Modern Spy Television: 3 TV Shows Since 1985 That Shaped the Genre

Stories involving spies exploded in popularity during the 1960s. James Bond became a big screen icon during that era. Several popular TV series from “I Spy” to “Mission Impossible” followed secret agents as they worked to save the world from danger each week. Modern spy TV shows have found the ways to tweak this formula and up the stakes for the main characters.

Here are three shows that shaped the genre.

1. “MacGyver” (1985-92)
Few modern spy characters have made a cultural impact rivaling “MacGyver.” The title character works as a spy for a government agency before becoming a troubleshooter for the nonprofit Phoenix Foundation in later seasons. He is famous for using simple items to create devices to get him and other characters out of life-or-death situations.

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Angus MacGyver never carried a gun and this introduced the idea that spies could beat villains using their brains instead of guns. “MacGyver” has been syndicated in 70 countries worldwide since it first aired, according to MacGyver Global.

2. “Alias” (2001-06)
Clandestine operations and ancient prophecies drive this highly unusual espionage series. “Alias” follows Sydney Bristow, a CIA agent working undercover as an operative in a global criminal spy organization. It blends elements of science fiction with its continued focus on characters trying to fulfill the prophecies of renaissance artist Milo Rambaldi.

At its core, the show focused on a young woman navigating the world of espionage. "Alias" was mapped out to last five seasons and the series drew critical acclaim and was popular with audiences during its run, the Chicago Tribune noted.

3. “24” (2001-10)
At the time it first aired on television, “24” broke new ground as an espionage series. Each season played out in real time, following a day in the life of counter-terrorism agent Jack Bauer as he worked to stop terrorist plots from unfolding. Each episode represented an hour and showed a ticking clock on-screen to reinforce this real-time concept.

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The show lasted a decade and it was revived as a limited series in 2014. The series drew criticism for graphic depictions of torture often employed by Bauer to extract information in interrogations, which pushed the boundaries of violence previously depicted on network TV shows, the Independent noted.

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