When a TV show is a success, the first thing that networks try to do is find a way to milk it for everything it can get. This includes setting up possible spinoffs from the series. However, these are not always good, as there are moments where a spinoff comes, and it fails to live up to the original, with examples like AfterMASH as a good example.
There are other times where a big show struggles and fails to get a spinoff, as Supernatural proved when it couldn't get Wayward Sisters off the ground. With that said, many shows clearly set up a spinoff, and they ended up as quality series, some that even eclipsed the original in quality.
Clone Wars (Bad Batch) - Available On Disney+
The Bad Batch is a Disney+ animated series from Disney+, the second title following the success of The Mandalorian. While The Mandalorian was mostly separate from the movies initially, although it soon tied into the animated series, Bad Batch is a direct spinoff from The Clone Wars. These are the elite clone troopers first introduced on a four-episode arc in the final season of The Clone Wars and arguably the strongest mercenaries of that group.
Vampire Diaries (The Originals) - Available On Netflix
The Vampire Diaries aired on The CW for eight seasons and ended in 2017. In The Vampire Diaries Season 4, the 20th episode was titled "The Originals." In that episode, Klaus returned to his home in New Orleans and found his former protege Marcel ruling the city and the witches trying to overthrow him using Klaus's child. Klaus decides to stay, and The CW ordered the series. The Originals ran for five seasons and ended in 2018.
Buffy The Vampire Slayer (Angel) - Available On Hulu
Buffy the Vampire Slayer was about The Chosen One, a teenage girl leading the charge to defeat vampires and other monsters trying to take over the world. Along the way, she met Angel, a former monstrous vampire, cursed with a soul. The two had ups and downs, and eventually, Angel left and ended up in his own show. Angel's show was different, as he ran a paranormal investigation agency, and the show lasted five seasons.
Grey's Anatomy (Private Practice) - Available On Netflix
Grey's Anatomy has been around longer than almost any live-action show on television today, currently in its 17th season, just one season behind NCIS. There was also a direct spinoff of Grey's Anatomy that saw a doctor named Addison Montgomery leave the hospital to start her own private practice.
Kate Walsh was the lead in the show and the connecting point between the two series. The backdoor pilot took place in Season 3 on the episode "The Other Side of This Life," where Addison chose to leave the hospital. Private Practice lasted six seasons.
The Walking Dead (Fear The Walking Dead) - Available On Netflix
The Walking Dead was, at one time, one of the most successful shows on TV. This meant that there was an interest in AMC wanting to create more in the franchise. The first spinoff came with a to use Fear the Walking Dead to show how the public reacted when the apocalypse started. Since then, there were time jumps, and the two shows connected with Morgan, and later Dwight ing the cast.
Arrow (The Flash) - Available On Netflix
Arrow arrived on The CW, and it was an interesting choice for a new superhero TV show since it was based on Oliver Queen, and Green Arrow was not an overly popular superhero for the general public. However, the show was so popular that it gave way to several spinoffs. The first of these was The Flash in 2014. Barry Allen first showed up in two episodes of Arrow, helping Oliver before he got his own pilot, and now The Flash is in its seventh season on The CW.
Sons Of Anarchy (Mayans M.C.) - Available On Hulu
Sons of Anarchy had a beginning, middle, and an end. This series was a Shakespearian tragedy involving a motorcycle gang, and the entire plot followed the rise and fall of Jax, the son of the former high-ranking member and the man who took over his stepdad's role before finally falling himself.
Mayans M.C. is the spinoff series that brings a different biker gang to the forefront. The series takes place two years after the end of Sons of Anarchy and has had some characters crossover in its first three seasons.
Beverly Hills, 90210 (Melrose Place) - Available On Hulu
An older spinoff series hit in 1992 when Beverly Hills, 90210 gave birth to Melrose Place. While Beverly Hills, 90210 was about teenagers in Beverly Hills, California, Melrose Place followed young adults in West Hollywood. The connection between the two shows centered on Grant Show's character of Jake Hanson. He was Kelly's love interest and a friend of Dylan. Jake was one of the main leads in Melrose Place, and the 90210 character guest starred early on.
NCIS (NCIS: Los Angeles) - Available On Paramount+
NCIS has created several spinoffs that arrived as backdoor pilots, but the one that ended up as the most successful was NCIS: Los Angeles. The genesis came in a two-part backdoor pilot on NCIS called "Legend" in 2009, and this was not the first time. NCIS, itself, was a spinoff of Jag and also started as a backdoor pilot. NCIS: Los Angeles has lasted 12 seasons, only six seasons short of the original NCIS.
Breaking Bad (Better Call Saul) - Available On Netflix
One of the most successful crime dramas of all time was Breaking Bad on AMC. As great as that show was, creating a spinoff was risky because it would take a lot to live up to the original. What is impressive is that Better Call Saul not only lived up to Breaking Bad but, in some ways, it is better. The series takes place before Breaking Bad and tells how lawyer Jimmy McGill eventually turns into the criminal defense attorney Saul Goodman.