* AccidentalAesop: By a ways of ValuesDissonance, plenty of older cases show why simple everyday errands, such as going to the store on foot, buying a soda from an isolated vending machine and especially a trip to an ATM, should ''never'' be done at night.
* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
** Quite a few of the missing person mysteries seem to be the result of the person's family being in denial/not wanting to accept that the person is dead. Similarly, some of the "unexplained death" stories could be the result of loved ones not wanting to admit that it was the result of suicide/accident/natural causes and instead insisting that it was murder.
** In the Tom Kueter case, it's pretty safe to say that he murdered Tina Marcotte and then killed himself a couple days later because the police were close to fingering him as being the murderer. However, his wife contacted ''Unsolved Mysteries'' adamant that he was murdered and comes across in the segment as being in denial about the idea that he killed himself to escape a murder charge. No killer was ever found and the police eventually concluded the aforementioned when they closed the case in the 2010s.
** In the segment about missing person Dottie Caylor, her husband Jule comes across as an abusive asshole in his interview when he claims he's glad his wife is gone and doesn't miss her. But he claims this because she apparently made life hell for him, threatening him and being verbally abusive, and he had been offered a job in another city and she didn't want to come with him, so as far as he's concerned she probably just left him and started a new life.
*** Speaking of Dottie Caylor, was she really agoraphobic as her husband claimed (note that he's the only one in the segment who claims this about her), or was she being kept isolated by him, as has happened to so many abused women?
** Adam Hecht disappeared after taking in a homeless man named Tony as a roommate, and his wealthy and privileged family notes he always had a particular empathy for the homeless community. While many think Tony killed Adam and disposed of the body, others suspect Adam may have dropped from sight to live as a homeless person after being disillusioned with his family's lifestyle, and they may even have known about it but didn't tell anyone out of embarrassment. There's also theories that Adam suffered from some mental illness, was having a mid-life crisis, or may have been a closeted homosexual, and that his efforts to cope with any of these led him to make contact with someone who killed him.
** While Paul Freshour was painted in a sympathetic light in the Circleville Letters segment, there is ample evidence that he at least participated in the letter writing. The segment uses the fact that the letters continued after Paul was incarcerated as proof of his innocence, but it's perfectly plausible that there were multiple writers.
** In the case of David Gordon Smith, he and an accomplice held up an Oklahoma license tag station and he shot and killed an officer who responded to the crime. In prison he distinguished himself as a model prisoner who earned trustee status and was allowed to marry, but when he got a parole hearing 10 years ahead of schedule and was denied, he escaped prison with his wife and went into hiding. The segment portrays him as a "good guy gone bad" who should be considered extremely dangerous. It omits numerous facts about the case that casts Smith in a very different light; he claims his neighbor coerced him into committing the robbery, he never held or fired a gun during the shoot-out (and newly discovered ballistics evidence supports that claim), and his wife was being blackmailed by a prison guard into letting him rape her or he would have David killed in prison, which was a motivating factor in his escape.
** Tom Mcfall, father of Kurt Mcfall - a young man who was found dead at a beach, miles away from where his car was parked, shirtless and without his shoes, and covered in small bruises and abrasions - insists his son was murdered by a religious cult, even bringing forth a witness (whose identity is not revealed) to say that Kurt knew damning things about the group that could potentially land the leader in jail. We aren't really told anything about the "cult", and the man who leads it seems like a perfectly normal man. Furthermore, several clues point to the death being entirely accidental. Several beer bottles were found around Kurt's abandoned car, but his father claims he didn't drink and the coroner found no alcohol in Kurt's system. However, you digest beer fairly quickly, and the body was reportedly in very good shape when it was discovered, so Kurt couldn't have been dead for very long. The beach was notorious for it's treacherous, craggy cliffs. It was also a hot night which might explain why Kurt was missing his shoes and shirt. It's entirely possible Kurt merely fell from one of the cliffs and injured his head. Combined with the alcohol, this would have made it difficult to swim, leading to his drowning. The so-called cult leader sounds perfectly reasonable when he points out that Tom sounds less like a father crusading for justice and more like a man who wants someone to blame for his son's untimely but explainable death.
* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic:
** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFuGfwIhv14 theme song]], which uses the phrygian musical mode to create what is unquestionably one of the creepiest songs in all television history. Go ahead: find it, put it on an [=MP3=] player or [=iPod=], and walk outside at night.
** The originally-aired, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXKO5stenYs non-symphonic version]] of the song had some subtle differences...that might have made it even creepier.
*** Also, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VJuzTUB3Zg updated theme from the Lifetime era.]]
** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tgdu6NsUQxg ending credits music]] was also extremely haunting. Every single thing about the show's music was awesome, really. Gary Malkin has a long and distinguished career in film scores, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F88tLNEDerU atmospheric space music]] and jazz, but he'll be remembered for this.
** The show ''itself'' used to acknowledge how awesome its theme music was by including a link to the Lifetime-era remix in their website (keep in mind this was during the 2008-2010 era, when said theme music was replaced by generic rock tracks). The site has since been redesigned.
** Artificial Fear liked it so much he [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pzUgn6N-So covered it, beautifully]].
* BrokenBase:
** The "Unexplained" segments which profiled stories about possible ghosts, UFO sightings and religious experiences[[note]]Bob Stack was raised Catholic and the show did many pieces about Catholic saints, visions and folklore[[/note]] tend to be among the most controversial. Much of the fanbase thinks they were the most interesting part of the show, while others, including Creator/CarlSagan in his book ''Literature/TheDemonHauntedWorld'', find them wacky and ridiculous, expressing annoyance that these segments took up valuable airtime that could have been used to help find a missing person or solve a murder case. Nevertheless, there are plenty of viewers who enjoy the paranormal stories, enough to warrant the production of special DVD boxsets devoted exclusively to them.
** Unlike previous incarnations, the Netflix version does not have a host à la Robert Stack. Some liked this change as they felt that [[ToughActToFollow no one could live up to Stack]] while others stated they would have been fine with a replacement since a host could have made ''Unsolved Mysteries'' stand out from the other true crime programs.
* EsotericHappyEnding: The Alex Cooper segment. It features the story of an elderly traveling salesman who went missing on a business trip. While he was found alive and well, it was revealed that he deliberately abandoned his family for fear that his shady criminal past would come back to haunt him. To add insult to injury, his family also discovered that his identity by which they knew him was a complete fabrication. While the segment update was produced in the typical “happy reunion” fashion, it’s fair to assume his family likely had VERY mixed reactions to the turn of events.
* FranchiseOriginalSin: A growing criticism of the 2020 Netflix revival is how the show ignores important information to push a narrative and/or sensationalize the mystery in question; for example, the first episode theorizes that Rey Rivera's death was a homicide by ignoring the FBI's diagnosis of Rey Rivera's mental health and by falsely claiming that Stansberry silenced potential witnesses with a gag order. It should be noted that the original version of the show had the same problem as well (e.g. The segment on Shane Stewart and Sally [=McNelly=] claimed with questionable evidence that [[SatanicPanic a Satanic cult murdered them]].), but there are two reasons why this flaw is more obvious now:
** The first is that the original show had at least three mysteries per episode, so the show missing a few vital facts for each case had some justification due to the format's time constraints. However, this excuse doesn't work for the Netflix version because each episode concentrated on one mystery instead.
** The second reason is that the TrueCrime genre is much more popular in 2020, so there is a higher chance that viewers will be familiar with the case in question, not to mention that said viewers have access to the Internet and can factcheck details about the case from other sources.
* FriendlyFandoms: With fans of ''Series/ForensicFiles'', due to the fact that it sometimes has episodes resolving the cases originally aired in this show.
