What is your Favorite Classic TV Channel?

N@N was off the hook in the 90s-mid 2000s. I used to watch in amazement every night. Now, that channel is an absolute joke.

Currently, my favorite is Antenna TV (although I can't get it). I get MeTV but it's really not that great but it's better than nothing.

TV Land in the 90s-early 2000s was awesome. I used to love Hooterville Saturdays! This is another channel that's pointless now.

ANTENNA! ANTENNA! ANTENNA!

TV Land used to be great, way back when they had "Twice As Nice Mornings," and weekend "Fandemonium Marathons".

Now it's Antenna TV and MeTV.

There was nothing before or since like Nick at Nite in the 1990s. Not so much the shows, which have been seen elsewhere, but what they did with them. They honored those shows with clever themes, marathons, stunts, promos, etc. I feel like I love so many of these shows from being a kid in the 1990s and getting excited about them on N@N. TV Land in the early days was good too but N@N did it best. Too bad both suck now. I haven't watched either in many years even though I like some of the shows. They just don't offer anything unique anymore like they used to.

I prefer both Antenna TV & MeTV now. Although Nick at Nite was used to be great back in the mid to late 1980s & throughout the 1990s.

ANTENNA! ANTENNA! ANTENNA!

Absolutely! A wonderful FREEBIE channel better than many pay-fors. While I don’t think Antenna is as great as it used to be, it’s still pretty DARN GOOD!

Absolutely! A wonderful FREEBIE channel better than many pay-fors. While I don’t think Antenna is as great as it used to be, it’s still pretty DARN GOOD!
In my opinion, it's gotten better! In 2017 and 2018, they had a huge explosion of new shows like Becker, Coach, Silver Spoons, Alice, the list goes on! Plus they've gotten rid of Norman Lear and finally have some variety.

There was nothing before or since like Nick at Nite in the 1990s. Not so much the shows, which have been seen elsewhere, but what they did with them. They honored those shows with clever themes, marathons, stunts, promos, etc. I feel like I love so many of these shows from being a kid in the 1990s and getting excited about them on N@N. TV Land in the early days was good too but N@N did it best. Too bad both suck now. I haven't watched either in many years even though I like some of the shows. They just don't offer anything unique anymore like they used to.


This times a 1000. Yes, the promos were cheesy but it was good cheese. The channel was almost like a cult.

MeTV for me, although I miss the Nick at Nite and TV Land of the late 90s and early 2000s. Antenna was great when it first started but the credit crunch has destroyed it for me.

MeTV for me, although I miss the Nick at Nite and TV Land of the late 90s and early 2000s. Antenna was great when it first started but the credit crunch has destroyed it for me.
What exactly is the big deal about the credit crunch? I like it cuz it makes the shows flow together better and you don't have to wait for some credits to be over before the next show starts. Except for when they shrink them for promos, kinda ticks me off but it's forgiveable.

What exactly is the big deal about the credit crunch? I like it cuz it makes the shows flow together better and you don't have to wait for some credits to be over before the next show starts. Except for when they shrink them for promos, kinda ticks me off but it's forgiveable.

I like to hear the closing music so not having it ruins it for me. It’s stupid to have to crunch them just so they can cram in more commercials. That’s the problem with American TV. Too many commercials. Yet these same American shows can be shown in Canada or UK fully uncut with no editing and no credit crunch. Doesn’t make sense to me.

I like to hear the closing music so not having it ruins it for me. It’s stupid to have to crunch them just so they can cram in more commercials. That’s the problem with American TV. Too many commercials. Yet these same American shows can be shown in Canada or UK fully uncut with no editing and no credit crunch. Doesn’t make sense to me.
That's because we have capitali$m!

Nothing beats '90s Nick at Nite. You could tell they cared about their viewers and put a lot of effort into entertaining them. '90s and early '00s TV Land was off the hook too (yuck to present day). The promos were clever on both channels too.

I would say present day...AntennaTV is the winner, followed by MeTV. I mean you can't find some of AntennaTV's shows on any other channel. It's just an amazing channel.

Nothing beats '90s Nick at Nite. You could tell they cared about their viewers and put a lot of effort into entertaining them. '90s and early '00s TV Land was off the hook too (yuck to present day). The promos were clever on both channels too.

I would say present day...AntennaTV is the winner, followed by MeTV. I mean you can't find some of AntennaTV's shows on any other channel. It's just an amazing channel.

Canadian "retro" channels have followed the same pattern over the last 20 years. At first, they had a great variety of old series scattered across the different stations but after a few years they stopped caring and started running the same stuff over and over again and forgot about the classics that put them on the air in the first place. The only one today that looks to be doing a good job is CHCH. My favourites were PRIME, CTS, and TV Land Canada in their early years before they rebranded to different names and changed their programming focus to include more of the terrible shows that you see today. So I can understand what you're going through because it's no different over here.

Canadian "retro" channels have followed the same pattern over the last 20 years. At first, they had a great variety of old series scattered across the different stations but after a few years they stopped caring and started running the same stuff over and over again and forgot about the classics that put them on the air in the first place. The only one today that looks to be doing a good job is CHCH. My favourites were PRIME, CTS, and TV Land Canada in their early years before they rebranded to different names and changed their programming focus to include more of the terrible shows that you see today. So I can understand what you're going through because it's no different over here.



