Re: Although it appeared to be_________after its stagnation and eventual c
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21 Jan 2023, 05:56
Although it appeared to be (i) _________after its stagnation and eventual cancellation in 1989, Doctor Who returned to the BBC in 2005, becoming the longest-running science-fiction show in history.
Two pieces of information are provided here:
1) it stagnated and was eventually cancelled
2) became the longest running science-fiction show in history
The thought contrastor "although" at the beginning of the sentence, ensures that both these pieces of information are contradictory.
"stagnated and eventually cancelled" contradicts "longest running science-fiction show in history".
Therefore, the word for the blank should agree with "stagnated and cancelled"
And the only word that does that is defunct.
The word lackluster can be eliminated because it does not make sense to state that it became lackluster after its eventual cancellation. Once it was cancelled, it cannot create any impression. Even if you argued otherwise, lackluster is weaker in comparison to defunct which has the same strenght as "returned to become the longest running science-fiction show in history".