The Facts of Life: A Review

     You take the good, the take the bad ... you take some pretty heavy 80's values and a few laugh tracks, and there you have The Facts of Life.
     It doesn't completely hold up, but on the other hand, I think it was breaking some ground.  Did you remember that the first season had more than just Natalie, Blaire, Tootie, and Jo?  And in fact Jo wasn't even in the first season.  And the theme song was a little different.
     It was a good show; I think its weakness can be attributed to the fact it had to stick within the genre of an 80s sitcom.  You know, at the end of the episode the characters can't really change and all the problems have to wrap up in 22 minutes.   But they actually conquered some pretty great topics and attempted to honor the idea of girls becoming women and how it takes all kinds.
     Also, remember when they called it dope?
MiniEpisode - Dope
The Facts of Life will always hold a special place in my heart.  I remember more as a piece of nostalgia than anything else.  It was on for 8 seasons, and whereas that might not seem like a lot when compared to The Simpsons or Friends, when you consider the fact the 8 seasons takes kids from 12 to 20, they indeed cover many life-facts.