Each year, good television shows come and go, and the year of the new millennium was no exception. The nineties saw many great programs from dramas to comedies, but the stories of our favorite TV characters have to come to an end eventually, as many did with the new year.
The 2000s were to be paved with new series to entertain families across the nation, and the first year of the decade set the stage for many, bringing us crime shows and reality TV series, some of which are still on today or have come back for another round. Here are five shows that made their grand entrance in 2000 and five shows that took their final bow that same year:
Premiered: Survivor
Could you survive on an island for 30 days with a dozen strangers and the bare minimum? Would you do it for a million dollars? That’s the basis of the reality game show Survivor, which debuted its American version in May 2000 with Jeff Probst as host.
Contestants are divided up into two teams that compete in two challenges each episode, one for a mini prize, like food or a shower, and one for Immunity. The losing team of the latter challenge then goes to a Tribal Council Meeting, where one person is voted off of the show. Survivor is still recording new episodes 20 years later, and it’s set to release the 40th season in February 2020.
Ended: Boy Meets World
Nothing is more terrifying than leaving childhood behind and facing the terrors of the world. Puberty, girls, and worst of all, high school. While it may be difficult to go through, Boy Meets World proved that it’s entertaining to watch when it’s happening to someone else. Young Cory Matthews burst onto our screens in 1993, and for seven years, we watched him face life head-on on ABC.
While the show ended in 2000, we did not have to say goodbye forever. Fans were overjoyed in 2012 when a spin-off, Girl Meets World, debuted on Disney Channel. It starred Cory’s daughter and brought back many of the characters audiences fell in love with in the 90s. The series was canceled after three seasons, but we loved catching up with Cory and how the world had been treating him.
Premiered: CSI
Forensic science these days is an amazing thing, and sometimes it’s hard to imagine that there was once a world without it. Many of us learned about its breaking discoveries and abilities through the crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. The show is about a team of detectives from the LV Police Department and documents their discoveries as they use forensics and physical evidence to solve crimes, mainly murders.
The series spawned several spin-offs that take place in other cities with different characters, but the premise is still the same throughout the franchise. The series that started it all lasted for over 300 episodes before getting the ax in September of 2015.
Ended: Kids Say The Darndest Things
If you’ve ever spent more than ten minutes with a young child, you know that they can be hilarious. Comedian Bill Cosby hosted the show that asked kids random questions and then put them on the spot to hear their amusing answers. It was based on Art Linkletter’s radio and television shows that featured similar segments from the 40s to the 60s.
Cosby’s version of the show only lasted two years but left an impact on audiences all over. In Autumn of 2019, a reboot version of the show premiered with Tiffany Haddish (as host Bill Cosby was “locked in” to another commitment).
Premiered: Big Brother
The American version of the reality game show Big Brother made its debut in July of 2000 on CBS. The show consists of contestants known as “HouseGuests” who are isolated in a house together for the duration of the season until they get evicted one by one.
They take part in challenges, form alliances, and sometimes make enemies while competing to win a grand prize of $500,000. There have been over 700 episodes of Big Brother, and the 22nd season will be premiering in 2020. The series also has a spin-off called Celebrity Big Brother, which premiered in 2018.
Ended: Party of Five
Sallinger, Party of Five, your table is ready. This drama series that premiered in 1994 is about five siblings ages 1 to 24 who suddenly become orphans after their parents’ passing. Not only do they have to take care of each other, but they are left the family restaurant, which they decide to keep and take over running. While working in the restaurant and learning how to make their new family work, they face some heavy issues, including substance abuse and potentially life-threatening illness.
The show was on for almost 150 episodes before clearing the table in May of 2000. The TV network Freeform has put together a new version of the show planned to release in January of 2020 and involves five new children dealing with being left behind after their parents are deported, a real issue that many people in America face today.
Premiered: Gilmore Girls
They say a mother’s daughter is her best friend. Comedy-drama Gilmore Girls starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel explores this idea with mom and teen pair Lorelei and Rory. Lorelei was a teen mom, and now her daughter Rory is the same age as when her mother became pregnant.
The two have been the best of pals up until this point, but with their lives ever-changing, they learn that they both have growing up to do as they struggle to find the balance between being mom and daughter and being BFFs. The Gilmore Girls doors were closed in 2007, but in 2016, Netflix released a four-part miniseries entitled Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, which catches up with the ladies and other characters in their lives nine years later.
Ended: Beverly Hills 90210
One of the most well-known zip codes in the United States is arguably 90210, primarily because of the drama series that aired in 1990. The show follows the stories of two teen-aged twins Brandon and Brenda (played by Jason Priestley and Shannen Doherty), as they discover what it’s like living California after moving there with their parents.
They make new friends and deal with many hot-button topics such as minority issues, mental illnesses, sexual assault, and substance abuse. The show lasted almost 300 episodes and spawned five different spin-offs, including BH90210, which came out in 2019. While the original was recorded for ten years, the most recent revival was given the boot after just one season.
Premiered: Jackass
Spoiler alert: we are not talking about donkeys here. The show Jackass features nine guys who love to fool around, perform dangerous stunts for the cameras, and frankly, just act like a bunch of “donkeys.” The episodes frequently feature warnings for the audiences not to attempt the tricks and dangerous feats seen on the show, which often led to injuries for the actors.
While the series only lasted 25 episodes, several members of the show received their own shows, including Wildboyz and Viva La Bam, and multiple Jackass films were made, the most recent one being 2013’s Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa.
Ended: Kenan and Kel
When you think of Nickelodeon comedy in the 90s, one of the first shows that comes to mind is sitcom Kenan and Kel. The show came about when Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell starred together on another Nick show, All That.
Producers noticed their chemistry on and off camera, and they were given their own show, which debuted in August of 1996. The two characters are best friends who always up to some kind of hijinks that tend to get them in trouble no matter how much they try to avoid it. After four seasons, the series ended with a TV movie called Two Heads are Better than None.
