“That 90’s Show.” I thought I’d hate it, but guess what, it’s really worth watching! A part of me wanted to hate it, but to be honest, I think it delivers!

I thought “That 90’s Show” was going to center on the original cast, and just try to do everything they did in “That 70’s Show.” But it does not. And it’s good! It’s not a perfect show, but “That ‘90s Show” did make a very smart decision: It doesn’t lean on cameos.

Yes, the first episode has Eric (Topher Grace) and Donna (Laura Prepon) and Red (Kurtwood Smith) and Kitty (Debra Jo Rupp) in the old Foreman kitchen. And, Jackie (Mila Kunis) and Kelso (Ashton Kutcher) drop by for a one-scene shouting match. It’s a good way to look at the past, and take us into the future.

For as much as it repeats the “That ‘70s Show” formula, its main character (Callie Haverda, playing Eric and Donna’s daughter Leia), their general friend group makeup, Red and Kitty as funny as ever, contending with a pesky next-door neighbor Sherri (Andrea Anders), and the new basement kids. “That ‘90s Show” couldn’t work if it relied on the exact same people as the original. It’s about the 90’s, and 90’s kids!

In my humble opinion, Haverda has a better chemistry with Kitty (Rupp) and Red (Smith) than Topher Grace does in this new show.  “That ‘90s Show” works because it transfers the spirit of “That 70’s Show” to a new generation, rather than just recycling the old. And it’s ok – actually BETTER – that the “‘70s” stars never appear on screen together at the same time.

So the show is kind of like a handshake between “‘70s” and ‘’90s,” led  by Rupp and Smith. They’re the constant presence – and absolute pros –  that carry these newcomers.

The jokes about “feet in asses” are still funny, but don’t quite hit the way they used to. But that’s because the ‘90s version of Red is a little softer – a little. He always had a hint of soft edges in the original show, but in “That 90’s show” he’s a little more of a pushover.

Red is still the perfect complement to Kitty, who hasn’t lost one bit of that Kitty spunk! Her stresses of being a mother have shifted, and she loves being a grandmother – and you can totally feel that love!

If you just want to have some fun, laughs, and feel nostalgic, watch “That 90’s Show!”

-Carla Rea

Some 90’s fads and fashions – bring em back, or let em go?

• The Running Man

  Learn it. Do it.

• The "Rachel" Haircut

  One of the most popular haircuts of the 90’s – The Rachel!

  

• Yoyo's (And Yoyo tricks)

  Yoyo’s are practically ancient now, (they can actually be traced back to nearly 500 B.C.), but doing yoyo tricks was definitely a thing of the 90s! If you could throw a yoyo, you were phat!

• Denim Overalls (with one strap down)

  Whether you rocked it with one strap or both straps down – this look was hot! Why? I don’t really know  And if you really wanted to be cool, you wore tank – or no shirt underneath.

  

• Neon

  NEON! the brighter, the better!

  

• Jonathon Taylor Thomas

  Seriously – where did he go?

  

• Cop Rock

  In 1990 the television industry was facing problems much like those today. Younger viewers were turning away from network TV and toward new entertainment options: video games, VCRs, MTV. An anything-goes mind-set was in the air, so networks looked for something new and exciting.

  The show was called “Cop Rock,” and it was an epic failure that has become  television legend. Steven Bochco tried to tell a cop-shop story like a Broadway musical. It was admired, and ridiculed. Some consider it one of the worst shows ever made, yet a very creative idea at the time.

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