My Top Ten Best TV Shows of the 80's

The 80's was a time of tremendous change in America. Disco had just died, and Ronald Reagan took over as president. The 80's represented a cohesiveness in American culture that began dying late in the decade and was dead and buried by early 90's.

TV, not the internet, was still the dominant form of media in the 80's, and prior to the middle of the decade, cable was unknown. There were basically three major networks(ABC, NBC, and CBS), along with local stations that varied city to city. As I live near the Canadian border, I was also able to pick up the Canadian network CBC.

Looking back at TV in the 80's, a number of things quickly stand out: Talk shows like Oprah, Regis and Kelly, and Ellen were virtually non-existent, game shows still dominated morning programming, all the major networks showed cartoons on Saturday mornings, and nobody had ever heard of the term 'reality show'. Does that mean TV sucked back then? Compared to what passes for entertainment today, I would answer with a resounding "NO"! Here then, are my top 10 favorite TV shows of the 80's:

10) ThunderCats. This cartoon was a mixture of science fiction and fantasy where magic was just as important as technology. The ThunderCats, cat-like heroes living on a planet called "third earth" have to defend it against the nearly omnipotent Mumm-Ra and a band of mutants he enlists to destroy them. Aside from the typical superhero fare, ThunderCats episodes often ended with a short retrospective as to the moral dimension of the struggle du jour.

9) Police Squad! Only six episodes long, Police Squad! May be the funniest police spoof of all time. Filled with deadpan humor, witty running gags, and special guests who visit Johnny the shoeshine boy, the cancellation of this show has to be one of the strangest events in television history. The show ultimately exacted the ultimate revenge by being made into three extremely popular movies.

8) Moonlighting. This is the TV show that gave Bruce Willis his big break. It is a comedy loosely wrapped around a private investigating theme. Funny, romantic, and filled with mysteries, Moonlighting was great because of the chemistry between Willis and female co-star Cybill Shepherd. The theme song to this show is also great in its own right.

7) The Greatest American Hero. This superhero comedy involves a guy(Ralph) who comes across a magic outfit given to him by aliens that bestows super powers upon him. However, Ralph does not know how to 'operate' the uniform and frequently has difficulty in utilizing the powers. Both funny and goodhearted, this show still has many fans.

6) Pee-wee's Playhouse. Although ostensibly a children's show, adults couldn't seem to get enough of Paul Reubens' live-action Saturday morning show. Pee-wee lived in this magic house filled with talking furniture, elaborate gadgets, and an assemblage of puppets. The show was extremely funny often sought to teach a lesson. If you pay attention to the credits, you will find a number of famous people that were involved in the show, including Laurence Fishburne and Phil Hartman.

5) Airwolf. Airwolf, for those unfamiliar, was a series about a super secret, supersonic helicopter that had the most advanced weaponry of the time. Yes, it sucked when they added Caitlin in seasons 2 and 3 and completely eliminated the original cast in season 4, but for a time Airwolf was the best sci-fi action drama out there. If you are looking to get an idea of what made this series popular, check out season one. It was essentially the success of season one that convinced viewers to put up with seasons 2 through 4.

4) Miami Vice. If you were at all cool during the 80's, this was a show you never missed. A collage of music, violence, fashion, hip special appearances by the cool and beautiful of the time, Miami Vice was a cop show that reveled in the energy and excess that was the 80's. Often criticized for being shallow and lacking character development, this show epitomized the fact that if you put enough attractive people and hit songs on a show, you could have a hit during the 80's.

3) Wok with Yan. Originally aired on the Canadian network CBC, this program was eventually syndicated and broadcast in the U.S. The allure of this show was its host, Stephen Yan, who was very funny in addition to being an excellent cook. Staples for the show included Yan wearing an apron with a pun involving the word "wok" on it(e.g., "baby elephant wok", "Wok and roll") and Yan shooting off hilarious one-liners. Though I never once cooked one of his recipes, I loved to watch Stephen Yan cook and joke.

2) The Smurfs. Although the Smurfs did not originate in the U.S.(a visit to http://www.smurf.com/smurf.php/www/facts/en reveal thatthey were the product of Peyo, a Belgian cartoonist who first introduced the characters in 1958), Hanna-Barbera brought over these cute, blue forest dwellers in 1981. The Smurfs were simple and charming, appealing to both children, who loved their cuteness and the adventures they got into, and adults, who were bemoaning the violence of other Saturday morning cartoons like "Super Friends".

1) The Price is Right. Bob Barker was still the host of this popular game show, and the unforgettable voice of Johnny Olson was still the one shouting "Come on down! You're the next contestant on The Price is Right!" until his death in 1985. The girls on the show were still known as "Barker's Beauties" and, as is still the case today, contestants were not pre-screened as in other game shows. This meant that occasionally complete idiots would get onstage and guess the price of a banjo was $1,000,000. The games were simple and easy to understand, and individuals and families enjoyed competing with the contestants onstage, as well as with their fellow viewers.

With the exception of The Price is Right, all of these once-popular shows are now gone. Fortunately, they can be relived with the advent of DVDs and the internet. If you want to get a taste of what was great about TV in the 80's, check these shows out.