The 40 most popular 1980s mystery TV shows, ranked. Click any show for ratings, reviews, trailers, and where to watch.


Star Trek: The Next Generation
1987 · US
Follow the intergalactic adventures of Capt. Jean-Luc Picard and his loyal crew aboard the all-new USS Enterprise NCC-1701D, as they explore new worlds.


Agatha Christie's Poirot
1989 · UK
From England to Egypt, accompanied by his elegant and trustworthy sidekicks, the intelligent yet eccentrically-refined Belgian detective Hercule Poirot pits his wits against a collection of first class deceptions.


Magnum, P.I.
1980 · US
A private investigator who works when he wants, lives in a beachfront estate in Hawaii, drives a posh Ferrari, runs up an unlimited tab at a swank bar, and charms attractive women in peril - that's the lifestyle of Thomas Magnum, aka Magnum, P.I.


Murder, She Wrote
1984 · US
An unassuming mystery writer turned sleuth uses her professional insight to help solve real-life homicide cases.


21 Jump Street
1987 · US
21 Jump Street revolves around a group of young cops who would use their youthful appearance to go undercover and solve crimes involving teenagers and young adults.


DuckTales
1987 · US
Scrooge McDuck finds his hands full at home when nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie move to Duckburg. Joined by their loyal pals Launchpad McQuack, Gyro Gearloose and Mrs. Beakley, the DuckTales gang never fails to deliver a wealth of adventure. Get ready for a fortune of fun with DuckTales!


The Twilight Zone
1985 · US
This 1980s revival of the classic sci-fi series features a similar style to the original anthology series. Each episode tells a tale (sometimes two or three) rooted in horror or suspense, often with a surprising twist at the end. Episodes usually feature elements of drama and comedy.


Sherlock Holmes
1984 · UK
Sherlock Holmes, along with his friend Dr. Watson, uses his abilities to take on cases by private clients and those that the Scotland Yard are unable to solve.


Moonlighting
1985 · US
After being duped and going bankrupt, model Maddie is convinced by David to become a partner in a detective agency. Together they solve various cases, while getting comfortable with each other.


Tales from the Crypt
1989 · US
Cadaverous scream legend the Crypt Keeper is your macabre host for these forays of fright and fun based on the classic E.C. Comics tales from back in the day. So shamble up to the bar and pick your poison. Will it be an insane Santa on a personal slay ride? Honeymooners out to fulfill the "til death do we part" vow ASAP?


Masterpiece Mystery
1980 · US
Mystery! is an episodic television series that debuted in 1980 in the USA. It airs on PBS and is produced by WGBH. The show has brought a large number of detective series and television movies—most of them British productions from the BBC or the ITV companies and usually adapted from mystery fiction literary sources—to air on American television. In 2002, they added an American-produced series based on the novels of Tony Hillerman to their roster.


Power Play
1984 · BR
Eloá and Osmar's marriage is thrown into crisis when a mysterious man crosses their path. With a thirst for prestige and power, Eloá will face the consequences of her ambition.


City Hunter
1987 · JP
Ryo Saeba works the streets of Tokyo as the City Hunter. He's a "sweeper" and with his sidekick Kaori Makimura, he keeps the city clean. People hire the City Hunter to solve their dangerous problems, which he does with a Colt Python. When Ryo's not working on a case, he's working on getting the ladies, and Kaori must keep him in check with her trusty 10 kg hammer.


Inspector Morse
1987 · UK
Inspector Morse is a detective drama based on Colin Dexter's series of Chief Inspector Morse novels. The series starred John Thaw as Chief Inspector Morse and Kevin Whately as Sergeant Lewis, as well as a large cast of notable actors and actresses.


The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents
1985 · US
The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents is an American anthology series that aired on NBC from 1985 to 1986, and on the USA Network from 1987 to 1989. The series is an updated re-imagining of the classic 1955 series Alfred Hitchcock Presents.


Crime Story
1986 · US
The hard-boiled saga of hair-trigger cop Lieutenant Mike Torello and his obsessive pursuit of ruthless gangster Ray Luca.


Unsolved Mysteries
1988 · US
Combines four to five segments of dramatic re-enactments, interviews and updates of real human and paranormal mysteries. An audience interactive call-to-action request allowed viewers to call in with tips to help solve the cases.


Monsters
1988 · US
Monsters is a syndicated horror anthology series which originally ran from 1988 to 1991 and reran on the Sci-Fi Channel during the 1990s. Similarly to Tales from the Darkside, Monsters shared the same producer, and in some ways succeeded the show. It differed in some respects nonetheless. While Tales sometimes dabbled in stories of science fiction and fantasy, this series was more strictly horror. As the name implies, each episode features a different monster, from the animatronic puppet of a fictional children's television program to mutated, weapon-wielding lab rats.


Friday the 13th: The Series
1987 · CA
Micki and Ryan with the help of their friend Jack try to recover cursed antiques so they can store them in safety inside the antique store's vault.


The Ruth Rendell Mysteries
1987 · UK
The Ruth Rendell mysteries is a British television series made by TVS and Meridian Television for ITV between 2 August 1987 and 11 October 2000.


Freddy's Nightmares
1988 · US
The evil, sinister killer of the "Nightmare On Elm Street" movies, Freddy Krueger, hosts this show, where each week, he shows us a tale of evil and death about the lives of people who live in Springwood.


