With the conclusion of the Cold War and a new vision of a predominantly stronger and more self-confident United States, American television screens were graced by a new type of action-packed show which featured four ex-Vietnam veterans who had been framed for a crime they had not committed and had escaped from a US military prison, only to find themselves on the run from the country they had sworn to protect. The A-Team ran on American television from 1983-1987 and came a mere 8 years following the embarrassing conclusion of the Vietnam War, however the show’s own plot was not reflective of the outcome of the war. With easily familiar and loveable characters which featured three white male actors and one African American, saw a dapple into a wider audience and the creation of popular catchphrases such as the character “Mr. T’s” famous “Pity the fool” quote and various other inclinations of cliché humour, adding to the light-hearted factor of the show. For the fact that for so many Americans, both veterans and those who were not involved in the war it was both familiar and sensitive to the difficult circumstances of the war which had left so many bad memories for the United States, and at the same time provided seemlessly innocent entertainment to all audiences due to the dubbing down of violence and death scenes therefore allowing the younger audiences to watch it at the parents discretion. For this reason, and the others that I have discussed, I feel that The A-Team was an icon of the 80’s because it was a new approach to shed new light on an uneasy and difficult past due to its political issues, however at the same time creating a cult-like following for its good guys vs. Bad and screenplay entertainment that made it one of the most popular television series of the 80’s.
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