What do you consider the "golden age" for television

It's a Generational Thing: For me it was Lucy, Skelton, Twilight Zone, Cronkite, etc. Doesn't seem so "Golden", now . . .

Mine is the 90s. The networks were killing it. 90s brought you Seinfeld, Friends, Rosanne, Home Improvement, saved by the Bell, full house, etc. Oh, and don't forget TGIF.

You had some solid dramas in Melrose place, Law And Order, NYPD Blue.

I could go on and on.

EDIT: Oh, lets not forget the Simpsons, Fresh Prince, X Files, Star Trek TNG, Twin Peaks, and some of the more memorable and quality casts on SNL.

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Honestly, I think the 2000's have been a horrible decade for TV. The networks sold out to the cheap and un-creative reality crap. Really, anything that pushed the envelope a little and did something different wasn't even given a chance if it wasnt an instant ratings success. (Firefly, Chuck, Family Guy the first time, etc)

I don't see how anyone can say anything but the 00s. There will always be bad TV, but niche programming has allowed some truly stellar shows on the air, and the medium has been able to attract far better talent than it could in the 70s, when it was seen as the ghetto for people who couldn't cut it in movies.

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For comedies Friends was still going and many people like HIMYM.

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To make an argument for the 2000-2010 decade, I would use shows that are/were good. Ya know, like The Office, Frasier, and South Park. These are good comedies.

Friends was bad. HIMYM might be the least funny "comedy" in the last 20 years, other than That 70's Show.

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Heck even some of the very early reality stuff like the first seasons of Survivor and Big Brother were good.

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No.

New =/= good, and these shows are the same every season.

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To make an argument for the 2000-2010 decade, I would use shows that are/were good. Ya know, like The Office, Frasier, and South Park. These are good comedies.

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You can count those on one hand. I could make a whole thread on the quality comedies on TV from 90-95. There will always be a hit here and there.

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But there was a lot of creativity in the 80s and 90s. Sure it wasn't bug budget, and none of it has aged particularly well, but they tried really hard to do different things.

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They definitely built the foundation for the Golden Age, but even the best shows of that generation were still pretty formulaic and designed primarily to get into syndication, so the plot could never really advance. There's a few exceptions, and it's why Twin Peaks was such a game-changer, but even ambitious TV back then wasn't TOO ambitious. I think the best shows from that era were still ones that relied heavily on tropes and passive viewing.

I love Homicide and think it's one of the best things ever on TV, but it still did its best to reset after every episode. It's descendent is The Wire, which blows it away.

I will say that the 90s were a goldmine for the anti-sitcom. Probably the best era for that: Married with Children, Roseanne, and The Simpsons are probably the cream of the 80/90s crop. I will admit that it was the Golden Era for sitcoms.

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They definitely built the foundation for the Golden Age, but even the best shows of that generation were still pretty formulaic and designed primarily to get into syndication, so the plot could never really advance. There's a few exceptions, and it's why Twin Peaks was such a game-changer, but even ambitious TV back then wasn't TOO ambitious. I think the best shows from that era were still ones that relied heavily on tropes and passive viewing.

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I'll agree with this. Good point.

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I love Homicide and think it's one of the best things ever on TV, but it still did its best to reset after every episode. It's descendent is The Wire, which blows it away.

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And this.

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I will say that the 90s were a goldmine for the anti-sitcom. Probably the best era for that: Married with Children, Roseanne, and The Simpsons are probably the cream of the 80/90s crop. I will admit that it was the Golden Era for sitcoms.

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And this.

Dammit Baloo!

Sitcoms in the 80s-90s, hour-longs in the 2000s, hard to argue with that.

Sorry, Freaux. We almost disagreed on something other than Drive.

It's hard to compare going back within my generation because there are just so many more shows now. Overall I think the quality of TV in the 2000's is not as good but considering there is limited time for even the most avid TV fan, today there a more good shows to watch in the cream of the crop. Here I'm thinking about the Emmy and Golden Globe Award winning shows like LOST, The Sopranos, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, Mad Men, Battlestar Galactica, Deadwood, Justified, Dexter, CSI, 24, House, Arrested Development, 30 Rock, The Shield, The West Wing, Six Feet Under, etc.; it's a long list. And for clarification, what I mean by the 2000's is shows starting anywhere from year 2000 to present which is why I included Game of Thrones and Justified which began in 2011 and 2010 respectively.