# Highway to Heaven (1984)

> A probationary angel and a former cop travel the country helping people in need.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/2315

## Facts

- Seasons: 5
- Episodes: 111
- Episode runtime: 45 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: family, drama
- Created by: William F. Claxton, Michael Landon
- Network: NBC
- Cast: Michael Landon, Victor French, Garette Ratliff Henson, Helen Hayes, Ronne Troup, Didi Conn, Robert Mandan, Noble Willingham
- TMDB rating: 6.9/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086730/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: none
- Tone: sincere, uplifting, gentle, sentimental, hopeful, wholesome

## What critics say

Audiences rate the series as mixed overall, with later seasons generally receiving warmer marks for its gentle moral storytelling.

## Synopsis

Highway to Heaven (1984-1989) is an American family drama series created by William F. Claxton and Michael Landon for NBC. Michael Landon stars as Jonathan Smith, a probationary angel sent back to Earth without his wings and given a second chance to do good, and Victor French plays Mark Gordon, a former cop who becomes his partner and companion. Together they wander from town to town, arriving at places where someone is struggling with grief, injustice, loneliness or a bad turn of luck. Each episode is a self-contained parable: the pair takes on a stranger's problem, often gently nudging a community toward compassion while Jonathan's celestial mission slowly unfolds in the background. The engine is simple and humane, a steady run of small rescues that accumulate into a warm portrait of ordinary decency. Spanning five seasons and 111 episodes, it plays as a wholesome episodic drama with a sincere, hopeful register and a strong faith-tinged heart. Its gentle, sentimental tone and small-town Americana settings will appeal to viewers who enjoy the moral warmth of The Waltons and Touched by an Angel, and the show remains a comforting, easy watch for family viewing.

## Shows like Highway to Heaven

- [Kevin (Probably) Saves the World (2017)](https://ember.film/tv/62596)
- [CHiPs (1977)](https://ember.film/tv/479)
- [Little House on the Prairie (1974)](https://ember.film/tv/1679)
- [Eight Is Enough (1977)](https://ember.film/tv/4165)
- [Gentle Ben (1967)](https://ember.film/tv/32301)
- [Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (1993)](https://ember.film/tv/4109)
- [Eternal Law (2012)](https://ember.film/tv/39411)
- [Bonanza (1959)](https://ember.film/tv/955)
- [The Waltons (1972)](https://ember.film/tv/4767)
- [The Flying Nun (1967)](https://ember.film/tv/2006)

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