Forgotten ’80s TV Gems: 10 Series Worth Rediscovering

The 1980s were a truly remarkable decade for television, but not all series left such a deep mark. Forty years later, some of the best are still popular with modern viewers. The streaming era allows us to watch television shows like Health, Full house, The golden girls, Murder she wrote, Family matters, alf, growing pains, Family tiesAnd much, much more on repeat. Of course, hits weren’t the only thing seen on television in the ’80s.

Just because an ’80s TV show hasn’t stuck in our memories after all these years doesn’t mean it was bad. In the vast sea of ​​’80s television, some unique projects were sure to get lost. This is because a series failed to find an audience at that time. However, a few decades later, modern audiences might consider these forgotten gems worth seeing.

Jennifer slept here (1983-1984)

Jennifer slept here is a sitcom with a unique premise that could only come from the 1980s. The series aired on NBC from October 21, 1983 to May 12, 1984 and followed teenager Joey Elliot, whose family moved into a house haunted by the ghost of a movie actress, Jennifer. Joey is the only one in the house who could see Jennifer, a detail that made him seem quite crazy to his family and friends.

This 1983 series had a single season and consisted of 13 episodes. However, during this short period, he managed to claim a Primetime Emmy Award nomination, and John P. Navin Jr., who played Joey, won a Young Artist Award for his role. Unfortunately, Jennifer slept here It didn’t perform well on NBC, so it was cancelled. The series later gained a little more traction with reruns.

Little wonder (1985-1989)

Sci-fi sitcoms are something there aren’t enough of in the 2020s. little wonder It was easily one of the strangest, most low-budget films of the 1980s, but it actually managed to gain some traction. The series followed a robotics engineer who secretly became a robot daughter, Vicki.

little wonder It lasted four pretty impressive seasons and proved popular with children. Reruns continued to do well globally until the 1990s. Still, as far as adult viewers and critics were concerned, little wonder It was an outrageous joke. It’s still a pretty silly series, but 40 years later, it could become a nostalgic guilty pleasure for those who decide to resurrect it.

Soul friends (1980-1982)

Soul friends is another ’80s TV show that may not work today, but that’s part of what makes it worth revisiting. It stars Peter Scolari and Tom Hanks, of pre-film fame, as two struggling men who disguise themselves as women to live in an affordable women-only apartment complex. Much of Soul friends It was improvised, and Hanks’ comedic performance played an important, if quiet, role in launching his career.

Soul friends came from the creators of Laverne and Shirleybut never found the same level of success. Hanks and Scolari were relative unknowns, and the SAG strikes of the 1980s significantly hampered the series’ release schedule. Although Soul friends It successfully got a second season, was eventually canceled in 1982 and essentially forgotten.

Science Misfits (1985)

Sci-fi comedy-drama series Science Misfits premiered on NBC in October 1985 and followed a group of superpowered teenagers at the Humanidyne Institute. It was one of the early works of Tim Kring, who later created the 2006 album. Heroeswhich had some similar concepts. Science Misfits It was one of Courtney Cox’s first television roles.

Science Misfits It lasted 15 of the 16 episodes that were filmed before being canceled due to poor ratings. However, looking again today reveals small flashes of brilliance. It’s a lot of fun to see Cox on screen before his big break, and the cheesy sci-fi misadventures they make Science Misfits Another series from the 80s worth reviving.

Street Hawk (1985)

street falcon It was a vigilante action series that really should have lasted longer. Released in 1985, street falcon It revolved around Rex Smith’s Jesse March, a former motorcycle cop turned vigilante who fights crime using an all-terrain attack motorcycle. street falcon was a crime-of-the-week series in which March balanced his two lives.

street falcon It was a greater success outside the United States than within it. Eventually, the series was moved to a less desirable time slot on ABC, significantly reducing its viewership. After just one season and 14 episodes, it was sadly cancelled. Still, for those who encounter it today, it’s a cheesy adventure worth binging.

Wizards and Warriors (1983)

Fantasy adventure television series Wizards and warriors premiered on CBS in 1983 and could easily be considered something of a first game of Thrones either the witcher. Set in medieval Aperans, the series explores political conflicts with neighboring kingdoms, which are handled through a combination of traditional battle and magical warfare between wizards.

wizard and warriors won a Primetime Emmy Award for its costumes, but failed to garner enough ratings within its 8/7 Central slot. The show was canceled after its eight-episode first season. A DVD box set became available in 2014, which somewhat revived the old fantasy television series. Still, wizard and warriors is largely unheard of today.

Countercurrent (1984-1986)

The detective television show. Troubled waterswhich premiered in 1984, brings together all the classic tropes of a great television show within the genre. It follows Cody (Perry King) and Nick (Joe Penny), two former war buddies who start their own detective agency and run it from their ship, the Riptide. They are joined by tech genius Boz (Thom Bray) and his robot, Roboz.

Troubled waters It ran for three seasons, which is significantly longer than many other entries on this list. It was eventually canceled because each delivery performed worse than the last. This largely came down to countercurrent predictability and the fact that it was really just an amalgamation of all the previous detective series. Now this same stumbling block is what makes Troubled waters A hidden gem today.

Hammer (1986-1988)

Hammer is a satirical police comedy that, for a time, managed to leave a real mark. Created by Alan Spencer and starring David Rasche as the titular Inspector Sledge Hammer, the series openly mocks the typical cop-on-the-edge trope, parodying the film. dirty harryespecially.

Hammer it might have had better legs if ABC hadn’t moved the show’s time slot so many times. There were no expectations for a second installment, but ratings for the finale were so high that ABC greenlit season 2. However, the timeslot hope didn’t stop there and ratings plummeted, ultimately resulting in cancellation. Now, Hammer not remembered enough.

Empty nest (1988-1995)

Although golden girls is a cult classic, only die-hard fans can know about one of the series’ spin-off shows, empty nest. The show’s pilot initially aired as a golden girls episode, which introduced the Corlisses,…