Top 30 TV Shows That Flopped In The 1980s

28. Small Wonder

The fact that Small Wonder was renewed for a total of four seasons indicates that it was at least partially successful. Despite this, the series was not universally praised by critics. On the other hand, it was said to as a generic sitcom and a “one-joke” production about a robot child. In essence, it was a contemporary reimagining of “Pinocchio.”

Some audiences greatly adored the film Small Wonder, despite it receiving negative reviews from critics. In particular, the event was quite successful in a number of overseas markets, including China and Brazil, to name just three of those countries. As a result of the show’s immense popularity, it has been translated into a number of other languages. With this many supporters, it can’t really be that horrible, can it?

27. Galactica 1980

Fans of the series Battlestar Galactica started a major letter-writing campaign when the show was canceled at the conclusion of its season-long broadcast, which convinced ABC to reevaluate their decision and bring the show back. Their answer was this offshoot from the 1980s, which neither the audience nor the reviewers took to particularly well. After ten episodes, it ultimately ended the same way as the original.

1980 marked the beginning of the second season of the program, which took place a decade after the previous series ended. In this version, the human fleet has at last found Earth, but the inhabitants of Earth aren’t nearly as technologically sophisticated as the rest of humanity, therefore they are of no use in the war against the Cylons. Even while the idea behind the project could be fantastic, the way it was carried out was not.

26. Life With Lucy

After NBC’s return with The Cosby Show proved to be successful, the network attempted to recreate the same success with Lucille Ball, who was 75 years old at the time. However, in spite of its best efforts, it was never able to beat out the opposition in the ratings when it was competing with The Facts of Life. After a total of eight broadcasts, ABC decided to cancel the show.

Since its was the sole Lucille Ball sitcom that was not shown on CBS, perhaps the network’s decision was to blame for the show’s failure. On the other hand, it’s unlikely that a “CBS curse” was the cause of this one’s demise. Rather than that, it was most likely the low numbers and since everyone, from reviewers to average viewers, disliked it from the very beginning.

25. One Of The Boys

When one sees the cast, which includes Mickey Rooney, Dana Carvey, Meg Ryan, and Nathan Lane, one would wonder why the series was not a commercial success. This ought to have been a goldmine for comedic potential, right? The idea that a grandpa would move in with his university student grandson and the roommate that the grandson keeps may have been a bit too much for some people to handle.

Thankfully, the careers of the amazing performers who took part in this terrible series were not derailed as a direct result of their involvement in it. Its terribleness does not merely pertain to a single decade, as is the case with a number of the other television shows in this series. One of the Boys was ranked as the 24th worst show in the history of television by TV Guide in the year 2002.

24. AfterMASH

AfterMASH begins where the first M*A*S*H series left off, with the main characters from the hospital going home after the conclusion of the Korean War. Its first season may have finished in the top 10, but in its second season, it was completely outclassed by the competition on NBC, which was The A-Team. As a direct result of the unfavorable evaluations, the event was abruptly canceled.

It appears like Hollywood is incapable of ever leaving a popular product alone, and that is precisely what occurred here; because it was tied to M*A*S*H, they just believed that people demanded more and would accept whatever was handed to them. Due to the fact that it was such a terrible idea, Time magazine ranked it as one of 20th century’s worst ideas.

23. Private Eye

The television drama took place in 1950s Hollywood, despite the fact that it debuted in 1987. The series was cancelled owing to low ratings after only broadcasting seven of its twelve episodes, despite the fact that all episodes were produced.

Even if the majority of people have totally forgotten about this terrible program, the United States has not forgotten about Josh Brolin, who played one of the principal roles in the show. Since his Private Eye stint, Brolin’s career has, happily, seen a significant uptick in both quality and quantity. It is possible for one lousy job to ruin an actor’s whole career, but happily, that did not happen in this particular scenario.

22. Automan

As you take in this summary, try to estimate how long the event lasted for yourself. An officer of the law and a computer programmer collaborate to develop an artificial intelligence system for the purpose of fighting crime. This system develops a hologram that is capable of exiting the computer to resolve crime. ABC canceled the show after its first season, which consisted of 12 episodes.

You might be able to place part of the blame for Automan’s lackluster success on the fact that it had to go up against other shows with great ratings that were showing simultaneously, but unfortunately, there is no time slot in the world that could have rescued this fiasco. Nevertheless, the show was able to continue airing because to the fact that Sci-Fi Channel broadcasted its rerun.