* HilariousInHindsight: One segment from the first season focused on a legend surrounding a map that could possibly lead to buried gold. The map had a cipher that required the text from the Declaration of Independence to serve as a key to solving it. Hold on, is this ''Unsolved Mysteries'', or is it ''Film/NationalTreasure''?
* JustHereForGodzilla:
** Many viewers, especially the younger ones, watched the show almost solely for its segments on the Unexplained, which were strange and fascinating enough to [[NightmareFuel/UnsolvedMysteries lead directly into]]... The current distributors of the show are even fully aware of this trope and have published several "best of" [=DVDs=] with nothing but the fantastical mysteries like paranormal events and lost treasures.
** Plenty of others prefer the "Missing" and "Unexplained Death" segments, despite freely admitting that they're terrified by them--there are several [=DVDs=] consistently solely of ''these'' types of stories.
* SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound:
** Anytime Creator/RobertStack said "Update!" It usually meant that a mystery had been solved, or at the very least there was a good strong clue. Unless of course, the resolution was a sad one--that a missing person had been found dead, or worse yet, was still missing.
** Some fans (perhaps old enough to remember ''Series/TheUntouchables'' or familiar with Stack through his comedy career) report actually experiencing Stack's voice ''comfortable and reassuring'' rather than scary. He also clearly felt for the victims and lost loves, spoke warmly about reunions, and showed great interest in the unexplained stories. That tiny smile and barely discernible twinkle in his eyes showed just how much he was enjoying all this, and hoped you did, too.
* {{Narm}}: As miraculous and touching as the segment of the choir members who were spared from their exploding church was, the one reaction of the toddler daughter of one of the church members is this. When the explosion occurred and the town experienced a blackout as a result, her (purported) reaction was a simple, nonplussed "Uh-oh."
* ParanoiaFuel: Many of the cases about missing or murdered persons are just totally mundane in how it happens. The victim is visiting an ATM, using a payphone, driving down the highway, or just walking to a store a few blocks from their home, and they go missing and are found dead. It's frightening to think that you could be going about your usual routine, and all it takes is for someone with sinister intention to be in the area and you catch their attention...
* ReplacementScrappy: Dennis Farina, and really anybody who isn't Robert Stack, who unfortunately died in 2003. Strongly averted by Stack himself (there were narrators before him such as Raymond Burr and Karl Malden) thanks to his haunting narration (adding a certain amount of pathos to what may have been otherwise mundane stories), which was completely different to the other hosts.
** Averted by the 2020 Netflix version, which opted not to use a host out of respect to Stack's memory. [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks Though this created the opposite problem of many longtime fans deeming the show boring without a narrator.]]
* RetroactiveRecognition: Creator/MatthewMcConaughey, Creator/DanielDaeKim, Creator/HillHarper, [[Series/CurbYourEnthusiasm Cheryl Hines]], Creator/JamiesonPrice, Creator/DougJones, and [[Series/MadTV Stephanie Weir]] all made early appearances on the show in re-enactments.
* SoBadItWasBetter: As the show's budget and technology improved, the reenactments got better in quality--and less spooky or scary, according to some viewers.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSong: The theme song draws comparisons to the ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'' theme.
* TheyChangedItNowItSucks:
** Including Virginia Madsen as a co-host didn't go over very well with some viewers.
** The move to the Lifetime Network meant that nearly all of the scary/awesome paranormal segments were booted off to make room for more "missing loved ones" segments instead. Yup: say goodbye to Bigfoot, [=UFOs=] and ghosts and say hello to ''more'' families crying and hugging!
** The 2008-2010 Spike TV run, which was basically comprised of ReCut versions of the original episodes, pointlessly featuring outdated stories (mostly the true-crime segments) from the 1987-2002 runs with a plethora of unnecessary video/audio effects added, Robert Stack swapped out for Dennis Farina, and the iconic theme song and background music replaced with generic rock tracks. The announcement that they were going to focus on "male-oriented" stories had even male fans snarking on discussion boards.
