http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/06/25-beloved-tv-shows-that-havent-aged-well/

The Internet's helped to create a culture of nostalgia. There are myriad ways that we express our love of the bygone television shows of our youth. We like them on Facebook, we change our banner or our avatar to our favorite picture of Tommy Pickles or Cory Matthews, and of course, we make lists about them. The sad truth is that when you finally hop into your Netflix time machine (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/UnintentionalPeriodPiece) and look at those old shows with fresh eyes (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=577902), you realize that many were never that good to begin with (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/SeinfeldIsUnfunny/LiveActionTV). Plots that once felt fresh feel hackneyed. Characters that used to resonate feel broadly drawn and poorly motivated. Jokes that had our 13-year-old selves in stitches fill the room with nothing more than disappointed silence.

We took a look (http://www.avclub.com/articles/what-makes-an-old-tv-show-dated-and-is-dated-alway,56864/) at many of the shows that we used to love to see if they stood the test of time (http://www.datalounge.com/cgi-bin/iowa/ajax.html?t=11230037#page:showThread,11230037); these are the programs that fell flat. Here are 25 Beloved TV Shows That Haven't Aged Well (http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=304392).

Blossom
MacGyver
Mr. Ed
Walker, Texas Ranger
Hey, Dude
Sister, Sister
Gilligan's Island
The Nanny
WWE Monday Night Raw
Doug
Knight Rider
Home Improvememt
All That
Dawson's Creek
The A-Team
I Dream of Jeannie
Highlander: The Series
The Dukes of Hazzard
The Brady Bunch
Family Matters
Xena Warrior Princess
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
Baywatch
Saved By the Bell
Full House

I enjoy old shows that make me laugh, I could care less if they are dated or not. Article makes no sense to me.

I enjoy old shows that make me laugh, I could care less if they are dated or not. Article makes no sense to me.

I second that.

I haven't seen some of these shows, but I disagree about "Blossom", "Sister, Sister", "The Nanny", "Doug", "Family Matters", "Xena: Warrior princess" and "Full House". I also say "Baywatch" and "Saved by the bell" are okay enough to watch once in a while. I start wondering which shows this person actually likes.

All of this stuff is completely subjective, of course, but I think a glaring example of a show that was beloved (by me, as well!) but hasn't aged well at all is "Welcome Back, Kotter".

I second that.

I 3rd that.

Some of these don't make much sense...like them or not, shows like The Nanny, Home Improvement, The Brady Bunch, and I Dream of Jeannie have become syndication mainstays so saying they haven't aged well doesn't ring true.

But some seem about right - Dawson's Creek is painfully a relic of its time, for example, and I can't remember the last time I heard anyone talk about Mister Ed...

I enjoy old shows that make me laugh, I could care less if they are dated or not. Article makes no sense to me.

I agree!!! :wave:

I agree!!! :wave:

And so do I. My DVD Collection ranges from the 1940s to the Present (Bear in mind there are more fingers on my hands than there shows from the last 13 years in my collection), but If a show becomes one I'll watch again some day, I consider It a classic. :D

I feel like a better title for this is "Shows that have become classics but just aren't all that good." Then I would have no qualms with the list... I like a few of them (Brady Bunch, I Dream of Jeannie, Home Improvement) but I think it's a fair list.

But to call them dated? I don't think some of those shows were any less cheesy back then and people loved them then and now. So I don't think "dated" is an appropriate term because it's not like they were critical darlings when they originally aired.

And yet in twenty to thirty years from now the same would be said of todays shows.

By the way, I find it very ironic that whoever made that list would call "Home improvement" sexist (against women, that is). Because I remember an episode where Tim was treated like crap, just because he didn't want to have a vasectomy! Excuse me, but what right did anybody have to pressure him into something like that?

