This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

In this age of the social media, it seems like every TV show that's canceled has a group trying to save it. Or, sometimes for years on end, trying to revive it.

But it's mostly an illusion. It might be 11 people who meet online and make noise way out of proportion with reality.

Sigh.

Most series are axed because of bad ratings. Even successful shows eventually end because either (a) costs have risen to the point that they're no longer profitable, or (b) the show's stars want to leave.

And the fact is that most shows that get canceled deserve their fate. In 2016, it's pretty much impossible to feel anything but indifference — maybe even a bit of joy— that the cancellations included "Angel From Hell" (CBS), "Aquarius" (NBC), "Bordertown" (Fox), "Cooper Barrett's Guide to Surviving Life" (Fox), "Coupled" (Fox), "Donny!" (CNBC), "Heartbeat" (NBC), "Houdini and Doyle" (Fox), "Feed the Beast" (AMC), "Hunters" (Syfy), "I Am Cait" (E!), "Kocktails with Khloe" (FYI), "Mistresses" (ABC), "Mysteries of Laura" (NBC), "Notorious" (ABC), "Of Kings and Prophets" (ABC), "Roadies" (Showtime), "Penny Dreadful" (Showtime), "Uncle Buck" (ABC) and "Vinyl" (HBO).

Just to name a few.

Some shows — like "Devious Maids" (Lifetime), "The Family" (ABC) and "Tyrant" (FX) — were ready to go, but leaving with unresolved cliffhangers is annoying.

But there are shows that die too young, shows that have creative life left in them. They aren't necessarily the best shows on TV, but they're good. And, given a chance, they could have gotten better.

Those are the cancellations to mourn.

In 2016, that list includes:

"The Jim Gaffigan Show" (TV Land) • It's sad that this smart, funny family sitcom ended, but Jim and his wife, Jeannie (who was the showrunner), pulled the plug because of heavy workloads and their five young children.

"Galavant" (ABC) • Kudos to ABC for giving us two seasons of this bizarre medieval musical comedy, but it's too bad there isn't room on TV for more.

"Grandfathered" (Fox) • John Stamos was utterly charming, and this comedy got better as it went along. A second season (at least) would've been nice.

"Marvel's Agent Carter" (ABC) • This was a much better show than "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." And, adding insult to injury, the actor who plays Peggy Carter — Hayley Atwell — now stars in the awful ABC series "Conviction."

"The Muppets" (ABC) • ABC execs panicked and tried to change this show's direction. They should have left it alone. It was good and getting better.

"The Nightly Show With Larry Wilmore" • Comedy Central canceled this show but left the inferior "Daily Show With Trevor Noah" on the air. And the declining ratings of the "Daily Show" no doubt hurt "The Nightly Show," which followed it.

"Rush Hour" (CBS) • Not a great show, but it had possibilities. Clearly, the folks at CBS didn't think it was headed in the right direction.

"Telenovela" (NBC) • This show could be hilarious at times. Yes, it was uneven. But it takes a lot of comedies — even the best comedies — more than 11 episodes to find their footing.

"You, Me and the Apocalypse" (NBC) • This British-American co-production about the impending end of the world was wildly offbeat and surprisingly engaging. And, unfortunately, it left us on a cliffhanger.

Scott D. Pierce covers television for The Salt Lake Tribune. Email him at spierce@sltrib.com; follow him on Twitter @ScottDPierce.