TV Ain't What It Used To Be!

This past Winter break, I bought a few old "classics" from my childhood that had come out on DVD.  Digimon was my first purchase, followed by The Magic School Bus.  They were great shows when I was a kid, but I was a kid.  I didn't think I could tell the difference from what was good back then, so when I re-watched the shows for the first time in years,  I was blown away by the animation, plot, music, and entertainment value.  Today's shows maybe different from what's on now, but that's the point.  They just don't make shows like they used to anymore.

Children's entertainment may be the best example of where this decline is most evident.  Discounting the two shows I already previously mentioned, when I grew up, we had networks like PBS, WB, Fox, ABC, and UPN all airing quality shows.  The list of my most favorite/memorable is pretty long, but listing them (in no particular order), there was Pokemon, Recess, Arthur, Weekenders, Static Shock, Batman Beyond, Superman The Animated Series, Batman the Animated Series, Monster Rancher, Mucha Lucha, Yu-Gi-Oh, Animaniacs, Carmen Sandiego, Bill Nye the Science Guy, Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, Wishbone, and so many more.  That's just for people who have only had public television like myself.  Others with Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon have many other choices, I'm sure.  Some people reading this may think what's the point, but the point is that these shows for children had lessons and were entertaining.  We can't say that about the children's shows on now.  Most of the time, we can't even finish them.

NBC was ahead of it's time by airing live action shows on Saturdays that were geared toward kids and young adults known as TNBC.  Their shows like Saved By The Bell, California Dreams, and City Guys showed how to handle adult situations such as friendship, sex, etc.  The shows were created for kids to learn from and grow off of, and I think they succeeded because I still remember all those shows and those lessons I learned, which have made me the person I am today.  Sure, the shows maybe poorly written or look bad to some by today's standards, but the way it made people feel when they were actually on is something that can't be repeated.

Now time to get back to present day.  I admit that for the older adult, shows are plentiful.  I myself like Breaking Bad and Dexter, and there are many other popular choices such as The Walking Dead, Mad Men, The Office, The Big Bang Theory, etc.  But even the popular shows can't hold up to shows from pre-2000s.  There was The Simpsons in it's prime, Seinfeld, Friends, and Frasier.  Going back from my parent's childhood, there was even I Love Lucy, which is called by many, one of the greatest shows of all time, and definitely one of my favorites.  To each is their own, I understand, but the acting was better back then, and everything was so original, and not a copy like most things are now.

I don't know all there is about TV shows.  To be perfectly honest, movies are mostly my forte, but I had to comment on TV shows after watching a bunch recently.  There's always going to be something interesting for everyone, whether it's old or present.  The only thing I'm saying is that TV shows back then couldn't survive now.  The times have changed, and unfortunately, the people and their values have gone with them.