All of this stuff is completely subjective, of course, but I think a glaring example of a show that was beloved (by me, as well!) but hasn't aged well at all is "Welcome Back, Kotter".
Your'e right on that show. Those catch phrases "Up your nose with a rubber hose." are so annoying and ear cringing today. Looking at it now, UGH!! Very unwatchable now. The same goes for Batman. It'll never hold a torch today compare to Batman TAS and the recent movies with Christian Bale. As for the list, it is right on target. Looking at these shows now is okay once in a while but that's fine with me. I look at the list and say "I watched these?" As I said before, once in a while if fine but I wouldn't want to rush out and buy them.

The A-Team and The Dukes of Hazzard are as fun now as they ever were.

I agree with some of these choices. I do think Brady Bunch, Full House, Saved by the Bell and Family Matters havent aged well because mostly I dont laugh. Watch an episode of Brady Bunch or Full House and a lot of the "jokes" are eye rolling.

I dont why but I dont think The Golden Girls has held up. Maybe its because of the 80s, or a lot of there clothes reminds me of the 80s but to me it just doesn't hold up. Great show but I don't know if its held up or not.

I personally still get a kick out of Mr. Ed:)

I dont why but I dont think The Golden Girls has held up. Maybe its because of the 80s, or a lot of there clothes reminds me of the 80s but to me it just doesn't hold up. Great show but I don't know if its held up or not.

I would have to disagree with this. I think The Golden Girls has held up amazingly well and hasn't aged at all!!! The show was far ahead of its time, and I think it resonated with audiences then, and continues to reach new generations to this very day. The jokes, situations, characters, dialogues, episodes are still funny to this day...at least to me they are. No matter how many times I watch a Golden Girls episode, I will still crack up at the jokes because it's just that funny!! Like I said, I believe the show was light years ahead of its time and paved the way for some of today's sitcoms. There is just something about this show that , for me at least, makes it timeless. :) Golden!!! :)

I do agree with what you said about the jokes on Full House, The Brady Bunch, etc. I don't laugh at them quite like I used to. But I still adore those shows and watch them every chance I get.

Every show is obviously going to be a product of it's time, reflecting the fashion, culture, politics, zeitgeist, etc. of that time period. That's unavoidable but to me, that's what makes them so special. :)

WWE Raw has absolutely no business being on this list because the wrestling business is in theory, cyclical.

I would suggest that Three's Company hasn't aged well. It's very hard to believe that it was considered edgy when it was originally on due to John Ritter having to pretend to be gay and the double-entendres/misunderstandings. Three's Company would be very tame and somewhat family friendly when compared to today's prime time sitcoms like for instance 2 & a Half Men or 2 Broke Girls.

Family Ties is extremely dated because it's purely a time capsule of the '80s and the Reagan era.

Murphy Brown is horribly dated (hence why it has never really done well in syndicated reruns) because of reliance on topical humor. In a way, it could be considered a sitcom variant on The Daily Show.

As a matter of fact, just about any sitcom that felt the need to tackle political/social issues of the day (e.g. All in Family and any one of Norman Lear's sitcoms for that matter), now feel trite and dated. A Different World is another show of this type that feels extremely dated now and/or of it's time (when it was considered bold or cutting edge).

Miami Vice is another show like Family Ties that feels like a time capsule of the '80s (even though Miami Vice was pretty cutting-edge and hip when it was at it's peak).

No offense to anyone but that list is stupid. I mean, who doesn't love the Brady Bunch? People watch those shows because of the nostalgia or maybe because they watched them as kids and they bring back memories. Sometimes shows are made for a specific era for a reason.

No offense to anyone but that list is stupid. I mean, who doesn't love the Brady Bunch? People watch those shows because of the nostalgia or maybe because they watched them as kids and they bring back memories. Sometimes shows are made for a specific era for a reason.
Okay I'll admit. I enjoyed Walker Texas Ranger because I loved seeing Chuck Norris beating the daylights out of the bad guys and I have the last season on DVD. I agree on Murphy Brown. Not only is it dated but the acting was horrible. Candice Bergan nearly shouting her lines and there was a lot of overacting. Three's Company I also agree but I watched it because of the beautiful women. The Brady Bunch I take a peek now and then. There are shows like The Golden Girls that still make me laugh and age well.