In order to prove this point, I became curious to see what the above stations were offering when they began around 2001 but their schedules were all removed. Instead, I found something that I wrote on here not long afterwards in December 2002 detailing all the shows that were offered and the different times they were on. I couldn't believe the amazing variety that existed back then and how some folks here actually preferred the Canadian schedules to their own US lineups. Here's a little summary of what it was like:


COMEDY NETWORK

--still exists today but like the others it isn't nearly as great as before:


2002 Highlights:

The Honeymooners, Jack Benny, Soap, Bosom Buddies, WKRP, Mork and Mindy

2018: Corner Gas, Mike & Molly, Friends, The Big Bang Theory. King Of Queens, Fresh Off The Boat, The Goldbergs

See what I mean? There's no comparison! But wait! There's more!


CTS

----now known as Yes TV


2002: The Lucy Show, Family Affair, The Brady Bunch, Happy Days

2018: The Lucy Show, Andy Griffith, Beverly Hillbillies, Ozzie And Harriet, Family Ties

The difference here is that in 2002 they showed every episode of the Lucy Show instead of only the public domain episodes that are found on "dollar disc" DVDs. The same for Andy Griffith, which was also part of the CTS lineup in the beginning. Otherwise, I would call this battle even, the only channel I can say this about.

DEJAVIEW

----Still exists today. Another victim of gross incompetence and negligence.


2002: McHale's Navy, Petticoat Junction, Gilligan's Island, Bewitched, I Dream Of Jeannie, Hogan's Heroes, Barney Miller, Taxi, Three's Company

2018: All In The Family, Blossom, Everybody Loves Raymond, Boy Meets World, The Odd Couple (the new one), Rules Of Engagement

No contest!


PRIME

---shared network with DejaView and offered many of the same series

---later changed name to TVTropolis, now rebranded as Dtour


2002: The Beverly Hillbillies, Petticoat Junction, McHale's Navy, Hogan's Heroes, All In The Family, MASH, Taxi

2018: Forget it! Let's move on.

TV LAND CANADA

---now Comedy Gold

2002: I Love Lucy, Andy Griffith Show, The Brady Bunch, Happy Days, Mary Tyler Moore, Rhoda, Laverne & Shirley

2017: I Love Lucy, Mary Tyler Moore, Odd Couple

2018: Everybody Hates Chris, Corner Gas, Community


The last two channels in particular are a great example of how bad things are now compared to then. If only they could follow the example set by CHCH and literally get with the program but I doubt it.

Speaking of which, CHCH added The Monkees to their lineup this month and will likely make more changes when I Dream Of Jeannie, Batman, and The Bob Newhart Show end their runs near the end of March. They should be replaced with other great classics which I will tell you about when I find out what they are. The other channels would be wise to take notes.

I like Antenna TV except when they pull a GSN with their speed ups and credit crunches. I don't get it but I watch it when I a man at my uncle's house. Also, I like MeTV too but I only get it part time.

TV Land during the 90s-early 2000s was great. But now not so much.

I go through each one

TvLand - I quit watching years ago. When they stopped playing classic TV shows , that was it for me.

Antenna TV - Many great sitcoms , but they seem to have a lot more recent sitcoms from the 80s and 90s.

Metv- This channel would be the best of the bunch had it not been for the overload of westerns and dramas.

There was a time when I only got to see TVLand when out-of-town and I loved it then. They had this thing called "TWIP" and Retro-mercials. It was amazing. I later heard my cable was adding TVL and got all excited. When the channel was added all I could do was wonder what had happened. Did they fail so miserably someone gutted the place? Every 2 minutes was an ad for "High School Reunion". Once "off the clock" programs began I turned it off. It was like a sad country song.

MeTV reminds me of TV Land when it first came out, although they could use a good schedule refresh IMO.

Nick at Nite in the late-80s was a nice mix of B&W shows, with a few color ones thrown in. Even though they added more mainstream stuff from the 70s and 80s over the years, it was still enjoyable.

When they started airing Friends and George Lopez, I tuned out. I know those are the shows that make them money, but I can catch those on any station. Same goes for TV Land...I actually watched last night, and they were showing Mom. It feels kinda weird seeing N@N and TV Land showing reruns of shows that air on the local channels in syndication.

MeTV reminds me of TV Land when it first came out, although they could use a good schedule refresh IMO.

Nick at Nite in the late-80s was a nice mix of B&W shows, with a few color ones thrown in. Even though they added more mainstream stuff from the 70s and 80s over the years, it was still enjoyable.

When they started airing Friends and George Lopez, I tuned out. I know those are the shows that make them money, but I can catch those on any station. Same goes for TV Land...I actually watched last night, and they were showing Mom. It feels kinda weird seeing N@N and TV Land showing reruns of shows that air on the local channels in syndication.
if you mean by current showings on local channels and in syndication local channels, then yeah, currently N@N airs Goldbergs, and TVLand airs Mom.