We’ve all been there—rolling our eyes at the announcement of yet another spinoff trying to capitalize on a show we love. Let’s face it: most spinoffs feel like the TV equivalent of leftover pizza. It’s still okay, but it’s never quite as good as the original. But every now and then, something magical happens. A spinoff comes along that doesn’t just live up to its predecessor—it actually surpasses it.
These rare gems take what worked in the original series and elevate it to new heights, sometimes becoming so successful that people forget they weren’t the original show to begin with! So grab your remote and get comfortable as we count down the top 10 spinoff shows that didn’t just escape their parent shows’ shadows but cast impressive shadows of their own.
10. Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Remember when Angel packed his bags and left Sunnydale behind? Turns out, that brooding vampire with a soul had a lot more story to tell. While Joss Whedon‘s Buffy the Vampire Slayer changed the television landscape with its monster-as-metaphor approach to teenage struggles, Angel took a decidedly more adult turn that many fans found refreshingly complex.
Set in the grimy, noir-inspired streets of Los Angeles, the spinoff ditched high school drama for existential questions about redemption and the cost of fighting evil in a world full of gray areas. David Boreanaz’s Angel evolved from a mysterious love interest into a fully realized hero with his own found family of misfits.
The show’s willingness to take risks—including a truly shocking fifth-season corporate takeover storyline—gave it creative freedom that Buffy sometimes lacked in its later seasons. For many viewers, Angel‘s more consistent quality and willingness to go dark made it the superior Whedonverse experience.
9. The Jeffersons (All in the Family)
When George and Louise Jefferson moved up to that deluxe apartment in the sky, they didn’t just leave Archie Bunker’s neighborhood—they left his show in the dust, too. The Jeffersons took a supporting character from Norman Lear‘s groundbreaking All in the Family and built an 11-season juggernaut that outlasted its parent show.
What made it special? For starters, it gave us television’s first prominent upper-middle-class Black family at a time when most Black characters on TV were still defined by struggle.
The electric chemistry between Sherman Hemsley and Isabel Sanford created one of television’s most iconic couples, with their loving bickering and genuine partnership serving as the perfect foundation for both comedy and social commentary.
While All in the Family often viewed race relations through the lens of Archie Bunker’s bigotry, The Jeffersons offered a more nuanced perspective on success, prejudice, and what it meant to be Black in America during a pivotal era of social change. It manages to feel both of its time and timeless—no small feat for a sitcom from the 1970s.
8. The Good Fight (The Good Wife)
How many spinoffs can say they’re more relevant than their predecessor? The Good Fight took everything we loved about The Good Wife—the sharp legal drama, complex female characters, and political intrigue—and cranked it up to eleven.
Following Diane Lockhart (the magnificent Christine Baranski) after a financial scam wipes out her savings, the show charts her journey at a historically Black law firm where she’s suddenly the outsider. What makes this show so special is how it embraced the chaos of our current political landscape rather than shying away from it.
While The Good Wife often used politics as a backdrop, The Good Fight dove headfirst into the Trump era, #MeToo, fake news, and racial justice with a fearlessness that most network shows couldn’t touch. The writers found creative ways to process our collective political trauma, including animated musical sequences explaining complex topics like Russian troll farms and the infamous “pee tape.”
With its experimental storytelling techniques, stronger ensemble dynamics, and willingness to get weird when necessary, The Good Fight evolved beyond spinoff status to become one of television’s most essential political commentaries.
7. Pinky and the Brain (Animaniacs)
One exchange became so iconic that two lab mice quickly outgrew their segment on Animaniacs to headline their own series:
Pinky: What are we going to do tonight, Brain?
Brain: The same thing we do every night, Pinky—try to take over the world!
And honestly? Thank goodness they did. With Steven Spielberg as executive producer, Pinky and the Brain delivered the perfect buddy comedy formula: one genius megalomaniac mouse (Brain) and his lovable dimwit companion (Pinky) attempting increasingly ridiculous schemes for world domination.
What made this spinoff so brilliant was how it worked on multiple levels—kids could enjoy the slapstick comedy and catchy theme song. At the same time, adults appreciated the sophisticated references and sly political satire. The show was smart enough to know that the real heart wasn’t Brain’s schemes but the oddly touching friendship between the mismatched pair.
Though it ran for only three seasons, the show picked up multiple Emmy Awards and developed a cult following that has kept the characters relevant for decades. In the crowded landscape of 90s animation, Pinky and the Brain stands as proof that sometimes the best characters in an ensemble deserve their own spotlight—and that not even Animaniacs could contain the genius of these lab mice.