Another thing to consider is that while some of the shows may not have aged well, a good deal of their fans haven't either! :lol:

Another thing to consider is that while some of the shows may not have aged well, a good deal of their fans haven't either! :lol:
I'm living proof of that. :lol:

I'm living proof of that. :lol:

Hehe, me, too, I think! ;)

Home Improvement has nothing about it that would date it. Not really. The "man" humor has always been played for laughs and Tim always got called on it when he went too far. Not seeing a problem there.

The A-Team and The Dukes of Hazzard are as fun now as they ever were.They were always meant to be cheesy and fun shows. They still are. What about them wouldn't date well? :lol:

I think some people think these shows were meant to be serious or something.

Yeah, most of these shows were just supposed to be entertainment for the moment. And as far as that goes, I guess they did their job.

I agree with the majority of this list even though there are shows on here that I like (Brady Bunch, Doug, etc.). Whoever wrote this makes some good points.

The only show I'd have to challenge would be All That. The author's reason for including it is because it doesn't hold up to adult audiences because it was written for children. I agree with that. Watching All That now is only enjoyable for me at a purely nostalgic level; it's simply not funny to me anymore. The problem with saying it's dated because of that is because it was never intended to entertain people in their 20s/30s. My parents hated the show and would roll their eyes every time I turned it on as a kid. I think the true test of whether All That is dated is if kids today enjoy it, or if it's strictly a millennial thing, only appealing to kids who were under 13 between 1994 and 2005.

I agree with the majority of this list even though there are shows on here that I like (Brady Bunch, Doug, etc.). Whoever wrote this makes some good points.

The only show I'd have to challenge would be All That. The author's reason for including it is because it doesn't hold up to adult audiences because it was written for children. I agree with that. Watching All That now is only enjoyable for me at a purely nostalgic level; it's simply not funny to me anymore. The problem with saying it's dated because of that is because it was never intended to entertain people in their 20s/30s. My parents hated the show and would roll their eyes every time I turned it on as a kid. I think the true test of whether All That is dated is if kids today enjoy it, or if it's strictly a millennial thing, only appealing to kids who were under 13 between 1994 and 2005.

What kind of dates All That to is the whole usage of All That as the title, which is such a '90s term. It would be sort of like calling a kids sketch comedy show from the 1970s Groovy for example.

What kind of dates All That to is the whole usage of All That as the title, which is such a '90s term. It would be sort of like calling a kids sketch comedy show from the 1970s Groovy for example.


I definitely see that, but the show itself I think might still be received well by kids today. Although, I'm no expert; I don't have kids. :)

I think the true test of whether All That is dated is if kids today enjoy it, or if it's strictly a millennial thing, only appealing to kids who were under 13 between 1994 and 2005.

That's a good point. Most people I know who watch "The 90s Are All That" on Teen Nick are people my age who grew up in the 90s. I'm not too sure if its popular with the new generation. :confused:

I watched all that I grew up with all that I also enjoyed keen and kal a lot i grew up watching full house family matters, perfect strangers, family ties, and happy days I used to like good buger a lot I also grew up on lots of sitcome my favorites are Sanford and son I love lucy court ship of eddies father my two dads, and the hooney mooners I also like Quantum leap I don't think that show went out dated

Your'e right on that show. Those catch phrases "Up your nose with a rubber hose." are so annoying and ear cringing today. Looking at it now, UGH!! Very unwatchable now. The same goes for Batman. It'll never hold a torch today compare to Batman TAS and the recent movies with Christian Bale. As for the list, it is right on target. Looking at these shows now is okay once in a while but that's fine with me. I look at the list and say "I watched these?" As I said before, once in a while if fine but I wouldn't want to rush out and buy them.

I'll take the 60's Batman over those Bale flicks any day.

I'll take the 60's Batman over those Bale flicks any day.me too