Inspired by the 2000s thread with the similar question, I'd like to do the same thing for the '80s (with the '90s coming soon!) Express your opinions on whether the first half (1980-85 seasons) or the second half (1985-1990 seasons) of the decade had the better TV in general. For comparison, here is what was popular in each:

First half: Primetime soap operas at its peak (Dallas, Dynasty, Falcon Crest, Knots Landing), cop shows like Magnum, PI, Hill Street Blues, Simon & Simon, The A-Team, '70s holdovers (Three's Company, Dawson Family Feud, Happy Days, M*A*S*H, The Love Boat, The Jeffersons), Trapper John M.D., The Facts of Life, early cable TV that is mostly basic services or repackaging of classics, the Smurfs, He-Man, Heathcliff, Inspector Gadget, CBS Saturday Supercade

Second half: The renaissance of the sitcom (Cosby Show, Golden Girls, Family Ties (it started in 1982 but peaked in popularity in 1986), Cheers, A Different World, Who's The Boss?, Roseanne (more thought of as '90s but was the biggest show of the 1989-90 season), Murder, She Wrote, MacGyver, Miami Vice, Moonlighting, Thirtysomething, L.A. Law, Muppet Babies, Pee-Wee's Playhouse, The Real Ghostbusters, early Disney TV cartoons, Unsolved Mysteries begins, TV shows in stereo, cable TV introduces lots of original programming and more diversive

Slight nod to the first half of the 80s for me. There were so many innovative tv series out there - Automan, Manimal, Knight Rider... anything was possible! The sky was the limit with regards to how imaginative and far out a tv series could be. Yes it verged on the ridiculous sometimes, but the 80s was all about that escapism. I also loved the 70s holdovers more than the newer late 80s tv series (Married with Children). The later 80s shows were a bit more depressing and realistic... Roseanne for example (although I did love Roseanne, it kinda glorified the lazy / talk back culture). Gone were the wholesome shows of the early / mid 80s. It opened the door to the more grungy / real life shows in the 90s like Beavis & Butthead and to some extent the Simpsons.

I will say definitely say the first half.

I'm going to go with the second half.

I will say definitely say the first half.


Did you cast a vote Howard?

Did you cast a vote Howard?


Yes I did. :)

I think the first half of the 80s had better music, but the second half had better TV.

I voted second half, slightly more so. The big thing about the second half of the '80s was an increase in choice and variety (which is what made most of the '90s great for TV), especially with original programming on cable channels as opposed to imports/old shows/theatrical movies. I also like how stereo in the second half gives it a more full sound that's almost as good as 5.1 HDMI sound in the 21st century. It was a great time on all fronts: in addition to sitcoms enjoying a big renaissance, you still had daytime game shows a staple on the networks in addition to some syndicated and new cable ones like Double Dare, the quality of cartoons was imporving thanks to outsourcing to Japan/Korea along with some improved plots, even if some were just "toy commercials" with Saturday Morning still a staple to watch in addition to a boom in daily syndicated cartoons which weren't as common in the decade's earlier half, talk shows were still informative and innovative as opposed to trashy and repetitive in the post-Jerry Springer era, local sports coverage improved tremendously, yet you still had some good dramatic shows, the most of the primetime soaps were still on the air (despite having that bogues Dallas dream season), there was improvement in graphics utilizing more computer technology, and Miami Vice/Moonlighting/Murder, She Wrote/Thirtysomething/MacGuyver/Matlock is nearly as good of a comparison to The A-Team/Dukes of Hazard/Simon & Simon/Magnum, P.I./Hill Street Blues/St. Elsewhere in terms of more dramatic shows.

I think the first half of the 80s had better music

I would think so too and after the first half, the second half probably declined as far as good music is concerned.

I know I've already voted, but ideally I would have voted for the middle 80s for best tv... 1983-1987.

About the same

Second half.