6. The Andy Griffith Show (The Danny Thomas Show)
Would you believe one of television’s most beloved shows of all time started as a backdoor pilot on another series? It’s true! Before Sheriff Andy Taylor was keeping the peace in Mayberry, he was arresting Danny Thomas for running a stop sign in a 1960 episode of The Danny Thomas Show. Talk about humble beginnings!
The episode, aptly titled “Danny Meets Andy Griffith,” introduced viewers to the widowed sheriff of a small North Carolina town—and audiences immediately fell in love. When The Andy Griffith Show officially debuted later that year, it captured America’s heart with its nostalgic portrayal of small-town life, gentle moral lessons, and unforgettable characters like Deputy Barney Fife (the incomparable Don Knotts).
Convicts at Large, S3 E11, was by far one of Howard McNear’s greatest performances. Ironically, it would be his last appearance before he suffered a stroke in 1963, which left him partially paralyzed. He returned nearly 18 months later and made almost 60 more appearances. pic.twitter.com/JXVy9X2vfr
— The Andy Griffith Show (@AndyGriffithShw) February 18, 2025
The show remained at the top of Nielsen ratings throughout its impressive 8-season run, even ending its final season at number one—a television unicorn its parent show never managed to become.
While The Danny Thomas Show is barely remembered today outside of TV history books, Mayberry has become such a powerful symbol of idealized Americana that people still visit Mount Airy, North Carolina (Griffith’s hometown and the inspiration for Mayberry) to soak in the atmosphere of a fictional town that feels more real than most actual places. That’s not just successful—that’s cultural immortality.
5. Better Call Saul (Breaking Bad)
Let’s be honest—the odds were stacked against Better Call Saul from the start. Following up Breaking Bad, widely considered one of the greatest television shows ever made, seemed like a fool’s errand. A prequel focusing on the sleazy lawyer comic relief character? It sounded like a cash grab that would tarnish the legacy of its predecessor. Boy, were we wrong.
Instead of trying to recreate the adrenaline-fueled descent of Walter White, creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould gave us something entirely different: a methodical, character-driven tragedy about a fundamentally decent man’s corruption.
Bob Odenkirk transformed Jimmy McGill from a one-note punchline into one of television’s most complex characters as Rhea Seehorn‘s Kim Wexler became the show’s secret weapon—a character so compelling she made us forget she wasn’t in the original series.
A tribute to Kim by carmenfflv_art on Instagram. #BetterCallSaul pic.twitter.com/EmNucWxElM
— Better Call Saul (@BetterCallSaul) August 27, 2023
With its meticulous attention to detail, gorgeous cinematography, and willingness to slow down and breathe, Better Call Saul accomplished the impossible: it made us forget we were watching a spinoff at all.
For many critics and fans, its consistent quality and emotional depth have elevated it above even Breaking Bad—proving that lightning can indeed strike twice in the same Albuquerque desert.
4. Frasier (Cheers)
Who would have thought that the snobbiest, most pretentious character from a blue-collar Boston bar would go on to headline one of the greatest sitcoms of all time? When Kelsey Grammer‘s psychiatrist, Frasier Crane, moved back to Seattle to host a radio call-in show and care for his retired cop father, nobody could have predicted the comedy gold that would follow.
Frasier took a supporting character and built an entire world around him that was somehow both more sophisticated and more accessible than Cheers. The show’s perfect ensemble cast—from David Hyde Pierce‘s neurotic Niles to Jane Leeves’ eccentric Daphne to the late, great John Mahoney’s gruff Martin Crane—created a family dynamic that was equal parts dysfunctional and deeply loving.
What made Frasier special was how it balanced highbrow references to opera and wine with slapstick physical comedy and heartfelt moments of vulnerability. The result was a show that never talked down to its audience but never took itself too seriously, either.
By the time it wrapped its 11-season run, Frasier had accumulated a record 37 Emmy Awards—more than its predecessor—and cemented itself as that rare spinoff that got more praise than the original did. Almost twenty-one years after its finale, we’re still raising a sherry to the Crane brothers’ comedic brilliance.
It even got a reboot in 2023, but it could not match up to the charm of the original Fraisers, hence only lasted for two seasons and ended in 2024.
