CBC's new series Son of a Critch tells the hilarious real-life story of 11-year-old Mark Critch growing up in the '80s in St. John's, Newfoundland. It is heartfelt, smart, and will make you feel all kinds of nostalgia if you were an '80s kid.
Watching the show got us thinking: What are some of things you miss about growing up in the '80s? We asked a few people and here's what they had to say:
"I miss riding in the cab of a pickup truck on long car rides, sitting on the front bench seat of the car, Halloween face masks held together with elastics, and picking cool lunchboxes with matching thermos of my favourite cartoon characters."
—Julie T.
"I miss cheap candy corner stores where you could buy tons of candy as a kid — even with only a quarter!"
"The awkwardness of calling your friend and preparing to make small talk with their parents first. It really made sure I only made friends with people whose parents I'd actually want to talk to."
—Ron J.
"Knowing it was time to go home because the streetlights came on. We didn't have cellphones so you knew your parents were going to be mad at you for being late."
—Gabe P.
"In the '80s, everyone watched TV shows on the same night and at the same time. There was a sense of excitement and camaraderie in that shared experience that has become diluted over the years."
—Portia C.
"Kids today will never know the struggle of trying to record a song off the radio and trying to time it just right so you don't get the DJ talking. The struggle was real."
—Gerry M.
"I miss knowing phone numbers by heart. I can tell you my friends' childhood phone numbers but have no idea what my friends' numbers are now."
—Jen L.
"I miss when my weekends revolved around morning cartoons. I would wake up at like 7 a.m. and sneak to the TV room with a bowl of cereal...and plant myself there for hours. I guess I could still do that today but it's just not the same!"
"Shopping from a catalogue! For my 2000s babies, catalogues were like the internet except in physical form. You could flip through pages and pages of items you wanted to get your hands on and circle them for your mom to buy."
"The video store! Going in and not knowing what you're going to come out with. Browsing the aisles up and down. Oh, and coming home with an embarrassingly large bag of popcorn that's probably been on the shelf for years."
—Sharon B.
"Does anyone else remember bringing your HUGE boom box everywhere you went? I loved walking up to my friend's porch to see their bomb-ass cassette boom box sitting on the steps...knowing we were about to have a good time rocking out. 🤘"
—Paul T.
And finally, "I miss seeing man mullets everywhere I looked: the mall, grocery stores, even at church! Can you imagine being the priest and looking out at a sea of holy mullets?? Stunning."
—Nathan G.
Take another nostalgic trip to the '80s when Son of a Critch premieres Tuesday, Jan. 4 at 8:30 p.m. (9 p.m. NT) on CBC TV and CBC Gem.
View this video on YouTube
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.