7 TV Shows Considered The Worst Ever Made

Following the overwhelmingly negative reaction to “All’s Fair,” it’s a good moment to revisit other TV shows that were initially considered failures, like “Inhumans,” “Velma,” and “The Idol.” Creating a TV show is difficult, and making a good one is even harder.

Look, I get that Ryan Murphy and Kim Kardashian are both doing incredibly well for themselves, but even a ton of money doesn’t make bad reviews hurt any less. Their new legal drama, All’s Fair, starring Niecy Nash-Betts and Naomi Watts, is really getting slammed by critics – and honestly, the reception has been shockingly poor. It’s one of those shows that’s making headlines for how bad it is, not for being good.

Critics didn’t hold back on All’s Fair. USA Today called it the year’s worst TV show, The Guardian gave it a rare zero-star review, and it earned a 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes when it premiered. This makes it a truly notable failure, though it’s certainly not the only show to receive such harsh criticism.

7. Work It

The sitcom Work It was quickly canceled after just two episodes. Set in St. Louis, it followed two men, Lee and Angel, who disguised themselves as women to find employment during the tough economic times of the early 2010s. The idea behind the show was problematic and could be seen as insensitive to transgender issues, and rightfully so.

The ABC sitcom Work It faced criticism from multiple organizations, including the LA Gay and Lesbian Center, GLAAD, and the Human Rights Campaign. It also offended Puerto Rican viewers with a joke in the first episode where a character claimed his heritage would make him good at selling drugs.

6. The Idol

HBO heavily promoted the 2023 series The Idol before it aired, largely due to the popularity of its creator and stars. The show, directed by Sam Levinson—the creator of Euphoria—stars R&B singer Abel Tesfaye and Lily-Rose Depp. It’s a dark and unsettling story about a manipulative nightclub owner who pursues a naive young pop star.

The show The Idol initially seemed like it would be a bold and edgy romantic thriller, but it didn’t deliver on that promise. As The Hollywood Reporter pointed out, the show’s attempt to be shocking actually made it feel outdated and backward.

Instead of being shocking or provocative, The Idol was surprisingly dull and felt very disconnected from reality. It took itself—and its over-the-top villain—way too seriously, missing the mark as a sharp satire of the entertainment industry. Ultimately, the show proved to be a low point in the careers of everyone involved, and stands out as one of the most embarrassing TV failures of the past few years.

5. Capitol Critters

Look, let’s be honest, after The Simpsons blew up in the early ’90s, everyone tried to copy it. And Capitol Critters was one of them. But what always struck me is that most of the other copycats, even the really bad ones, at least tried to have a reason to exist, some kind of unique angle. Capitol Critters? Not so much.

While Family Dog clearly borrowed heavily from The Simpsons, it was created by talented artists Brad Bird and Tim Burton, with Steven Spielberg as a producer. The show actually started as a popular episode of Amazing Stories. Fish Police, strangely enough, was about police officers who were fish, but it was inspired by a well-loved, underground comic book.

Unlike other cartoons, Capitol Critters was aimed at adults and featured talking animals in Washington, D.C. It used these animal characters to make jokes about current political events and people. However, the show was ultimately unsuccessful because it was too complex for kids and too silly for adults, and its references quickly became outdated.

4. Fred: The Show

Lucas Cruikshank was once hugely popular on YouTube, becoming the first creator to reach one million subscribers with his ‘Fred’ channel in 2009. Despite this early success, Cruikshank had difficulty translating the ‘Fred’ character to other formats, facing criticism for appearances like the iCarly episode “iMeet Fred” and the 2010 film Fred: The Movie.

Even though Devon Cruikshank was very young when his Nickelodeon show premiered in 2012, the negative reaction to his earlier movie likely hinted at how viewers would respond to another project featuring this controversial character. As it turned out, Fred: The Show was quickly labeled the worst show on Nickelodeon, with critics struggling to understand what people found appealing about the character’s high energy.

Lucas Cruikshank, known for his popular YouTube character Fred, hasn’t appeared on TV much since 2013. Although Fred was a hit with young children online, that success didn’t translate to television. In fact, the TV show Fred: The Show is widely considered one of the worst ever made.

3. Inhumans

As a film and TV enthusiast, I was really surprised comparing Fred: The Show to Inhumans. While Fred had a popular YouTuber behind it, Inhumans, from 2017, felt like it had a lot more going for it as an early part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There were high expectations for it to be as successful as shows like Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter, you know, to really carry on that momentum.

The show, Inhumans, didn’t fare well. Despite featuring well-known actors like Anson Mount, Serinda Swan, and Iwan Rheon, it received overwhelmingly negative reviews and low ratings, leading to its cancellation after just one season. It earned a dismal 11% score on Rotten Tomatoes and was largely considered a disappointment.

The TV show Inhumans was widely considered a critical disaster, described as “Dreadful,” “A complete failure,” “Messy,” and “Miserable.” Many saw it as one of the first indications that the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s winning streak was starting to fade. Though initially planned for three seasons, it was quickly canceled and largely forgotten, only receiving a brief mention in a cameo appearance in the 2022 film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

2. Cop Rock

Despite having famous actors and connections to the popular Marvel Cinematic Universe, the show Inhumans wasn’t a success. But it’s still not as famously bad as Cop Rock, a truly strange 1990 series that combined police drama with musical numbers. Cop Rock featured music by Randy Newman and starred James McDaniel, who later became known for NYPD Blue, so it had potential, but it just didn’t work out.

The biggest issue with the show was its core idea. Cop Rock was a police drama with a twist: the officers and detectives would suddenly break into song and dance while solving crimes like murders and investigating drug trafficking. Surprisingly, despite this unusual approach, the show didn’t shy away from serious and realistic drama.

Cop Rock was unlike anything else on TV. It famously featured scenes where serious storylines – like a police officer helping a mother find her baby after it was sold to traffickers – would abruptly transition into full-blown musical numbers. It was simply too unconventional for audiences in 1990.

The TV show Cop Rock was quickly canceled after just 11 episodes due to extremely poor reviews. While some later critics have acknowledged its ambition and originality, most agreed the show simply wasn’t well-executed.

1. Velma

Custom Image by Debanjana Chowdhury

As a big movie fan, I thought a Scooby-Doo reboot focused on Velma, with Mindy Kaling playing her, sounded really promising. Honestly, the R rating felt a little strange at first, but then I saw they’d cast Sam Richardson, Melissa Fumero, and Glenn Howerton, and it made me think, okay, maybe this could actually work! Those are some seriously talented people, so it gave me hope that even a risky idea could be pulled off well.

When the first previews for Velma were released, the show immediately faced criticism online. In a strange move, the series even seemed to complain about fans disliking it before it had even aired. This defensive approach didn’t win anyone over, and the reboot quickly joined other critically panned shows like Inhumans, The Idol, and All’s Fair as a major disappointment.

2025-11-09 17:30