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Best TV Series of the 1980s

Top 500 most popular series that started in the 1980s

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Genres

Genres as assigned by IMDb. Selecting several means a show must match all of them.

Decades

By first-air year. Several selections widen the range; a specific year narrows within its decade.

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Tags

Rating patterns, computed from IMDb episode-rating trajectories. Deliberately strict: only shows with an unmistakable pattern carry one, so expect small numbers.

Rating patterns

Taste tags, judged by our AI taste model. They cover the 5,000 most-rated shows.

Tone & mood
Pacing & structure
Humor style
Themes & subject matter
Characters & perspective
Emotional payoff
Craft & style
Format & audience
Viewing-culture clusters
Intensity & content character
500 series (top 500 shown)

Verano azul

★ 7.9
1K 19 1981–1982
Comedy · Drama · Family

Misfits of Science

★ 7.3
1K 16 1985–1986
Adventure · Comedy · Sci-Fi

What's Happening Now!

★ 6.2
1K 66 1985–1988
Comedy

A Woman of Substance

★ 7.5
1K 3 1984–1984
Drama · Romance

American Masters

★ 8.2
1K 317 1985–present
Biography · Documentary

Mansfield Park

★ 6.7
1K 6 1983–1983
Drama · Romance

Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna

★ 6.6
1K 2 1986–1986
Biography · Drama · Mystery

The Barchester Chronicles

★ 8.1
1K 7 1982–1982
Drama

Just Good Friends

★ 7.1
1K 22 1983–1986
Comedy

Wanna Bet?

★ 6.1
1K 232 1981–2023
Comedy · Game-Show · Music

The Mahabharata

★ 7.8
1K 3 1989–1990
Action · Adventure · Drama

Grandma's House

★ 7.0
1K 24 1987–1987
Animation · Family · Horror

The Kickers

★ 7.4
1K 26 1986–1988
Animation · Comedy · Drama

The Colbys

★ 6.1
1K 49 1985–1987
Drama

Goliath Awaits

★ 6.6
1K 2 1981–1981
Adventure · Drama · Romance

Larry King Live

★ 5.5
1K 7602 1985–2010
News · Talk-Show

RoboCop

★ 6.0
1K 12 1988–1988
Action · Animation · Crime

Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth

★ 8.8
1K 6 1988–present
Documentary

Perihan Abla

★ 7.7
1K 74 1986–1988
Comedy · Romance

Fatal Vision

★ 7.7
1K 2 1984–1984
Crime · Drama · History

Brødrene Dal og spektralsteinene

★ 8.1
1K 13 1982–1982
Adventure · Comedy · Drama

Werewolf

★ 7.8
1K 29 1987–1988
Horror · Thriller

Campion

★ 7.6
1K 16 1989–1990
Adventure · Crime · Drama

Kids Incorporated

★ 7.3
1K 148 1984–1994
Comedy · Family · Music
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