** The 2020 Netflix revival focuses on a single mystery per episode unlike the original series which had multiple cases in each episode. Some long-time viewers don't like this change because a dud mystery can easily sink an episode in the new format.
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: While the series profiled a number of well-known historical mysteries, many fans have expressed disappointment that they never did a segment on the JFK assassination. The production team addressed this years later, stating that the story had been profiled enough that UM's airtime would be better spent on other things.
* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The heavily synthesized music and the graphics used in the various introductions are hopelessly stuck in the 80's/early 90's, but arguably not to the show's [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic detriment]]. The fashions and attitudes in the cases themselves are also obviously of their time, especially the younger men and women with EightiesHair. The show also treated the paranormal segments with as much reverence and seriousness as they did for any other category. As functionalist "skepticism" [[note]]a real skeptic is someone undecided and seeking more information[[/note]] has become more popular into the 2010s and 20s, many present-day viewers may find these segments more silly than scary or compelling. This is a real YMMV, as plenty of viewers still contribute to message boards talking about enjoying the paranormal stories, and there are special DVD box sets devoted exclusively to them.
* ValuesDissonance:
** It may be a little jarring to viewers when cases that involve people growing marijuana are treated with the same level of horror by the show as criminals that commit murder, rape, robbery, etc.
** Some episodes also indulged in SatanicPanic, especially when ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' or ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' got involved.
** A large number of the stories about adopted children looking for their parents always mention how the kid was often abandoned by their young mother. While being a single teen mother isn't ''ideal'' nowadays, it's rarely "abandon your child" horrible. In several cases, the children were split up and put in foster care because the parents were ''working'', leaving the oldest to care for siblings. This used to be quite normal.
** The Camilla/Cam Lyman story. Born biologically female, Camilla transitioned to a man in the late 1970s and early '80s: he legally changed his name to Cam and apparently underwent hormone treatments as it's mentioned he grew facial hair. Cam would probably be identified as a UsefulNotes/{{transgender}} man if the segment were to air today, yet even in 1999, at the time the segment first aired, Cam was portrayed as an eccentric woman who enjoyed "posing as" a man just because "she" could. The show also described Cam with female pronouns, whereas male pronouns would likely be used today.
*** On the other hand, this was averted in the Liz Carmichael (born Jerry Dean Michael) story, in which the show made a point of using female pronouns. Nevertheless, she was sent to a men's prison to serve her sentence for fraud.
** One segment, titled "Black and Blue", involved an interracial couple (John Elias, who was Black, and Eleanor Platt, who was White), forcibly separated by her parents in TheFifties, who, decades later, were looking for the daughter Eleanor was forced to put up for adoption. (They did find her, thanks to the program, and reunited as friends.) Nowadays, many people, especially parents, would object to the forbidden relationship for a reason entirely unrelated to race -- at the time, he was 29 while she was only '''17'''.
** The Dottie Caylor segment was a bit awkward, to say the least. On its face it was a pretty standard missing persons story, featuring a shy, agoraphobic woman disappeared after boarding a train. However, the segment includes an interview with her husband Jule, who makes no bones about the fact that he despised Dottie and he's happy she is gone. He even goes so far as to admit that he threatened her with a knife in supposed self-defense, and that he regretted not killing her when he had the chance. For a show that usually took great pains to paint missing people in a positive light, it is truly bizarre that they included Jule's interview in the segment.
** Robert Stack sometimes used the term "retarded" when referring to any person in the show that was mentally handicapped. Back then, this was the proper word, used by doctors, and considered to be a sympathetic, kindly description, replacing "moron" or "idiot" (which had once been non-offensive medical words as well).
* TheWoobie: Charles Holden. Imagine experiencing a life-threatening altercation with a hitchhiker, finding your mother brutally murdered, and then being in a police interrogation room accused of your mother's murder...ALL IN THE SAME NIGHT. It is a wonder how the man can still stand on two feet after going through such a thing.
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