ALF
Was there ever a more beloved alien than ALF? He looked like some weird animal hybrid, but we were assured he was actually a space alien, hence his name, which stood for Alien Life Form. Not his real name, though, as that is still emblazoned in my mind, Gordon Shumway. What kind of a name is that anyway? It's one of those that makes you think surely someone on the crew had to share the same name.
It was left up to us, the viewers, to wonder all these years if the American Military did anything bad to ALF after they captured him on the last episode as he was on his way home ... finally. What if we find out he was being detained all this time and has finally escaped? He could spend the entire series searching for the Tanner family.
Diff'rent Strokes
Revolutionary for the time, this show was about a well-to-do single man that took care of two underprivileged African-American boys as well as his own perky daughter. Of course, there was no way this single man could deal with this all on his own, so he was aided by the housekeeper, first Edna Garrett, who left after a few years to head up her own series, Facts of Life.
Here's how I see this playing out 25 years later. The daughter was perhaps a little too perky, as she ended up marrying early, then losing custody of her daughter. She then posed for Playboy, acquired a drug and alcohol abuse problem, was arrested for robbing a video store, and later committed suicide. The youngest son never grew any taller, even as an adult, and sued his first set of adoptive parents for stealing his trust fund money. After declaring bankruptcy, he worked as a security guard and developed an anger management problem, punching one woman and arguing wish another. The older boy combined the two, being violent as well as having drug problems. He has now cleaned up his act, found God, and started his own family. Oh wait, all this did happen.
Family Ties
This show featured a family that was backwards in politics as we would expect at the time. The kids were conservative and the parents liberal. While the parents talked of their days getting arrested in peace marches, the older son was wearing a tie and preaching Reaganomics. The older daughter became a sitcom caricature, having many boyfriends and appearing stupid, and the younger daughter was the family smart-ass/tomboy. The younger boy, since he was born later into the series was mostly just a prop.
This is where I would place them in a redo of the show. The older son has a very successful career and happy family, but all is cut short by a serious illness that has him appearing less and less in public. The older daughter overcomes a decade of anorexia and bulimia only to create her own clothing line as a designer and start her own family. The younger daughter sued her own PR agency, then starred in a musical about a porn star. The younger son is still just a prop. Oh wait. All that happened, too.
Head of the Class
This series focused on a high school honors class with students so intelligent, the teachers usually read books while the kids taught themselves. They're eventually replaced by a teacher who refuses to not teach, insisting on teaching them whatever they're lacking in, which happens to be street smarts and maturity.
In the year 2007, the honors class at the high school has gone back to square one, not having a teacher. Come to think of it, there's no class, either, as they're all home-schooled or teaching themselves at home on their computer.
MacGyver
Richard Dean Anderson starred in this show about a Special Forces agent that took down enemies with unusual means. He would use everyday household items to take down enemies and get himself out of jams. It wasn't until the last season that we found out his first name, Angus.
In 2007, MacGyver is on permanent assignment in Iraq. All his weapons are now devised of sand and a woman's head cover.
Miami Vice
Crockett and Tubbs were detectives bringing down the drug trafficking trade in Miami. The two most important aspects of the show, though, didn't seem to be their detective work and the city. Instead it seemed to be the music behind the show and, of course, the clothing style of no socks, bright sport coats with a t-shirt, and unshaven faces.
In today's modern age, Crockett and Tubbs are still working together, although both are now living on Crockett's boat. They just can't seem to let it all go, still living in the 80s, still listening to electronic music, and wearing the same clothing style. They have tried discovering an all new style, but all failed miserably. Argyle socks, tan pants, and red shoes apparently only worked for Long Duck Dong.
