One evening while watching MAS*H re-runs on the FX channel (Satelite dish) my SO came into the room “why on earth are you watching that? you’ve seen every episode.”
I’m 36, and as such, I do remember the original run of this series. Why indeed? I guess because I still find them amusing (for the most part anyway) and the quality doesn’t suck too much. For instance, came across an episode of Night Court the other day - yuck? Who wrote that drivel?
So, gang, do you find yourself watching the “old” re-runs? Do they measure up (not that today’s shows are gems, but you have to admit the quality (filming, dialog) is obviously improved.
How about the younger SDMBers who are seeing these shows for the first time: what do you think?
I just saw a rerun of “Family Ties”, which was one of my favorite shows at the time. But for some reason, I didn’t enjoy it.
I don’t know if was because smart-mouth children are the norm now or Fox’s almost farcical portrayal of Alex.
I almost felt guilty not liking it.
I get this way sometimes watching MAS*H (Harry Morgan’s Col. Potter was very predictable), and the original Star Trek (I think I’m spoiled by the special effects of TNG, DS9, and Voyager). They were my favorites at the time, too.
Will I feel this way about Friends in 10 years? Probably.
The problem with our memories is that 9 out of 10 of EVERYTHING is crap. When you go back and watch I Love Lucy, Mary Tyler Moore, MAS*H or whatever five nights in a row, you realize how few good episodes there actually were. What makes some old shows worth watching is that they had ANY good episodes – after all, The Facts of Life ran long enough to have enough episodes to syndicate.
Well, with just about any old TV show, the first thing that stands out is the wardrobe; particularly in programs from the late '60’s on. Bell bottoms and polyester pantsuits don’t age well (fashions from the '90’s will be jeered at in the future too, I’m sure–I’m already jeering at most of them).
But if a show is really good, I can look passed these things. MAS*H has aged fairly well, IMHO. I’ve taken in several Sunday afternoon showings of back-to-back episodes on F/X. All in the Family has also aged well. Most of the issues haven’t changed, unfortunately. I’m just glad my husband has stopped giggling whenever they mention the Reverend Felcher.
The Dick Van Dyke show isn’t what I originally expected, though. Somehow it’s not as witty and urbane as I’d thought it would be. But it’s not without its charms.
I confess to liking the Andy Griffith Show. Maybe because as a small town / country girl, I relate to it all too well
Happy Days hasn’t aged well at all, IMHO. I liked the first season all right, but it spiralled downward into lame schtick, bad '70’s clothes in a supposedly '50’s setting, and Fonzie Fonzie Fonzie as the focus of every episode. Feh.
“I hope life isn’t a big joke, because I don’t get it,” Jack Handy
I hate most of the junk that is on TV today, so, yes, I do spend most of my time watching Nick-at-Nite and TV Land.
I love the old MAS*H episodes and think they hold up quite well. Lucy is never a bad bet. I’ve always loved Hogan’s Heroes - so you’ll never convince me that it didn’t hold up. All in the Family is just classic - that will never seem dated to me, even with the 70’s outfits and hair. The Brady Bunch - well, that depends on which episode and my mood. And, TVLand just started showing the A-Team - one of my favorite shows of all time - WooHoo!
I agree about Happy Days - that didn’t hold up well at all.
OK, we have enough youth. How about a fountain of smart. =^…^=
In 1972 a crack commando unit was sent to prision by a military court for a crime they didn’t commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem. If no one else can help. And, if you can find them. Maybe you can hire, The A-Team.
Sassy, do you get TV Land? It’s on every day at 4PM and Midnight (Eastern Time). It just started with the first Episode on Saturday night.
I love Murdock, he was always my favorite.
Now, if someone would just bring Wizards and Warriors back my life would be complete.
OK, we have enough youth. How about a fountain of smart. =^…^=
I think the early MASH episodes have aged very well (the ones with Henry and Trapper) but the show’s later years are much too sanctimonious. All in the Family is also pretty dated. Barney Miller wasn’t very funny when it first came out. Mary Tyler Moore and Bob Newhart have aged well, as has the original WKRP. I don’t think that Cosby works in reruns, though. Seinfeld and the Simpsons definitely do, as does Cheers, though the clothes and hair in the early episodes are laughable.
When I was little, I loved the Dukes of Hazzard. Now I find that simply clicking through a channel showing it causes me pain and embarrassment. (Ducking) I feel this way about A-Team reruns now also. The Mr. T thing is just not amusing or interesting in the slightest and I really want to kill Murdock. How did he became a captain? He is a moron!
Born O.K. the first time…
If you are born again, do you have two belly-buttons?
I totally agree with you about the Dukes. They are painful to watch now.
Mr T. was NEVER amusing or interesting. I never liked him in the first place.
Murdock was a very talented pilot. He flew with the Thunderbirds prior to the war. He was capable of flying literally anything. During the war he was pushed to the edge of post-traumatic stress disorder and was declared insane. He was “touched” but not really crazy. He was, incidentally, “cured” quite quickly (before the time the show takes place), however he played crazy for a variety of reasons, among them: the easy, safe, secure living at the VA Hospital, and to avoid prosecution for the Bank of Hanoi robbery (the Government decided not to prosecute him because he was insane), also probably to annoy the crap out of B.A. He was declared sane in 1986 (after the team was cleared of wrong doing in the bank job).
Besides that, I think Dwight Schultz is cute. I always thought he was better looking than Dirk Benedict (although Dirk was the best looking one on Battlestar Galactica).
(OK, that’s really scary - I know WAY too much about this show) :).
I like to watch MASH and The Simpsons. I “test” myself to see if I can remember the next scene/line/gag etc. I’ve seen most of those episodes many times. It also helps when I engage in MASH/Simpson trivia conversations. I suppose I could be studying classic art or literature, but TV appeals to me…
I like MASH still, but I like the later years, when BJ was on it, but before Chahles came on. The best episode ever was when there was a mysterious practical joker amid the MASHers and Sidney Freedman was visiting. It still makes me LOL.
I can watch the Brady Bunch almost anytime. Well, except for the last year episodes. My cousin’s son is very impressed with my Brady trivia knowledge - I can tell you what the episode is going to be about within the first 10 seconds of the show. OK, so I didn’t have much of a life when I was younger (still don’t now that you mention it).
“Hogan’s Heroes” and “All in the Family” have held up very well. And every once in a while, I find myself watching “Emergency” - and enjoying it!
“My, my. Such a lot of guns around here and so few brains.”
~Humphrey Bogart in “The Maltese Falcon”
