Shark Bytes

I tried to like this, but I just couldn't care about the characters. I think the best scenario would have been if they hadn't destroyed That 70's show with bad writing, and turned it into That 80's show over time with the same characters. That way I would be able to stomach seeing the eighties revived again.

I know it's just my opinion, but the eighties were the worst decade in history. Most of the men looked like metrosexuals, and it was the birth of mall rat hair for women which aged us ten years. Things were done with makeup that still give me nightmares, not to mention yellow teeth, horrible synthesizer driven music, stupid jerri curls that left people bald,and valley girls. That's why every show that tries to revive that lame decade sinks like a lead balloon. Like, gag me with a spoon.

I tried watching this show when it premiered. I am a product of the late seventies-early eighties and I really wanted to see this show succeed in the way that T7S did. Unfortunately, it was crap. Pure and simple, it was crap.

There was nothing holding it together. While I'm not a total nostalgia freak, a little bit of fond memories about the years in which I grew up would be fun. Unfortunately, the producers seemed to slam the eighties, not embrace them. Yes, I agree that there is a lot of stuff from that era to make fun of, and I do that myself a lot, but I also have a soft spot for that time period. There has to be a balance of criticism and fond memories, which T8S didn't seem to have. It was just too negative.

One of the biggest fuax-pas's with this show was that it was promoted as kinda of a continuation of T7S. I know I was mis-led to believe that then. This show was like The Young Ones on heavy sedation. It would not really do much better now 6 years later. If they would have either placed this show either in the earlier part of the 80's say 1980 or '81 or later in the 80's like '86-or'87 it probably would have done better then. The only memorable event of 1984 was the LA Olympics, It was one of the many lulls in American Pop-Culture. Tell the truth people, Heavy metal, big hair, yuppies( that was hard-core post-'86) New-wave, Dynasty, flourescent colors,Smurfs? That was all happening by'83. Remember this was the era of Footloose, New-Coke, and Growing Pains. In fact this was the era when the most accurate pop-culture barometer for the latter-half of the last 30+ years Saturday Night Live was at it's abyssmal worst. This show could've worked out if the writers did a little more research and took a little more time in it's creation. Maybe someone will come up with a better solution to the lack of true 80-'s retroephera down the road. Who knows..........

It was a great show! I just wish that it would get released on DVD.

I've just watched some of That 80s Show recently and have found it very enjoyable. I think the problem with the show was it's timing, 70s show appeals to the nostalgic adults whereas that market hasn't opened up for the 80s yet. There is a lot of promise in the show and I think it would be great to see a similar show come about over the next 10 years.
Showing it alongside 70s was probably a mistake, at times 70s plots have little to do with the decade whereas in order to make 80s unique it has tried to be too 80s and results in a disney world interpretation of the 80s.

THE 80'S SUCKED! WHY WOULD ANYONE WANT TO SEE A SHOW WITH A BUNCH OF MORONIC PUNKS

Definitely time for one of the networks to come up with a new show set in the 80s.

I never got a chance to watch "That 80s Show", but some of the posters here have indicated that one of the reasons that it failed was that it more or less insulted the very decade it was trying to portray. By contrast, "That 70s Show" celebrated the 70s while still poking fun at some of that decade's idiosyncracies.

A little 80s nostalgia on network tv would be great. Time to teach the younger generation about slip-on Keds, baseball cards (remember those?? kids don't bother with them anymore), slap-bracelets, new wave and goth-pop music, prime-time soap operas (Dallas, Dynasty, et al), Pac-man, perms, and people who wore flashy colours that clashed but didn't care because they allowed for individualism and were just plain fun.

I'm the third biggest "that 70's show" fan in the world ..but never actually watched "that 80's show" on it's first run nearly 6 years ago.. just started watching the 13 episodes a few days ago ... this show is hilarious ... i think the reason it was not popular was that it was too early and that 70's show was still on the air . If this show came out now, people would like it .

I watched the first couple of episodes of this. It seemed to be very forced and waaay over the top with everything. There were a couple of characters that had potential to develop had time been on their side. It seems that some tv shows get caught up in the window dressing and forget the characters and the tales that want to be told.

I have never watched that 80's show but am a fan of that 70's show. When doing a general search I noticed people on this site saying that 80's show is a knock off...well I would like to point some thing out here, other than the stupidity of these people, That 80's Show isnt a knock off...THE SAME PEOPLE MAKE THEM BOTH!! Kind of like a sequel if you will. the company was going for the same effect as That 70's Show since it was such a hit and hoping Im sure to recreate that for our injoyment. Well that is all just please think first next time and look at the credits before calling it a knock off. Thats like calling sequels or series knock off's.

Day one. It could have been good if someone had developed the characters and plotlines instead of attempting to write a half-hour long joke about Miami Vice fashion, oversized cell phones, yuppies and other unfortunate 1980's trends. It was like watching some crappy stand-up routine in which the audience is asked, "Hey remember Pac Man? What was up with that? What about parachute pants? Anyone ever wear those?"

I think is WRONG calls the show That 80s Show,it was the BIG MISTAKE,80s Show does not have charisma with carachters(that old annoying lesbian insulting the record shop custommers),the last seventies show episode is more 80s that this entire spin off sitcom.80s show was a Dark,boring,flat,not fun at all sitcom.sometimes i call that show "90s show",to be so boring than the 90s.it was a lack of good soundtrack,good charachters,and show the"bright"side of the eighties.70s show was the "oversized 70s"and people liked all charachters...

You're right it started in 2002, but my point still stands. It started too soon. If that 70's show started in 1998 which it did I double checked, logic would have that 80's show start in 2008. I think if that 80's show started in the fall of 2008 it would have had a better chance. To me that makes sense, just my opinion.

I'm sorry to nit pick, but the show actually aired in 2002.

The reason this show didn't succeed is not because the 80's was a bad decade, but it was aired too early. It debuted in 1999, just think 10 years ago it was the 80's. That would be like having "that 70's show" start in 1989, or "Happy Days" start in 1969. I think this show would have been a hit but it was aired too soon.