21. The Nutt House

You could expect a humorous comedy to be produced if Mel Brooks was involved in its production as an executive producer. The Nutt House, on the other hand, depended on extremely broad satire ruined by weird skits and jokes that wouldn’t hit the punchline. Its unfixed timeslot, which is typically quite late (around eleven o’clock at night Eastern Time), most likely did not help things. It lasted for barely one month in all.

Harvey Korman and Cloris Leachman are two of the funniest performers working today, and it’s a great shame that this program didn’t go well because it had both of them. Harvey Korman is especially noted for his comic abilities. While Korman became well-known for his work as a sketch comedian on The Carol Burnett Show, Leachman became renowned for her appearances on The Mary Tyler Moore Show in parts such as Phyllis.

20. B.A.D. Cats

One of Michelle Pfeiffer’s first leading roles was in the film B.A.D. Cats, however she didn’t stick around for very long in the part. There were 10 episodes made, but only four were aired when ABC pulled this series from the air owing to poor ratings.

The show featured two former racing car drivers who joined the Los Angeles Police Department’s B.A.D. C.A.T. (which involved burglary and auto detail, as well as commercial auto thefts). In order to catch the criminals, the two had to strike a balance between following the rules and acting independently, just like in every other police show out there.

19. Beyond Westworld

Beyond Westworld continues the story from where the two previous feature films, “Westworld” from 1973 and “Futureworld” from 1976, left off. Although it received nominations for the Emmy Award in the categories of makeup and art direction, the production quality of the show were weak in other areas. After only three broadcasts, it was taken off the air.

The television show did somewhat better in UK, where it was shown in its entirety over all five of its episodes. However, this was not the case in the United States. However, they were occasionally broadcast out of sequence, and the reaction from viewers on the other side of the water was not significantly better. In the unlikely event that you really want it, in 2014, it was made available on DVD.

18. Breaking Away

The television series was a prologue to the coming-of-age film Breaking Away, which was directed by Peter Yates and released in 1979. It featured younger Shaun Cassidy playing a character having an interest in bicycle racing. After seven episodes had been shown, the television show was canceled due to poor ratings despite extensive promotion by ABC.

Breaking Away, in contrast to this list’s other shows, was granted the opportunity to participate in a portion of a second life. Following the show’s premiere in 1980, ABC made the decision to begin broadcasting the program in repeats beginning in the summer of 1981. In addition, its rerun was broadcasted on A&E during the years 1984 and 1985. On the other hand, it did not do much better when it was attempted a second time.

17. Concrete Cowboys

CBS purchased the rights to adapt the novel into a television series in 1981, with Geoffrey Scott and Jerry Reed acting as the leads. The film version from 1979 had Tom Selleck. The television network decided to pull the plug on the show after only seven episodes and in less than two months as a result of the show’s dismal performance in the ratings and with critics.

Geoffrey Scott took over for Tom Selleck as Will Eubanks in the 1981 television series. Selleck had previously played the part. Although the absence of the film’s leading actor, Tom Selleck, is likely to have been detrimental to the successful airing of the program, it was plagued by a far wider range of issues than just that. It would appear that hardly a single thing went great with this long-lost treasure.

16. Ace Crawford, Private Eye

Tim Conway portrayed the title character, a fumbling private investigator who nonetheless always seems to solve murders, in this spoof of detective genre starring Tim Conway. However, not everyone was able to appreciate the slapstick humor. After showing the first five episodes of the series, CBS decided to terminate production on the show.

Tim Conway’s one-of-a-kind and outrageous signature of slapstick humor was used prominently in almost every episode of the show, despite the fact that the show was primarily focused on solving mysteries. Nevertheless, despite the presence of one hilarious man, this floundering ship could not be saved by his humor alone. Even with this mark on his background, Tim Conway was able to maintain a successful acting career, which is a source of great relief.

15. The Powers Of Matthew Star

The troubles of Matthew Star, who was simply trying to be a normal teenager like any other adolescent, were the focus of this story. The only concern is that he is an extraterrestrial being from another planet and possesses unique abilities. And as expected in the alien genre, the government is actively looking for him to apprehend him. Oh, and because he used to be an extraterrestrial prince, he also needs to avoid being killed by assassins. Clearly, there wasn’t much of a future for this series.

Although it’s obvious that this program didn’t survive very long, it was successful in running for an entire season, which is something that not all of the other items on the list were able to do. Despite this, TV Guide ranked it as one of the lamest shows of all time in 2002, aside from being the worst series of the 1980s.