3. The Simpsons (The Tracey Ullman Show)
It’s almost impossible to believe now, but television’s most iconic animated family started as crude, hastily drawn shorts squeezed between segments on The Tracey Ullman Show.
Created by cartoonist Matt Groening (supposedly in the waiting room right before his pitch meeting), the dysfunctional yellow family appeared in 48 of these rough shorts before Fox executives took a massive gamble and gave them their own half-hour primetime slot.
That gamble paid off in ways nobody could have imagined. The Simpsons quickly became the first Fox show to crack the top 30 highest-rated shows, with “Bartmania” sweeping the nation in a way that made The Tracey Ullman Show look like a forgotten opening act.
Now in its 36th season with 781 episodes, The Simpsons holds the record for longest-running American animated series, longest-running American sitcom, and longest-running American scripted primetime television series.
Its cultural footprint is so massive that over 150 phrases coined by the show—from “D’oh!” to “embiggen“—have entered our everyday language. The show has earned 37 Emmy Awards, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and was named by Time magazine as the 20th century’s best television series.
While The Tracey Ullman Show was canceled after just four seasons, the crude little cartoon segments it spawned have become one of the most successful and influential television programs of all time—proving that sometimes the biggest stars come from the most humble beginnings.
2. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Law & Order)
That iconic “dun-dun” sound has introduced a lot of Law & Order episodes over the years, but none have resonated with audiences quite like Special Victims Unit.
When this spinoff debuted in 1999, few could have predicted it would outlast its parent show by well over a decade (and counting). Currently, in its remarkable 26th season, SVU has become the longest-running primetime live-action series in American television history—a testament to both its quality and its cultural relevance.
What makes it special? For starters, there’s Mariska Hargitay‘s Emmy-winning performance as Olivia Benson, a character so beloved that real-life sexual assault survivors have credited her with giving them the courage to come forward.
Unlike the original Law & Order‘s revolving door of detectives, SVU built its foundation on character development and emotional investment, allowing us to see how the horrific cases affect the people investigating them.
The show has been credited with changing public perception about sexual assault and domestic violence, tackling topics that were often considered taboo for primetime television.
By focusing on these specific crimes, SVU found a deeper purpose than just entertainment—it became educational, breaking down misconceptions about consent, trauma, and the justice system. While the original Law & Order created the template, SVU perfected it, becoming the definitive iteration of the franchise and proving that sometimes, the sequel can indeed become greater than what came before.
1. Dragon Ball Z (Dragon Ball)
If you grew up in the 90s or early 2000s, chances are you rushed home after school to catch the latest episode of Dragon Ball Z—even if you had no idea it was actually a sequel series. That’s right, what many consider the definitive anime experience was technically a spinoff of the original Dragon Ball.
When the first series began experiencing a ratings decline despite its popularity, creator Akira Toriyama and his team made the bold decision to essentially reboot the show with a more mature tone, following protagonist Goku as an adult rather than as a child.
What was initially conceived as the final chapter of the story (hence the “Z”—the last letter of the alphabet) ironically became the franchise’s most iconic iteration, running for a whopping 291 episodes—138 more than its predecessor.
The shift from martial arts adventure to epic sci-fi battles with planet-destroying stakes gave the series a scope and intensity that captivated viewers worldwide.
For countless Western fans, Dragon Ball Z wasn’t just better than the original—it was their introduction to anime as a medium, the gateway drug that launched a lifelong passion for Japanese animation. Its influence extends far beyond television, inspiring countless video games and merchandise lines; it even influences Western animation and comics.
The power levels, the transformations, the iconic fights between Goku and villains like Frieza and Cell—all of these elements have been seared into pop culture consciousness in a way the original Dragon Ball never quite achieved. Sometimes, a sequel doesn’t just continue a story—it defines it, and that’s exactly what Dragon Ball Z did.
Let’s not get it twisted—these ten shows represent the unicorns of television history. For every Frasier or Better Call Saul that manages to escape its predecessor’s shadow, there are dozens of forgotten failures like Joey or AfterMASH that make executives wish they’d left well enough alone.
What sets these successful spinoffs apart isn’t just good writing or strong performances (though those are essential)—it’s their willingness to establish their own identity while still honoring what made the original special. They don’t try to recreate the magic formula exactly; they find new ingredients and cook up something familiar yet fresh.
So the next time you hear about a beloved show getting a spinoff, try not to roll your eyes too hard. Lightning doesn’t strike the same place twice very often… but when it does, the results can be electrifying.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
