Top 10 TV Shows We Wish Were Still On
By Riyana Straetker With a few exceptions, like Jersey Shore and The Real Housewives of New Jersey, TV today pales in comparison to the shows from our childhoods. We miss the days of watching Hey Arnold! reruns, having nightmares about Are You Afraid of the Dark?, and wishing we were silver puddles like Alex Mack.
To celebrate the good ole days, here’s a list of our top 10 programs we wish were still on the air. Take a walk down memory lane – and then find them on Netflix.
#10: Clarissa Explains It All Run Dates: March 23, 1991 – October 1, 1994 Channel: Nickelodeon Things we loved: Her neighbor that scaled her house on a ladder every time he came over. Wish someone did that for us. Things that were weird: Who in their right mind would allow a kid to have a pet baby caiman? For those of you who missed Zoology 101, that’s a miniature alligator.
#9: Doug Run Dates: August 11, 1991 – December 16, 1994 Channel: Nickelodeon (and then on Disney from ’96-’01) Things we loved: We see his alter ego, Quailman, pretty much every Halloween. Things that were weird: The characters’ crazy skin hues. Skeeter was electric blue, and Roger was green. So diverse and multicultural before its time.
#8: Hey Arnold! Run Dates: October 7, 1996 – June 8, 2004 Channel: Nickelodeon Things we loved: Catchy theme song, lovable football head, and woogie-woogie handshakes. Also: the episode where Harold made his Bar Mitzvah. Also also: Helga's unibrow. Things that were weird: Arnold's outfit made it look like he was wearing a kilt. And we’re pretty sure that Helga smashing in the face of the kid behind her every 10 seconds could be considered sexual abuse.
#7: Freaks and Geeks Run Dates: 1999 – 2000 Channel: NBC Things we loved: James Franco before he turned into the cultural zeitgeist of 2011. Also, cameos by Leslie Mann. Things that were weird: The series didn’t even air for an entire season before it was cancelled.
#6: Gilmore Girls Run Dates: October 5, 2000 – May 15, 2007 Channel: The WB/ The CW Things we loved: Lorelai and Rory’s fast-paced, witty banter. Things that were weird: That nobody got sick and tired of Luke’s Diner after the fifth episode. And there’s nothing sexy about living in the upstairs of a diner.
#5: The Wild Thornberrys Run Dates: September 1, 1998 – June 11, 2004 Channel: Nickelodeon Things we loved: Our families seemed normal in comparison. Things that were weird: The premise kind of ripped off Dr. Doolittle. Also: Nigel’s nose was the size of his entire face.
#4: Fraggle Rock Run Dates: January 10, 1983 – March 30, 1987 Channel: HBO (and on Nickelodeon in 1993) Things we loved: The main message behind Fraggle Rock is promoting world peace. And thus, probably drugs. (See “things that were weird.”) Things that were weird: The characters looked like they were always on lots and lots of crack. And we’re pretty sure they were: if they touched their heads together before falling asleep they could “share dreams,” all entering the dream together.
#3: Are You Afraid of the Dark? Run Dates: October 31, 1992 (1992-10-31) – June 11, 1996 Channel: Nickelodeon Things we loved: We just realized the series first started on Halloween. Fitting. Things that were weird: The intro was fucking freaky. What parent in their right mind would allow their 8-year-old to watch that? Well, all of ours, apparently.
#2: The Secret World of Alex Mack Run Dates: October 8, 1994 – January 15, 1998 Channel: SNICK Things we loved: Watching the show let us fantasize that one day, we too might be hit by a truck from a chemical plant, drenched with top-secret chemicals, and develop powers to turn into a puddle of water. Things that were weird: First and foremost, the tagline: “Alex, you’re glowing!” Also, that her parents weren’t suspicious that she spent so much time in their garage. Or that she was glowing.
And last but not least, #1: Legends of the Hidden Temple Run Dates: September 11, 1993 – 1995 Channel: Nickelodeon Things we loved: Watching this action-packed game show was the closest we got to recreating an Indiana Jones movie. Things that were weird: We remember Olmec the talking head being extremely intimidating. Looking back, he was a talking head made of plastic.
Did we miss a TV show that was your favorite as a kid? Leave us a comment below!
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