Single Soap Seasons: 1980s Soap Operas You Can Binge in One Sitting

The 1980s are remembered for their long-running soaps like Dallas, Dynasty, Knots Landing, and Falcon Crest, all of which are now available to stream on Amazon Prime. But those require a long-term commitment. (My husband and I have been watching Falcon Crest at a rate of 2-3 shows per week for several months now, and we are barely past the midway point. A baby Mariska Hargitay has just shown up!)

But what if you haven’t got that kind of time? What if you want to one and done it? In that case, we’ve got three 1980s soaps that deserved longer runs….but never them, which is good news for you now!

Paper Dolls

Just check out the cast on this 1984 sudser, Paper Dolls! The one and only Morgan Fairchild, the one and only Lloyd Bridges, Roscoe Born hot off Ryan’s Hope, Dack Rambo hot off All My Children, Jonathan Frakes pre-Star Trek, and two fresh faces, Nicollette Sheridan pre-Knots Landing, Desperate Housewives, and the Dynasty reboot, and Terry Farrell, pre-Deep Space 9 and Becker.

The story takes place in the world of high-stakes, high-fashion modeling, so the clothes are gorgeous, the hair is huge, and the dialogue is peek-campy. Everyone is so pretty you can watch it with the sound off and still feel you got your money’s worth. But why would you when everything is so absolutely delicious? Stream the entire season on YouTube.

Emerald Point, N.A.S.

Who can resist a man—or a woman—in uniform? That was CBS’s thinking when they premiered this show, which focused on the lives of various sailors and their families living on a Navy base in Southern California in 1983. It was created by Richard and Esther Shapiro, who’d been Dynasty‘s co-creators, tearing up the ratings charts and even giving Dallas a run for their money.

As it turned out, viewers had no trouble resisting both those in uniform and those out of it (and many, many pretty people were often out of it). Despite a cast featuring Susan Dey post-Partridge Family, pre-LA Law, Richard Dean Anderson, post-General Hospital, pre-MacGyver, Sela Ward pre-Sisters, and Andrew Stevens, who, along with his dimples, was required by law to appear on every 1980s show at least once, Emerald Point, N.A.S. only lasted 22 episodes. It’s also available online if you search.

Flamingo Road

Just like Dynasty’s creators couldn’t make everything they touched turn to gold, the same went for the producers of Dallas and Knots Landing. Those shows were hits. 1980s Flamingo Road was not.

These days, it is best known for two things: Being based on a classic, black and white Joan Crawford film and introducing actors who would make it bigger on other soaps, including Morgan Fairchild pre…well, really becoming Morgan Fairchild, Mark Harmon pre really becoming Mark Harmon, John Beck pre-Dallas, and David Selby pre-Falcon Crest. Flamingo Road also co-starred Stella Stevens, who, coincidentally, is the mother of the prolific Andrew Stevens highlighted above. You can find it all online.