I probably couldn't list all the absolute master pieces I've watched since streaming became a thing. This is some serious rose tinted glasses for the cable Era.
I like reruns of Stargate and law and order as much as the next guy but cable was absolute shit when it came to compelling series.
I hope it's just the literal flood of content we get hit with every some odd months that is warping your perception. You know, rather than the 4 month long weekly episode drops we use to have to suffer through so they could jack up prices on what ever ad they wanted to run in prime time.
That's not even mentioning the vast graveyards of pilots for series that where DOA based solely on air time.