# That Was Then This Is Now: TV Shows **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 15, 2012, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807 "2012-09-15T19:00:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/21 "2012-09-17T04:43:55Z")
Man from UNCLE. I watched it as a kid, and so did my wife. We got it from Netflix - and the first three shows really sucked. We quickly gave up. OTOH, Have Gun Will Travel and Danger Man/Secret Agent stood up well. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/22 "2012-09-17T05:23:26Z")
the biggest example was this made for TV movie _Babes in Toyland_ which starred a young Drew Barrymore. I freaking loved that as a kid. I couldn’t make it through five minutes of it when I found it on [YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HE53AzMZie4). A more mundane example is _Bewitched_, though it might be because I actually tried to watch it on DVD, rather than episodically. You realize just how much they repeat the same jokes, most often in quite nearby episodes. Not to mention the times the plot is exactly the same, and not even because they remade it with the other Darrin. I actually started to get Other Darrin’s frustration that I previously thought meant he was a dick. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/23 "2012-09-17T06:17:43Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > _Emergency!_ > No medical staff washing their hands between patient contact. No seatbelts in the ambulance. Emergency! was one of my favorite shows back in the 70s. I started watching it again on MeTV. The humor was often pretty corny. Especially the episode in which Gage and De Soto were obsessed with finding out the ending to an Adam-12 episode, which made me go :dubious: since both shows took place within Jack Webb’s TV universe and characters from both shows crossed over in a couple of episodes. And the drama is a little dated. Brackett and Early seem to have a House-Wilson type of relationship, except Brackett is a generally good guy and not a huge asshole of House’s proportions. But the actual work that the firefighters and paramedics do is still quite fascinating and realistic looking. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/24 "2012-09-17T07:32:08Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > But the actual work that the firefighters and paramedics do is still quite fascinating and realistic looking. That’s how you know it was made by Jack Webb. The man was nothing if not a stickler for details. I almost posted to say _Quantum Leap_, but, frankly, I knew that was dumb when I was watching it the first time around (which, for me, was in reruns on the Sci-Fi Channel). Speaking of old re-runs on the Sci-Fi Channel, I want to re-watch the _Ripley’s Believe It Or Not_ series that was hosted by Jack Palance, who, for a good while, I thought _was_ the Ripley in question. It was dated when I saw it, sure, but I wonder if the stuff I thought was cool then will still seem interesting to me now. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/25 "2012-09-17T09:22:19Z")
Captain Planet. I can’t believe I enjoyed that show. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/26 "2012-09-17T12:59:25Z")
_Greatest American Hero._ Man, I loved that show. Now, however, all I can see is the crappy special effects, the re-used flying shots, and the paper-thin plots. It’s still got the best damn theme song, though. I’d love to see a good remake of that show. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/27 "2012-09-17T14:48:31Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > **The Dukes of Hazzard** - awesome show when I was 6. I caught a couple of episodes years later and, oh boy, I am surprised even little kids fell for that crap. I think the first season of Dukes holds up well, it was a lot more gritty than the newer ones. The Dukes were not quite the good guys they are in the later seasons. But all the seasons suffer from repetitious plots. A show that really didn’t hold up for me was **Alf**. That was the coolest thing ever when I was 11, but I tried watching them as an adult and couldn’t make it through a single episode. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/28 "2012-09-17T16:15:07Z")
As a kid, \*Bonanza \*was an essential part of our Sunday evening routine. I find it completely unwatchable nowadays. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/29 "2012-09-17T16:24:28Z")
> [@Lightnin](#): > > _Greatest American Hero._ Man, I loved that show. Now, however, all I can see is the crappy special effects, the re-used flying shots, and the paper-thin plots. It’s still got the best damn theme song, though. > > I’d love to see a good remake of that show. And to think: just next week, they’re releasing a sci-fi flick with an in-over-his-head Joseph Gordon-Levitt opposite Bruce Willis doing his signature schtick! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/30 "2012-09-17T16:44:58Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > A more mundane example is _Bewitched_, though it might be because I actually tried to watch it on DVD, rather than episodically. You realize just how much they repeat the same jokes, most often in quite nearby episodes. I think this is also true at least to some extent of _The Addams Family_. _Mork & Mindy_: Robin Williams’s schtick remains funny, but the rest of the show, when Williams is not Morking out, is dated, mediocre sitcom fare. ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/31 "2012-09-17T17:03:04Z")
Wonder Woman. I watched an old episode on a flight recently and couldn’t believe that little-kid me thought it was so awesome. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/32 "2012-09-17T17:11:33Z")
I have heard from other people that watching some of these older sitcoms while under the influence makes them quite a bit more palatable. Not that I would know anything about that myself. \ ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/33 "2012-09-17T18:15:15Z")
So very many but … when BlockBuster was still open, out of nostalgia I rented the best of Benny Hill. It was not nearly as funny as I remember. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/34 "2012-09-17T18:28:49Z")
Rocket Robin Hood. I thought it was moderately entertaining as a kid, but I couldn’t even finish an episode as an adult. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/35 "2012-09-17T18:43:46Z")
Many of the old shows do get repetitive. Before VCRs and DVDs you only saw one episode a week. Now you can watch as many back-to-back as you can stand. Maybe we’d be better off rewatching old shows on a one episode per week basis. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/36 "2012-09-17T18:54:54Z")
I honestly can’t watch any sitcoms anymore, and don’t know how people do it. They are all boring and trite and have the same plots. Even the ones I loved as a child are awful. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/37 "2012-09-17T19:00:14Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > I honestly can’t watch any sitcoms anymore, and don’t know how people do it. They are all boring and trite and have the same plots. Even the ones I loved as a child are awful. Hubby and I caught a silent film from 1927 on TV the other night, both of us too tired to change the channel. It had the exact same plotline as a Three’s Company episode. There’s nothing new under the sun. ---
**Author:** ![Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mona_Lisa_Simpson)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/38 "2012-09-17T19:24:58Z")
My husband and I talk about this from time to time. What holds up, what does not. In general ones relying on “cute kids” do not. Good writing, however does. So: All in the Family …yes, Family Ties not really. (Love the young Micheal J Fox though. Yes, you can see eventual stardom from early on) Golden girls holds up, (Although Rue McClanahan does grate on my nerves a bit) but to me Cosby Show is basically unwatchable. MASH works as a period piece, (with so many anachronisms. BJ’s hair and mustache?) but Happy Days is embarrassing. My parents were getting Three’s Company on some satellite channel a few years ago. My son would have been 6 or 7, and I was bringing him home from spending the weekend at Mom and Dad’s. Dad said"Let him finish watching “Jack” he likes it." Five minutes into it I said we have to go NOW. I know I was around his age when it was on tv but I really don’t think my son (or anyone) should be watching that garbage. Then I had to politely b the subject broach with my mother and say no more please. (My dad is pretty hard of hearing and touchy, we communicate best by email.) Mom said she hated the show 30 years ago, why watch it now. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/39 "2012-09-17T19:59:00Z")
The original _Battlestar Gallactica_. The original pilot is not bad for a made for TV movie but the rest is basically unwatchable. \*Buck Rodgers. \* Still watchable just for the amazing beauty of Erin Grey but otherwise awful. _6 Million Dollar Man_. Except for the Big Foot episode of course. I can’t believe my parents sat there and watched these shows with me. They had to thing they were awful then. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2012, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807/40 "2012-09-17T20:18:55Z")
_All in the Family_ was cutting edge when it first aired, no doubt. Now, not so much. Regards, Shodan [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-was-then-this-is-now-tv-shows/634807.md?page=3)