A breakdown of the 1990s Television era

[TMC]

Complete timeframe: Spring 1987 - Spring 2005

Starts

• As early as the premiere of Married... with Children (Spring 1987)
  
• As late as the premiere of Friends (Fall 1994)

Ends

• As early as Bob Saget leaving AFV (Spring 1997)
  
• As late as the finale of Everybody Loves Raymond (Spring 2005)

Phase 1: First wave of '90s shows debut - Spring 1987 to Spring 1992

This was the first phase of '90s television with premieres of many shows that would define the decade such as Full House, Roseanne, Step By Step, Married....With Children, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Family Matters, Saved By The Bell, Seinfeld, The Simpsons, Baywatch, Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Beverly Hills 90210, Home Improvement, etc. Television was still mostly stuck in the '80s during this time period but this was the first step of change.

Many of these shows actually started out with an '80s atmosphere (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Full House, and Saved By The Bell are the only shows on this list that could arguably be more '80s than '90s, even though they're either usually associated with the '90s or they ran longer in the '90s) but as they progressed, the '90s atmosphere would fully settle in.

Phase 2: Classic '90s television era - Summer 1992 to Spring 1996

This era is arguably associated the most with '90s television, but I would say it's only a portion of what represented '90s television. This was when the shows that began in the previous era really took over television while simultaneously bringing in new shows that would be just as important in defining the '90s. Shows like The Real World, Martin, NYPD Blue, X-Files, Boy Meets World, Friends, Frasier, My So-Called Life, Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, Xena: Warrior Princess, The Wayans Bros., Mad TV, etc., would make their premieres.

This era would also see the first '90s shows go out such as Full House, Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Saved By The Bell, My So-Called Life, Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers (the franchise would go on to have a new series every year afterwards), etc.

Phase 3: Modern '90s television era - Summer 1996 to Summer 2000

This era also defined '90s television just as much as the last with the debut of shows like Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dawson's Creek, South Park, Oz, Everybody Loves Raymond, Arthur, Caillou, Daria, King of the Hill, Sex and the City, That 70s Show, etc. The shows that premiered in the previous era really hit their peak of dominance in this period.

More '90s shows end like Martin, Boy Meets World, Seinfeld, Family Matters, Step By Step, Roseanne, Married....With Children, Beverly Hills 90210, Home Improvement, The Wayans Bros., etc. Many shows go out this time, including the TGIF block, which represented the end of an era.

Phase 4: The last '90s shows go out - Fall 2000 to Spring 2005

This is the last phase of '90s television where the remaining shows of the decade finally come to an end such as X-Files, Baywatch, Friends, Frasier, Everybody Loves Raymond, NYPD Blue, Dawson's Creek, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Unsolved Mysteries, Xena: Warrior Princess, etc. Television had shifted more so in favor of the '00s/new millennium as reality TV took off in this period and the '90s family sitcom days were over.

Some of these shows would end up even having an '00s atmosphere to it based on how deep into the new decade the show lasted in. Some of these shows (like South Park and King of the Hill) are arguably more '00s than '90s, especially with how long these shows lasted.