14. The Devlin Connection

Rock Hudson, who was known for playing major male parts in the 50s and 60s, appeared in this television series from 1982 as a former intelligence officer in the military who had transitioned into the post of head of a performing arts center. He and his kid work together to solve mysteries each week. Despite the fact that the plots experienced a stylistic shift, the show was only shown for a total of 12 episodes.

Although its filming started in 1981, the show was ultimately forced to be postponed for an additional year owing to the cardiac difficulties that Rock Hudson was facing. As soon as production resumed, it was decided to make a number of significant alterations to the program. One of these alterations was giving the episodes a more upmarket vibe, in contrast to the dull episodes early on.

13. Hardball

NBC’s “buddy cop” television series from 1989 was viewed as the network’s attempt to replicate the popularity of the Lethal Weapon franchise. The sitcom about a seasoned officer who teams up with a young hotshot failed not be renewed for a second season despite the fact that it produced a fair amount of episodes (18 total).

Both John Ashton and Richard Tyson were veterans of the action-adventure genre of acting, thus the two of them were perfect choices to star in the program. While Ashton is most known for his parts in Beverly Hills Cop and its sequel, Tyson was more well-known at the time for movies such as Two Moon Junction and Kindergarten Cop. Ashton’s most well-known film is Beverly Hills Cop.

12. Fathers And Sons

It’s possible that the fact that this forgettable NBC sitcom only aired for a total of four episodes is the reason why you can’t quite recognize it. This tale of a father who doubled as his own sons’ baseball coach did not provide anything novel or intriguing to the genre as a whole. As a direct consequence of this, manufacturing was halted in a little under a month.

We are at a loss as to why NBC believed that this TV series would be successful. It is a significant gamble to choose a football player to play the lead part in your production, and it is quite evident that this was one gamble that was not successful. This is a program that has been utterly forgotten about throughout the years, and it’s probably for the best.

11. Gung Ho

In 1986, Gung Ho was an unremarkable picture, so it should not come as a surprise that Hollywood opted to adapt it into a television series. The level of mediocrity persisted. The thought of a Japanese business buying an American automobile manufacturing plant did not receive a favorable reaction from viewers of the cultural class. After nine episodes, it was canceled altogether.

Despite the fact that the program was a complete failure, it had quite a few well-known performers in its cast. These individuals included Scott Bakula, who is best known for his role in the television show Quantum Leap, and Clint Howard, who is the brother of Ron Howard, the director of the film that served as the basis for the show.

10. The Last Precinct

The Last Precinct was bolstered by not one but two impressive assets. First, the seasoned actor Adam West, best known for his role as Batman, played the role of Captain Rick Wright. Second, the first episode of the show aired shortly following the Super Bowl, which is consistently the annual television event with the highest viewership. Despite this, it was not sufficient. The sitcom was canceled by NBC after it had aired 8 episodes.

The fact that there was not a scarcity of police genre on television throughout the 1980s makes it naturally that much more difficult to break into the market. However, the fact that there was a lot of fierce competition was not the only factor that held this program back. Even if there weren’t any other police shows on the air at the same time, the television series would still fail.

9. The Phoenix

Picture this: an ancient extraterrestrial that was discovered in Peru and then reawakened in the year 1982. This is what The Phoenix is all about. Oh, so you’ve already stopped paying attention? So did viewers. Only five episodes were ever seen, and they were preceded by a television movie in 1981.

Both the television program and the movie were influenced creatively by some very out there ideas. These included The Book of the Law, by Aleister Crowley, a well-known occultist, as well as the nonfiction book Chariots of the Gods, which was written in the 1960s and asserted that ancient civilizations have seen a great deal of alien visitation and were the driving force behind the technological advancements made by those civilizations.

8. The Highwayman

The plot of The Highwayman, which took place in the not too distant future, was quite similar to those of Mad Max and Knight Rider. In the spring of 1988, nine episodes were shown after a prolonged pilot program that aired in September 1987. It’s possible that extended lengths of monotonous driving wouldn’t make for the ideal story element in a television program.

The program was conceived of by the duo of Glen A. Larson and Douglas Heyes, with Larson being the well-known creator of the first Battlestar Galactica series, which aired in the late 1970s and did not perform very well in comparison to The Highwayman. Heyes was the show’s executive producer. However, despite the fact that “Battlestar Galactica” has amassed a sizeable fanbase over the years, virtually no one genuinely enjoys watching it.

