'80s TV Flops That Are Actually Worth Watching

After a rocky start, the United States experienced a period of impressive economic growth through much of the 1980s. And one of the things that all that excess money was spent on was television. Every pilot season that decade saw a massive influx of new shows vying to become the next big thing — to say nothing of all the mid-season replacements. But with only three major networks for the first half of the '80s (Fox didn't join the fray until 1986) and cable not yet having established itself as a viable home for original programming, there was only so much room in the schedule. Not to mention, juggernauts like "Cheers," "The Cosby Show," and "The Golden Girls" set the bar extremely high as to what constituted a hit show during the era.

All that is to say that the majority of shows didn't have a chance. Granted, most of the '80s shows that didn't get a second season — if they even survived to the end of their first — are best left as forgotten footnotes of the decade. But some shows that met a swift demise didn't deserve that fate, and moreover, they actually hold up pretty well to being revisited now. And that last point is especially impressive, given that there are a number of shows that were successful in the '80s that have aged so poorly they are borderline unwatchable these days. Here are the best TV flops from the '80s, the gold that fell through the pan and got lost in the decades since.

Anthology series have made a comeback in the last decade or so thanks to entries like "American Horror Story," "Fargo," "True Detective," and "Black Mirror." But for a while, they had fallen out of favor, with their heyday taking place during the 1980s. While most remember the bigger hits like "Tales from the Crypt" and "Faerie Tale Theatre," there were a number of other attempts to capitalize on what was then a thriving genre that never got the opportunity to grow.

Getting only 16 segments across seven episodes on ABC between November 1981 and January 1982, "Darkroom" went the thriller route, which is one of the more popular angles for an anthology series. Veteran actor James Coburn lent serious gravitas to the proceedings as the show's narrator, and then-hot horror directors Rick Rosenthal ("Halloween II") and Paul Lynch ("Prom Night") contributed. In a retrospective, Decider declared that "Darkroom" was "still pretty damn scary in 2020" — high praise indeed given that horror, especially TV horror, tends to age poorly in terms of its ability to still deliver scares as the years go on.

Sitcoms can feel like a dime a dozen on TV. But 1984's "It's Your Move" shouldn't be lumped in with the almost countless number of failed sitcoms from the decade that didn't do anything to justify their existence. Before striking sitcom gold and helping to put upstart network Fox on the map two years later by creating "Married... with Children," the duo of Ron Leavitt and Michael G. Moye swung and missed with the "It's Your Move" on NBC.

To be fair, the miss was only a commercial one, not a creative one. Starring a still-teenaged Jason Bateman — hot off his recurring role on "Silver Spoons" — "It's Your Move" leaned a little edgier than most sitcoms of the era. In retrospect, this isn't surprising from the guys behind "Married... with Children," but NBC and Fox were two different beasts at that time. So a show about a teenaged con artist who is constantly trying to both scam his classmates and ruin his mom's (Caren Kaye) relationship with her new boyfriend (David Garrison) was probably a bit much for a network that leaned more toward the likes of "Punky Brewster" and "Facts of Life" in its depictions of kids in sitcoms. Still, it was pretty well-received — it just wasn't enough to best "Dynasty," which aired in the same time slot on ABC. Had it received the Nick at Nite treatment as many of its contemporaries did, "It's Your Move" would've gotten the second life it deserved rather than unfairly fading into obscurity.

Many people assumed that Jeff Goldblum's tenure as a series regular for two seasons of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" was his first major non-guest spot on a television show. However, in an alternate universe, he might have become a TV star instead of a movie star — and playing a detective, no less, as he did on "Law & Order." One of his first lead roles was in the 1980 police procedural comedy series "Tenspeed and Brown Shoe," created by Stephen J. Cannell of "The Rockford Files," "The A-Team," and "21 Jump Street" fame.

Playing Lionel "Brownshoe" Whitney opposite Ben Vereen's E. L. "Tenspeed" Turner," the series focused on the mismatched pair of private detectives as they attempted to solve crimes while proving that Goldblum was clearly destined for greatness. The show itself seemed to be as well, with the pilot earning strong ratings and its writing nabbing Cannell both an Emmy nomination and a WGA award win. Unfortunately, ratings quickly plummetted — and the accolades weren't enough to convince ABC to give the show a second season. Still, Vereen and Goldblum had excellent chemistry, which is still a treat to watch all these years later and makes you wish the show would've lasted a lot longer — even if that might have meant delaying Goldblum's inevitable success in Hollywood. Interestingly, Vereen would go on to reprise the role of Tenspeed in Cannell's later — but also short-lived — 1987 crime series "J.J. Starbuck." 

"Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future" was extremely ahead of its time — and not just because it took place in the 22nd century. Not only did it feature rudimentary computer animation years before that became even remotely commonplace, but the TV show was to serve as the anchor point for an interactive multimedia experience that also included comics, video games, and toys. (The show was also produced by Mattel.) More than just being based on the show, the "Captain Power" toys were designed to interact with the show at specific points. It was all extremely forward-thinking and well-branded.

Probably a little too much so, as the world didn't really take to it. Which is too bad, as the "Captain Power" TV show itself was actually pretty good. It was obviously limited in what it could do in terms of special effects, costumes, and the like given its budget — TV shows weren't yet typically given eight to nine figures to spend like they are now. And when the toys failed to sell, investors lost interest in continuing to fund the entire endeavor. But as The AV Club pointed out in an in-depth look back at the series, "Captain Power" clearly influenced both "Babylon 5" and "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (the Borg in particular). If you can get past the rough edges, the show is a definite hidden gem of '80s-era sci-fi. An attempt to reboot the series was actually announced in 2016, but it never materialized. 

There aren't too many examples where a failed TV show is eventually adapted into an entire trilogy of theatrical films. To that end, the existence of — and far easier access to — the "Naked Gun" movies might make 1982 small-screen forerunner "Police Squad!" feel superfluous. They are both cut from the same cloth and feature the same rapid-fire absurdist humor and legendary master of deadpan Leslie Nielsen. But "Police Squad!" does plenty to justify revisiting — and not just due to the notable lack of O.J. Simpson.

The "Naked Gun" movies revel in taking everything to a ridiculous extreme and then going even further still. Especially as the series goes on, the set pieces get more elaborate and the ensemble of wild characters grows ever larger. There's a certain charm to the way "Police Squad!" remains more focused on just being a spoof of police procedurals, though plenty of other genres are poked fun at, too. One plus to the show's cancellation after just six episodes is that it never needed to up the ante to stay interesting, as it's likely the series would've gone just as over the top and cast its comedy net just as wide as the films had it gone on for multiple seasons. As it stands, "Police Squad!" feels like six "Naked Gun" prequel mini-movies and serves as the perfect companion to that film series rather than being supplanted by it.

After appearing in a few cult classic '80s movies, Jim Carrey became a series regular on the groundbreaking sketch comedy series "In Living Color" before returning to the big screen to earn record-breaking paychecks. But his back-and-forth between television and movies went even farther back than his early film roles like "Earth Girls Are Easy" and "Once Bitten." In 1984, he was given a potential star vehicle in the form of the NBC sitcom "The Duck Factory." 

The show starred Carrey as a fledgling cartoonist who lands a job working at an animation studio nicknamed "The Duck Factory," since its main product is a cartoon called "The Dippy Duck Show." It served as a great showcase for Carrey's manic energy and rubber-faced mugging, and reviews at the time were of the general consensus that Carrey was a star in the making. Admittedly, the show itself needed another season to iron out some of its wrinkles — a second season which it never got. But it's worth a watch today to see just how fully formed Carrey's shtick already was that early on in his career; plus, it's easy to marvel at how good he could be in an ensemble — a talent that was mostly lost once he started headlining his own films.

Animated shows no longer have the stigma of only being for young children. There are cartoons for pretty much all demographics these days, from preschool-friendly fare to series that are strictly for adults. In the days before streaming and 24-hour cable channels dedicated entirely to cartoons, it was tough for an animated show that wasn't specifically aimed at the playground-aged kids to find an audience. And that was definitely the case for the misunderstood "Galaxy High School," a 1986 animated series that had some impressive names behind it. 

It was created by "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" director Chris Columbus and had a theme song composed by Eagles guitarist Don Felder. "Ren & Stimpy" creator John Kricfalusi did the character designs, and it starred a pre-"Simpsons" Nancy Cartwright. The show centers on two human teenagers from Earth who attend the titular interstellar institution with students from various planets. Airing on CBS on Saturday mornings, it was assumed to be for the younger set — which is likely why it failed to find enough of an audience to earn a second season. It was a bit too mature for that crowd, but there really weren't many other avenues for cartoons during that time. "Galaxy High School" would've done far better with the preteen and young adult audience that later made shows like "Adventure Time" and "Steven Universe" beloved hits — and it deserves to air alongside reruns of those shows today. It also makes a nice companion show to "Clone High," though it's not quite as edgy. 

