Buzz
The television landscape is filled with spin-offs of all types: exceptional ones, disappointing ones, those that never made it to air, and hidden gems you might have missed. Occasionally, a spin-off can even eclipse the show it originated from.
Beth Mowbray from Stacker analyzed IMDb ratings to curate a list of 10 shows that achieved this feat. Some of these have become so legendary that their spin-off origins might surprise you. For instance, The Simpsons began as a series of shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show before becoming a standalone phenomenon.
Happy Days stands out as a unique case, as it wasn’t initially derived from another show. Creator Garry Marshall pitched it as a standalone family sitcom, but after failing to sell, it debuted as a segment on the anthology series Love, American Style.
Good Times is a unique example, as Mowbray describes it as “a spin-off of a spin-off.” It all began with All in the Family, which spawned an impressive seven spin-offs. One of these was Maude, focusing on Bea Arthur’s character Maude Findlay, cousin to Edith Bunker (Jean Stapleton). From Maude emerged Good Times, which chronicles the life of Maude’s housekeeper, Florida Evans (portrayed by Esther Rolle), and her family.
Some entries spark endless online debates about whether the spin-off or the original series is superior. Do you favor Frasier over Cheers, or is it the other way around? Is Star Trek: The Original Series still the ultimate Star Trek experience, or did The Next Generation ultimately surpass it?
Here’s what the IMDb ratings reveal. For a deeper dive into each series, explore Mowbray’s full analysis on Stacker.
1. The Simpsons (1989 - Present)
IMDb rating: 8.7Original show: The Tracey Ullman ShowOriginal show's IMDb rating: 7.1
2. Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987 - 1994)
IMDb rating: 8.7Original show: Star Trek: The Original SeriesOriginal show's IMDb rating: 8.4
3. Boston Legal (2004 - 2008)
IMDb rating: 8.5Original show: The PracticeOriginal show's IMDb rating: 7.7
4. The Colbert Report (2005 - 2014)
IMDb rating: 8.4Original show: The Daily ShowOriginal show's IMDb rating: 8.3
5. The Originals (2013 - 2018)
IMDb rating: 8.3Original show: The Vampire DiariesOriginal show's IMDb rating: 7.7
6. Frasier (1993 - 2004)
IMDb rating: 8.2Original show: CheersOriginal show's IMDb rating: 7.9
7. Daria (1997 - 2002)
IMDb rating: 8.1Original show: Beavis and Butt-HeadOriginal show's IMDb rating: 7.5
8. Good Times (1974 - 1979)
IMDb rating: 7.4Original show: Maude (a spin-off of All in the Family)Original show's IMDb rating: 7.3
9. Happy Days (1974-1984)
IMDb rating: 7.4Original show: Love, American StyleOriginal show's IMDb rating: 6.8
10. Xena: Warrior Princess (1995 - 2001)
IMDb rating: 6.7Original show: Hercules: The Legendary JourneysOriginal show's IMDb rating: 6.4
