilliant But Cancelled:

1. Sports Night This is the show The West Wing killed. It was one of Sorkin's more insightful settings and was littered with a terrific cast, lead by Peter Krause and Josh Charles. When people talk about Newsroom all I think about is that it owes its success to a format initiated by this great series. It ran for only two seasons and the back 5 episodes felt the absence of Sorkin's care and feeding. However, it doesn't take away from the fact they had a first season that simply did not have a bad episode. It was funny, a tip of the hat to sports fans and contained a noble heart, often seen through the wonderful Robert Guillaume. Here's Joshua Malina's first scene from the pilot, it is the interview to end all interviews and shows you just how underutilized Felicity Huffman's talents were on Desperate Housewives.

2. Boomtown This was no ordinary 'law and order' procedural. Boomtown was a creative twist on the genre by taking a "Sound and Fury" approach to storytelling. Audiences watched the episode and crime unfold through the points of view of several key vested players including investigators, a reporter, lawyers and cops. The show weaved intricate connections among the characters that were dished out with just enough prudence to entice the viewer. It put Donnie Walberg and Neal McDonough at the center and made a compelling drama that deliberately abandoned linear storytelling. By season 2 NBC execs forced the show's creators to change to a more traditional format. Doing so spelled the death of the show. However the first season in particular had wonderfully dark, morally ambiguous characters that make this show worth the time.

3. My So Called Life This show will forever be known for launching Claire Danes career. However what it did in one season was honestly portray the cruel, self-centered, self-consciousness that lives in the heart of every high school girl. It took real life subject matters head on and navigated them through the prism of teen angst. That one of the leads was a young gay boy was revolutionary at the time the show aired. That it didn't completely stereotype the character speaks to the care the show's creators took. Plus we all were in love with a Jordan Catalano in High School. I am always astonished at the fact that this show only lasted a season, especially when I think of the poorly written and plotted 'teen dramas' that have long shelf lives today. It's a gem that was ahead of its time.

4. Freaks and Geeks The definition of high school identity was at the core of Freaks and Geeks. Set in the 80s it provides a backdrop of the torments of school through humor and painfully accurate plot points to what life is like inside battles of the High School social structure. Where My So Called Life was darker in that tortured teen portrayal Freaks and Geeks reflected the mood of being a teen in the 80s which had a lighter, awkward sensibility. It was a show that never found an audience until after it was gone, but usually makes most cult fan base lists. It's also an opportunity to see the likes of Jud Aptow and Seth Rogen before the became movie phenoms and in my opinion at their creative best.

5. Eli Stone I adored this show and it's completely off the wall premise of an attorney who hears the guidance of God through messages that are telegraphed in musical interludes, initially from George Michael. The show was a midseason replacement and victim of the writers strike, never really able to recover from the delay between its first and second seasons. It doesn't diminish the less than altruistic journey our lead character takes and how engrossing some of these episodes were. What makes the show work is Eli is reluctant to follow this morality quest. Truth be told, I grew a big old crush on Johnny Lee Miller when this show aired. His sincerity on screen is infectious and even within the outlandish plot devices the show achieved a sense of honesty. Eli's character was deeply flawed and his integrity grew from actions not of his own making, but certainly of his own choosing which made the redemptive tone of the show feel earned.

Honorable Mentions:

Golden Boy - Of the 2013 freshman, this was the worst case of network misplacement. If it had been on NBC I think it would have gotten a second season. On a crowded niche viewing market on CBS it never found its footing. It's a shame and if you want to see some wonderful performances in a promising drama Golden Boy is where you should look.

Dead Like Me - Here was a show whose premise was so strange that even Showtime had a hard time defining it. Anytime you have a show that gives me Mandy Patinkin I am in. This show was no different. While it could be wildly inconsistent it was never uninteresting.

Terriers - Plagued with an awful name, a 3rd tier network and poor marketing this show came stumbling out of the block. It was a buddy crime drama with an ex-cop and an ex-con serving as private investigators. Deeply sarcastic and dark (it had an episode called "Fustercluck" ) It only lasted a season, but it was a hell of a season  and worth the time if you have any love of the crime genre.

The Job - This is Dennis Leary's undervalued and underrated show before he found great success on Rescue Me. This show was quintessential Leary and for those of us who love his stand up this show was a pure joy. Louie CK has become a bit of a TV darling for his Louie show. I wish the same had happened for Leary with The Job. If you have any affection whatsoever for Leary's comedy this show is mandatory viewing.

The Riches - Who knew Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver could make a dramedy about travelers engaging and funny all at the same time. Add in Margo Martindale and this little gem was TV delight. It got points from me simply for its unusual subject matter of con-artist gypsies trying to live in upper middle class America. Izzard is amazing and Driver makes an interesting departure from what she's been known for in her films. The show isn't perfect and has Swiss cheese plot holes but it is entertaining from beginning to end.

What show did you think was gone too soon? Which one in the age of Roku, Netflix and Hulu Plus will you be checking out sooner rather than later?