A woman is in a sterile-looking grocery store, surrounded by products with white labels containing extremely to-the-point descriptions. She picks up a can labeled "meat" and asks a worker what kind of meat it actually is. Confused and a little irritated, the worker replies, "What kind? Well, what do you mean? It's just meat." It's one of those moments that gets permanently etched into people's brains, even if they don't remember what they know the moment from. 

In this case, the mysteriously iconic scene is from an oft-forgotten sci-fi series from 1985 called "Otherworld." And the scene is a great representation of the show's dark humor and off-kilter vibe, a cocktail that mostly confused viewers at the time — so much so that ratings didn't justify it getting more than eight episodes — but would secure its place as a cult classic for decades to come. It follows a family of five whose vacation to visit the pyramids in Egypt ends up transporting them to a parallel version of Earth. Like much sci-fi of the era, "Otherworld" has a general overarching plot, but most episodes are largely self-contained and often play with genre and format. Some have questioned if the show's premise was sustainable over multiple seasons, making "Otherworld" perhaps best left as a limited miniseries. And other than the cliffhanger ending, it still holds up remarkably well when viewed as such.

Every generation seems to have a show about teen angst that was short-lived but doesn't feel that way for those who were at just the right age to catch it. For '90s kids, that show is "My So-Called Life," which got reran so much and was praised enough after the fact that it's easy to forget it was actually a flop upon its original release. While "Square Pegs" didn't have the benefit of MTV giving it a second chance in reruns, it still very much fills that same role for '80s kids that "So-Called Life" did for the '90s.

It's easy to focus on future superstar Sarah Jessica Parker, but "Square Pegs" was very much an ensemble piece about a group of eight high school freshman struggling to fit in. It stood out from other supposedly teen-based shows of its era by having actual teenagers playing the characters, as well as being contemporary, rather than a nostalgia show like "Happy Days" — two traits that critics at the time praised it for. It only got 20 episodes — but because the show was so good at being of-its-moment, it still stands as wonderful snapshot for what it was like to be a teenager in the early '80s.

Craig T. Nelson had been kicking around on television for over 15 years before landing the lead role on the beloved 1989 sports sitcom "Coach" — to say nothing of film roles like "Stir Crazy" and "Poltergeist." And though most of those small-screen roles were single-episode appearances, there was an ABC show he starred in during the 1984-85 television season that frequently shows up on lists of the best shows of the decade — even though most people have either forgotten about it or never knew of it to begin with.

The show is "Call to Glory," which begins during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. Nelson plays an Air Force pilot, and the show follows his military service and the family waiting for and worried about him at home in almost equal measure — including his daughter, played by Elisabeth Shue. ABC made it known to the press that it was proud of the show and was trying its best to find a time slot wherein the show would secure the audience it deserved. Despite the network's faith and strong praise from critics, "Call to Glory" ultimately didn't find that audience, and the show was honorably discharged before it got a second season.

There didn't seem to be as many new sci-fi shows in the '90s as there had been in the past. And going through this list and seeing how many promising entries in the genre tried and failed to make an impact during the crowded television landscape of the 1980s, it's not hard to see why production companies got a little gun-shy about sci-fi. One of the most notable one-season sci-fi wonders of the decade was "Misfits of Science," and not only because it featured an early role by a future "Friends" superstar.

Courteney Cox was a member of the titular team, a group of outcasts whose only unifying quality beyond their ability to not fit in is that most of them have superpowers. The only one who doesn't is the group's leader, Dr. Hayes (Dean Paul Martin), whose job is to keep the team on track and out of trouble but seems more adept at doing the exact opposite. When the series debuted in 1985, live-action shows about superhero teams weren't yet a genre unto its own, so that alone made "Misfits of Science" stand out. In fact, it's about as close as we've ever gotten to a live-action "Ghostbusters" TV show, not in its exact premise but more just its overall vibe and tone. It lasted only five months, not nearly long enough to truly find its footing, but what was there was solid and well worth seeking out for fans of today's lighter superhero TV show fare.