Excited states in Mo86,88 have been identified using recoil- and coincidences. Energy-level systematics of the molybdenum isotopes from the N=Z line to the N=50 shell closure are compared to their strontium and zirconium neighbors. This comparison, an estimate of the B(E2) strengths, and a Woods-Saxon cranking model have been used to suggest that the molybdenum isotopes undergo a transition from spherical to moderately deformed shapes at Mo86. © 1991 The American Physical Society.