How NY Undercover Launched My 90s Cop Show Blog Obsession

Before there was Law & Order, there was THIS. NY Undercover was my origin story.

If you grew up on shows like NY Undercover too, welcome—you’ve officially landed on the right 90s cop show blog.”

If we’re being honest, the 90s shaped a lot of who I am—and one of the most unexpected things it gave me was a lifelong obsession with cop shows.

It all started in 1994. I was in 4th grade, and my bedtime was 9pm. But every Thursday night, my dad made an exception—for New York Undercover. That was our ritual. Me, him, and the gritty sounds of NYC, crime solving, culture, and music wrapped into one. That show didn’t just entertain us. It introduced me to a whole world of storytelling—where every episode had a mystery, a message, and a little bit of soul.

And from that point on, I was hooked.

These days, I stay glued to a different kind of lineup. My week is filled with:

• Law & Order: SVU

• The Rookie

• 9-1-1

• SWAT

• Tracker

• Ellsbeth

• High Potential

(Yes, I rotate depending on what's currently airing, streaming, or in rerun mode—because that's how deep it goes!)

I realized I have a soft spot for shows where someone on the outside partners up with law enforcement. I love the idea of a non-cop helping crack the case—it gives fresh perspective and tension to the storyline.

And here's the funny thing: even though I started with cop shows, that same love has bled into legal dramas too. There’s something about watching a case unfold in the courtroom that’s just as thrilling. Shows like Matlock, and that short-lived series about a Black judge and her team (High Rise, I think?) pulled me in with that same energy. Once you're in the world of justice—on the streets or in the courts—it's hard to look away.

Here is "Candi’s Cop Show Lineup" it shows which show's have (had) me hooked. These are the shows I’m watching, when they air, and where you can find them. Because if you're gonna binge, you might as well binge with intention.

From NY Undercover to Elsbeth—my TV habits were born in the 90s and still going strong.

Now tell me, what was your first cop show addiction? And do you prefer chasing clues, courtroom drama… or a little of both?