My Favorite TV Shows By Decade
I've lived in seven decades. These are my favorite TV shows from each one.
1960s The Andy Griffith Show
I don't know if my affection for this show arose based on it happening in a fictional town in my vert real home state or because I really wanted to hang out with Opie, but I'v enjoyed watching Andy and Barney and Aunt Bea and the rest of the folks from Mayberry my entire life.
1970s MASH and All in the Family
I remember watching MASH when I was seven or eight and not getting many of the jokes but having the feeling that the characters were kind. It made me feel good. By the time the last episode aired, I was a senior in high school and only a few months away from the army myself.
Watching Archie Bunker on All in the Family, I think, taught me the ridiculousness of bigotry and misogyny. It also helped me understand those traits a little better. I loved watching Archie come to little realizations about his own nature.
1980s Hill Street Blues
Until the Golden Age of Television commenced at the end of the 20th century, I considered Hill Street Blues to be the best show ever to air. Every police procedural for the past 30 years owes it a debt of gratitude. The writing, acting and directing were all way ahead of its time and the show's gritty realism and willingness to confront the humanity and shortcomings of the officers assigned to Hill Street Station made it a classic. When I retired from the school system in 2020, I spent the first few months wtching a couple of episodes a day until I'd rewatched the entire run.
1990s NYPD Blue
This is the decade where I watched very little TV. My kids were coming of age and I didn't want them spending a lot of time in from of the tube, plus I was a cheap bastard and didn't want to pay for cable. We spent many weekends with rented VHS tapes from the local video store. Early in the decade though, I was a big fan of NYPD Blue, mostly because I admired Steven Bocho's work so much. It wasn't the same a Hill Street Blues, but the characters were so developed and real. Good show.
2000 The Wire
To me, this show is and will always be the GOAT. I've never thought about the lives of fictional characters as much as I have the ones from this show: Jimmy McNulty, Omar Little, Stringer Bell and all the other cops, gangsters, politicians, reporters, dock workers and teachers who gave every show of every season a special touch. I think I am up to four complete viewings. Whenever someone tells me they are watching the show for the first time, I get so damn jealous.
2010s Stranger Things
I don't know if it is 80s nostalgia or just the superior quality of the show, but I've loved Stranger Things since episode one. Watching the kids from from middle school into high school was handled well and Millie Bobbie Brown's character, 11 (Ellie) is one of the best viewing experiences Netflix has ever offered.
2020s Ted Lasso
Man, was I sad when I the last show of season three aired. And, man was I happy when I found out they were going to make at least one more season - just because we fans want one so badly. This show is unique. It's not really a sports show in the way Friday Night Lights was. Maybe because it is a marriage of English and American culture. I adore the characters. Fucking Roy Kent. Am I right?
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