Lovejoy
1986 · UK
The adventures of the eponymous Lovejoy, a likeable but roguish antiques dealer based in East Anglia. Within the trade, he has a reputation as a “divvie”, a person with an almost supernatural powers for recognising exceptional items as well as distinguishing genuine antique from clever fakes or forgeries.


Furuya Ikkou's Great Detective Kindaichi Kousuke Series
1983 · JP
No overview available


Cat's Eye
1983 · JP
Cat's Eye is the most notorious group of art thieves in Japan. No one knows their identities, but for most of Tokyo, the mystery only heightens their allure.


Spenser: For Hire
1985 · US
Mystery and suspense series based on Robert Parker's "Spenser" novels. Spenser, a private investigator living in Boston, gets involved in a new murder mystery each episode.


A Pup Named Scooby-Doo
1988 · US
The world's favorite chicken-hearted canine, as a puppy? That's right! And the old gang is back with him. Shaggy, Daphne, Velma, and Freddy are all here as gangly kids — goofing off, solving kid-size mysteries, and having run-ins with ghouls, ghosts, and goblins.


Ghostbusters
1986 · US
Jake Kong Jr. and Eddie Spencer Jr. are sons of the original Ghost Busters, and they work alongside Tracy the Gorilla (who also worked with their fathers). Together, they are dedicated to ridding the world of the evil ghost wizard Prime Evil and his cast of henchmen.


Cackling Kitarou
1985 · JP
3rd TV anime of Shigeru Mizuki's "Gegege no Kitarou".


Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio
1987 · CN
No overview available


Navarro
1989 · FR
Out of the norm police officer Navarro and his team investigate the most troubling, serious and heart rendering cases in the city of Paris.


Extraños caminos del amor
1981 · MX
No overview available


Hammer House of Horror
1980 · UK
Each self-contained episode features a different kind of horror, varying from witches, werewolves, ghosts, devil worship and voodoo, but also includes non-supernatural themes such as cannibalism, confinement and serial killers.


The Marked Hour
1988 · MX
La Hora Marcada was a 1986 Mexican television anthology series famous for its horror and science fiction themes in the vein of the Twilight Zone. Although virtually unknown outside the country, it achieved a popular and critical success in Mexico. It had a series of rotating writers and directors, among them Emmanuel Lubezki, Guillermo del Toro and Alfonso Cuarón.


Space Stars
1981 · US
As the entire world went "space action" crazy at the end of the Seventies, Hanna-Barbera reconvened its Sci-Fi superstars Space Ghost and the Herculoids for another round of adventures. Joining the sixties sci-fi faves in their interstellar battle against evil were newcomers Teen Force and Astro and the Space Mutts (yes, that Astro!).


La casa al final de la calle
1989 · MX
No overview available


Father Dowling Mysteries
1989 · US
Father Dowling is a sleuthing parish priest from Chicago who investigates baffling crimes


Street Hawk
1985 · US
Street Hawk is an American television series that aired for 13 episodes on ABC in 1985. The series is a Limekiln and Templar Production in association with Universal Television. Its central characters were created by Paul M. Belous and Robert "Bob" Wolterstorff, and its core format was developed by Bruce Lansbury, who had initially commissioned the program's creation. This series was originally planned for the fall of 1984, Mondays at 8:00PM Eastern/7:00PM Central. However, ABC executives changed their minds when the summer series Call to Glory did well, and Street Hawk was pushed to mid-season. Street Hawk made its debut on January 4, 1985 on ABC at 9:00PM Eastern/8:00PM Central and ran until May 16, 1985. Reruns aired on the USA Network on Saturdays at 10:00AM from 1990-91.


Kamen Rider Black
1987 · JP
Desperate and terrified, Kotaro Minami escaped the clutches of the ancient secret society, Gorgom—but in doing so, left behind his best friend and adoptive brother, Nobuhiko Akizuki. Both have been transformed into beings of immense power in order to serve Gorgom's dark purposes. If left unchecked, Gorgom will destroy humanity and eliminate all traces of its civilization and culture. Now the powerful cyborg known as Kamen Rider Black, Kotaro will use the powers Gorgom gave him to preserve justice and freedom, as well as to save his brother. But Gorgom has their own plans for Nobuhiko—and if Kotaro can't save him, he may have to fight him!


Mike Hammer
1984 · US
Private detective Mike Hammer hunts down criminals on the mean streets of New York City.


The New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show
1983 · US
The New Scooby and Scrappy Doo Show is the sixth incarnation of the Hanna-Barbera Saturday morning cartoon Scooby-Doo. It premiered on September 10, 1983, and ran for one season on ABC as a half-hour program made up of two eleven-minute short cartoons. The show is a return to the mystery solving format and reintroduces Daphne after a four-year absence. The plots of each episode feature her, Shaggy, Scooby-Doo, and Scrappy-Doo solving supernatural mysteries under the cover of being reporters for a teen magazine.
1980s television saw the serialized primetime drama take hold and cable begin to fragment the audience that networks had held uncontested for thirty years.
Mystery series stretch a central question across a season, which lets them develop suspects and setting far past what a film allows. The form's risk is the ending, and its reward is the slow build.