Have you ever experienced this before? You’re watching one of your comfort shows from decades ago, something you remember fondly watching when you were younger and want to relive that same magic. All of a sudden, you come face-to-face with a horrific joke that no longer passes the vibe check. Everything from “Friends” to “The Simpsons” have jokes that aged terribly, but there’s a different kind of realization you might come to with certain programs. While some shows have singular episodes that no longer work, some series have central premises that no network or streamer would take a chance on today.
Making a list of TV shows that would never be made today is pretty common, but many of these other lists have entries that just don’t make sense. Like how can you say that “South Park” couldn’t be made today when new episodes are currently getting made? There are also shows like “All in the Family,” where Archie Bunker (Carroll O’Connor), is a bigot, but his bigotry is constantly a source of condemnation. People may say that “All in the Family” couldn’t work today, but in truth, it’s pretty woke.
For this list, we wanted shows where their very identities couldn’t work today. The central ideas has to be either horrendously offensive or just plain doesn’t make sense. And maybe there will be a few surprises thrown into the mix for good measure.
