ABC Canceled This Ambitious, Scientifically Accurate Sci-Fi Show Way Too Soon

In the history of television, there are many canceled sci-fi shows that deserve second-chances. From "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles," which was killed by Fox, to "Star Trek: Enterprise," the list of axed sci-fi series is full of gems that never made it beyond moderate cult status. But 2009's "Defying Gravity" didn't even get that far. The ABC sci-fi series barely made it past the halfway point of its debut season, with the network pulling the plug prematurely. Naturally, the fans that had followed along weren't exactly delighted to see it canned just as it was getting good.

If you've never heard of "Defying Gravity" you're not alone. The series debuted on ABC in August 2009 and was canceled just two months later. Despite 13 episodes being made, only eight ever made it to air. That was a shame as, despite starting out with a strong soap opera sensibility, the show was just starting to expand the sci-fi elements of its story as it was pulled from broadcast.

"Defying Gravity" followed eight astronauts sent on a six-year mission to space to explore the Solar System. While that's an excuse for a surprising amount of sex scenes for a network show, there's also a mystery at the heart of the series which revolves around a storage pod containing something known as Beta. Ron Livingston summed up "Defying Gravity" best in a promotional interview, during which he said, "A lot of the fun is the discovery mission to the planets, and then a lot of the fun is how these people are going to get along and who's going to sleep with who." As it went on, however, it seemed as though the space exploration and sci-fi elements were going to become much more prominent.

Dubbed "a saucy formulaic melodramatic soap ... in space" by The Guardian, "Defying Gravity" was reportedly pitched to ABC as "Grey's Anatomy in space." That's certainly an apt description for the first few episodes. 

The show is set in the year 2052 and sees eight astronauts (four women and four men) blasted into space aboard the spaceship Antares on a six-year research mission. Ron Livingston plays chief engineer Maddux Donner who aside from leading the team is also in a friends-with-benefits relationship with fellow astronaut and pilot Nadia Schilling (Florentine Lahme). That's just one of several relationship elements designed to lead to untold interpersonal drama between the eight astronauts as they embark on their mission. Despite the fact the entire crew has been fitted with devices known as HALOs (Hormone Activated Libido Oppressors), they seem to have no problem developing problematic romantic relationships.

There are a couple of narrative conceits at play, with the story unfolding via flashbacks of the astronauts' training and via a present-day timeline. Then, there's the fact the space mission is being filmed for a reality TV series being broadcast on Earth, and monitored by Mission Control. At first, the whole thing seems like an excuse for melodrama and sex in space. But as "Defying Gravity" goes on, it becomes clear that it isn't just Mission Control officials guiding the crews' actions but a mysterious unseen force emanating from storage pod 4. 

Sadly, that mystery was never truly solved. "Defying Gravity" wasn't even allowed to join the many prestigious shows that were canceled after one season, as ABC cut season 1's narrative short when it pulled the show after only eight episodes.

As the first season of "Defying Gravity" went on, the sci-fi elements became much more pronounced, with the strange storage pod revealing its true nature and the crew of the Antares discovering the real reason for their mission. At the point the show was pulled from the air, it was beginning to explain its seemingly gratuitous sex scenes as much more important elements of a larger story. In fact, creator James Parriott had a full, multi-season arc mapped out, which he explained in detail during an interview following the show's cancellation.

Judging by fans' comments online, many viewers were upset not to see that arc play out. Redditors recalled expecting the series to become "the next 'Lost'" and have spoken about seeking out fan fiction just to get some sort of closure. Another Reddit user commended the show for "realistically" depicting space travel and providing a "deeply inspiring" example of how we might explore the cosmos in the near future.

At least "Defying Gravity" didn't stay on-air long enough to become one of the many TV shows that underwent ridiculous overhauls in an attempt to boost ratings. A similarly scientifically-accurate series, "seaQuest DSV," struggled with ratings in its first season and reappeared for a second run as a totally different show packed with aliens and sea monsters. "Defying Gravity" never had a chance to tell its ambitious story, but it also mercifully never got the "DSV" treatment. At the same time, it seems unlikely to ever become one of those shows that's revived after being canceled.