7. Maggie Briggs

In this light-hearted workplace comedy sitcom, Suzanne Pleshette (of “The Birds”) as a feature writer who finds herself transferred to the drafting of human-interest stories. After only six episodes and one short month on the air, the series was canceled and given a lower priority.

It is quite evident that the producers wished to attract an audience by prominently using the famous lead actor’s name in the title of the film, and it must have been an incredible honor for the actress for them to proceed with the project. However, despite her star power, the creators of the series haven’t been able to redeem it. It was doomed from the start.

6. Nero Wolfe

The television series Nero Wolfe, which took inspiration from the detective genre novels written by Rex Stout in the 1930s, attempted to modernize the detective for use in contemporary workplaces. The changes were met with much disapproval since they reduced the character to the level of a boring and inept private eye and stripped him of his idiosyncrasies. Only 14 episodes were ever broadcast.

Despite the fact that this specific adaptation of Nero Wolfe for television did not perform very well, Nero Wolfe’s character has been portrayed several times throughout the years, typically with a great deal more success. Nevertheless, in spite of the fact that the 1981 program was exceptionally poor, it nevertheless managed to be nominated for two Emmy categories: cinematography and sound mixing.

5. Blacke’s Magic

It might not sound like the makings of a successful program to have a magician who helps solve murders with the assistance of his con-artist father, but there have been more successful shows founded on less. Audiences were unaffected by the first season of the show, which featured Hal Linden, best known for his role as Barney Miller.

It’s a pity that the program was put together so poorly because the guy who played the major role, Hal Linden, was a Hollywood legend in his own right. In the 1970s, he played the lead part in Barney Miller, which led to a nomination for an astounding seven Emmy Awards and three Golden Globe Awards. This role is primarily responsible for his widespread fame.

4. Misfits Of Science

When a program is put on the same timeslot with a smash success like Dallas, that show had better live up to its billing. However, Misfits of Science just could not decide what kind of band it wished to be. Following behind the superpowered humans came the Misfits, who consisted of a guy who could shrink, an adolescent who could teleport, and a “electric” man. It had a sci-fi kind of vibe. It had some comedic elements. It was a jumbled up mess.

Brandon Tartikoff, who served as President of NBC Entertainment at the time, was the one who came up with the concept for the show. He envisioned drawing inspiration for the episodes from headlines in various tabloids; “We are going to get our ideas for stories from the National Enquirer. It’s a laid-back kind of program, like a Friday night kind of show, and it was largely influenced by the dynamics of Ghostbusters.” That plan did not go according to how he had hoped, unfortunately.

3. A.K.A. Pablo

It’s not true that Seinfeld was the first television show to chronicle a comedian’s typical day. A.K.A. Pablo performed the same thing in 1984 as well. In the end, viewers found the show to be too crude and overly stereotypical, despite the fact that it may have had some positive things to say about a Hispanic American attempting to celebrate and keep his heritage while attempting to be successful in a sector of the entertainment industry that is predominantly white. After 6 episodes, it was decided to end the show.

Oddly enough, this dreadful program was tied to a stellar executive producer all along, and his name was Norman Lear. He was the mastermind behind great television successes including “All in the Family,” “Sanford and Son,” and “Maude.” Nevertheless, for such a significant Hollywood tycoon, this was a huge swing in the wrong direction. Even the most talented television producers are unable to save certain concepts from complete failure.

2. Hell Town

The first episode of Hell Town aired in the autumn of 1985, and it followed a Catholic priest as he served as the pastor of a church in a dangerous neighborhood of Los Angeles. However, he was not your typical priest. He was a “cool” one who was himself a former criminal and could relate with the community. He was a member of the community.

However, he was unable to establish a rapport with viewers of the show, and as a result, it was canceled following the end of the first half of the 1985–1986 season. Despite this, everything may have worked out for the best in the end. You are aware that given the delicate nature of the religious subject matter, an irate letter-writing campaign was bound to be launched in response to this presentation at some point.

1. Manimal

A successful idea for a television series would involve a guy who possesses the capacity to change into any animal in order to assist in the investigation and resolution of crimes on a weekly basis, right? If you guessed “not,” you picked the right answer. Manimal was taken off the air after just four episodes and is widely considered to be among the worst science fiction shows that have ever aired.

This was because somehow, viewers got the impression that the show’s premise had led them astray in some way. He was said to be capable of transforming into whatever animal he desired; but, for some unknown reason, he usually always took the form of a black panther or a hawk when he did so. If you are going to hold that power but not use it to its maximum potential, what is the point of holding it?