I've been watching some of the later seasons online and have been noticing that many seem very lighthearted and pretty cheesy, while it seemed like the earlier seasons were somewheat more serious and dealt with more controversial issues.

It got more lighthearted once Ms. Garretts role was reduced. They did attempt some eps like Jo talking that guy off the ledge and Natalie having sex but at that point they were adults and it didn't have as much impact. Or maybe it just felt like that to me because Ms. Garrett wasn't around to give them talks and they could pretty much take care of themselves.

As the series went on, it was more lighthearted. We didn't have too many of those "very special" Facts of Life episodes later on. Personally, I loved all the serious issues the girls faced throughout the years. I don't think Norman Lear had much involvement with this show, but it did seem like a Lear show at times. There were very serious moments, followed by laugh-out-loud funny moments. It made for a great balance, and kept the girls grounded in reality, in my opinion.

I haven't seen the last 4 seasons in so long that i honestly can't remember.The facts of life is one of my top 10 fav shows though.Just got done watching the first 5 seasons on dvd.I haven't been able to find the last 4 at the library yet.

The show jumped the shark pretty early in my opinion because it fell into the trap that most sitcoms do and that is finding a formula that works for a stretch of episodes (or a season) and then repeating that formula over and over again until the show becomes unwatchable.

Take the relationship between Blair and Jo for instance. The love/hate relationship they had with each other was great for maybe a season but after awhile seeing Jo insult Blair and vice versa only to make everything whole again at the end of the episode became extremely tiring.

Also like most shows that are based around a setting involving teenagers, the girls eventually grew up and as they did began to lose much of their appeal. Their individual personalities whether it be Natalie's candor, Blair's dippyness or Jo's sarcasm all started to wear thin at least on me after a couple of seasons.

Which is one of the reasons I've always contended it was a mistake to cut so many of the Season 1 girls. Season 1 is still my favorite season because there are so many different personalities to choose from and while their were issues with defining those personalities once they settled the four girls they did keep into their roles, boy oh boy did they ever become pigeonholed!

I don't think Norman Lear had much involvement with this show, but it did seem like a Lear show at times.

Is there any evidence that Norman Lear was ever involved with this show? Didn't he only work for CBS?

It just changed.

Is there any evidence that Norman Lear was ever involved with this show? Didn't he only work for CBS?no he had shows on all 3 networks sometimes at the same time

He was involved in Diff'rent Strokes, though.

The story-lines got fluffier and less-serious. It went from a dramedy to a quirky comedy.