Throwback Thursday: ‘Xena: Warrior Princess,’ ‘Sons of Anarchy,’ and ‘The Night Shift’ Pulls One Last All-Nighter
We’ve made it! Summer was long and hard, but we are now at the first glimpses of what is going to be an exciting fall season of Throwback Thursday columns. This week we take a trip to TV land past for the dates August 31st through September 5th.
There aren’t a whole lot of premieres during this section of the year, but back in 1972 The Price is Right aired for the very first time and has kept people guessing for decades. Also, back in 1993, David Letterman took over The Late Show.
Two vastly different shows aired their final episodes this week as well. The immensely popular preteen/children’s program: Suite Life of Zack and Cody and NBC’s medical drama, The Night Shift. The latter aired what would prove to be its final episode when the show failed to garner a renewal by the network.
Fasten your seatbelts…it’s going to be a bumpy ride through TV History.
Major TV Moments:
Drew and Rick fight to adopt Brianna (The Night Shift Season 3 Episode 13, “Burned”) (August 31, 2016)
Since the beginning, The Night Shift fans have been invested in the strong, steady relationship between Dr. Drew Alister and Rick Lincoln. It’s a relationship filled with drama, but not the kind that tears people apart.
So when the two of them meet Brianna after the car accident she was in leaves her without a family, we all held our breath as they discussed adopting her — even more so after realizing she has Cystic Fibrosis. (Can I get an “aww”?) However, on “Burned” it seemed all hope was lost when her biological father shows up to claim custody.
Dr. Alister and Rick wouldn’t be the soldiers that they are if they gave up without a fight. Watching them fight to gain the family they’ve always wanted is well worth remembering and rooting for — thankfully their fight is successful.
This episode is also notable because it is the last time we see Ken Leung’s character Dr. Christopher “Topher” Zia. He is killed offscreen in a car accident during the next season premiere.
Jesse Uses Genesis on Cassidy (Preacher Season 4 Episode 6, “The Lost Apostle”) (September 1, 2019)
While Jesse Custer has never had any qualms about using Genesis on others whenever he sees fit, he’s more reserved about turning it on with his closest companions. However, that all changed toward the end of Season 4 when the showdown between him and God finally comes to pass.
God traps the trio in a calamitous freefall on a plane when the exit door blows off and Jesse is pulled from the plane. Cassidy immediately grabs him and tries to pull him back inside but his arm starts to burn up in the sun.
Jesse begs with Cassidy to just let him fall to the ground and save himself and Tulip. When Cassidy refuses Jesse knows his only choice is to use Genesis on his best friend to get the desired result.
The resulting moment of heartbreak as Cassidy watches his friend fall and then shares a broken look with Tulip is enough to make anyone tear up.
Premieres:
The ever-popular FX motorcycle gang drama, Sons of Anarchy, premiered back in 2008. The military legal drama JAG also premiered, which went on to air for ten seasons.
Whether you are looking for some old-fashioned drama or relaxing game shows and reality programming, this week in TV history has them all.
Here are a few TV shows that premiered this week in TV History:
- 1972 – The Price is Right
- 1983 – He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
- 1985 – Care Bears
- 1993 – The Late Show with David Letterman
- 1995 – JAG
- 1995 – Xena: Warrior Princess
- 1996 – Arthur
- 2004 – Dog the Bounty Hunter
- 2006 – Curious George
- 2006 – World Blackjack Tour
- 2008 – Sons of Anarchy
- 2019 – Carnival Row
Finales:
It’s always hard to say goodbye to a beloved TV show — it’s even harder when the episode airs and you don’t realize it’s going to be the last one. Such is the case with one of our TV show finales from this week in history.
2008 – Suite Life of Zack and Cody
Children, Pre-Teens, and Teens alike became very invested in the crazy shenanigans of the twin sons of Tipton Hotel’s cocktail singer — Carey Martin. So when the show ended after 3 seasons we were all sad to say goodbye to the establishment that was like a second home to us.
The finale didn’t hold anything back, after 3 seasons of being elusively unseen, Mr. Tipton finally makes an appearance on our screens. He plans to fire one of his employees but ends up only firing Muriel who was retired.
This show gave us many laughs, lessons, and life hacks as Zack and Cody grew along with us and learned how to be more respectful of their home. Bonus: Real-life twins Dylan and Cole Sprouse played Zack and Cody Martin — Cole can now be seen playing Jughead Jones on Riverdale.
2017 – The Night Shift
On this mildly popular medical drama’s series finale, the characters deal with a shooting drill that turns into an active shooter situation. Many questions remained unanswered on this show’s finale cliffhanger.
While we know Kenny and Bella are headed down the aisle we still don’t know the status of so many other characters’ futures. Drew is contemplating a major career change at the urging of Rick — but will he be able to manage it? How will SAM do with all the coming changes on the horizon?
Most notably is the question of where do fan favorites TC and Jordan stand with their relationship? The lack of resolution for so many important storylines is part of what frustrated fans about the show getting an unexpected cancellation.
Tell-Tale TV Archives:
This week, we take a look back at a comprehensive article about the complex character of Ray Palmer on Arrow. We always try to analyze what we love or don’t necessarily like about a show and this article from 2015 is a great example of that!
Then in 2016, we gave everyone a look at what fall shows they could expect that season. Most of these shows are still available on streaming. So why not pick one up as we find ourselves in a bit of a slump of new content this fall.
Finally, let’s take a look at all the information we learned about The X-Files, David Duchovny, and Gillian Anderson at 2018’s Wizard World Chicago.
2015
2016
2018
The X-Files: 10 Facts We Learned About David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson at Wizard World Chicago
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What are some major TV premieres, finales, or moments you remember? Sound off in the comments below and your choice just might be featured in a future Throwback Thursday column.
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Mads Misasi
Mads is a part-time entertainment journalist and full-time marketing content creator. They love any and all TV Dramas with a few sitcoms mixed in. Join in the fun talking about TV by following them on Twitter: @dorothynyc89.