15 TV shows you forgot about (and some you wish you could)

Alf

Airing on NBC, Alf is the story of an alien life form, whose name is also Alf, who crash lands on the Earth after leaving his home planet of Melmac. He finds his way to the Tanner family and of course they took him in. Because isn’t that what you do when a scruffy, outer-space puppet lands in your backyard?

Alf is short, smart-mouthed, and extremely unfortunate looking, but he has a keen sense of satire about the human race. Most of the jokes play to his “fish out of water” status, and it’s funny to see things through his eyes. He longs to eat the family’s cat, which is a delicacy where he’s from.

This show probably couldn’t exist now, but it was a big hit when it debuted in 1990. It was a silly premise, and the humor was a little cheesy, but folks loved it. The science part of all the space stuff is super outdated now, but you can kinda see why people fell in love with Alf.

Alf’s real name is Gordon Shumway, and his slobbish and careless ways put him in danger of being discovered. At the time, the “alien among us” premise was pretty novel, but this show gave way to other gems like 3rd Rock from the Sun and American Dad.