THE 'That 90's Show' Review
It's finally here!
Well, my prediction that That 90’s Show would kick off with Topher Grace’s beloved character Eric succumbing to the cold clothes of the Grim Reaper did not come to pass. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
But really, I was only half wrong because Topher only shows up in the first episode so he might’ve well been dead! I knew he wouldn’t sign up to wear that wig for more than two days. I want those hours of my life watching a non-Topher show back, Netflix!
That 90’s Show dropped over two weeks ago, which means I officially missed the boat on the wave of think pieces that follow pretty much any new Netflix show that buoy their sites’ click-through rates for a few days, until a new show comes out and the cycle starts all over again.
But that’s okay because this is the only review you need to read because it is 100% about Topher Grace and nothing else! Life’s too short to be fretting over the whereabouts of Danny Masterson.
We open in the classic Forman house set and the shrill cheers of an in-studio audience. It’s just like That 70’s Show! Except the episodes are 8 minutes longer! Topher arrives within the first minute. Eric and Donna are home from Chicago for July 4th weekend, with their daughter, Leia.
Okay, let’s get this out of the way. It’s extremely cringey that their daughter’s name is Leia. A long-running gag from the original show was Eric’s obsession with Star Wars, and the That 90’s Show writers decided to double-down and make the character a college professor who teaches a class called “The Religion of Star Wars” and quotes Yoda to his family members.
Not only does this feel like lazy fan fiction, but it’s very depressing that Eric is still talking and thinking every day about something he was obsessed with at 17. Look, it’s reasonable to have a lifelong love for something you first encountered when you were young. The Harry Potter series will forever hold a special place in my heart, but I’m not about to name my kid Hermione.
Eric’s feeling sad because his teenage daughter is no longer interested in things they used to do together, like go to space camp. He can’t relate because, as previously noted, his whole life revolves around Star Wars.
He only gets more freaked out when Leia befriends some rebellious teens in the neighborhood. I don’t have to go into everything that happens, but it culminates with Leia drinking beer and getting a fake nose ring. Lizzie McGuire did it first.
Leia decides she wants to stay in Wisconsin for the whole summer, and Eric is like, “um, no, obviously.” I can’t say I blame them. What teenager would want to leave a place like Chicago for a small-ass town to live with her grandparents? Also, doesn’t she have friends at home?
I’m just saying, Topher dying would have made more sense in terms of Leia’s motivations for wanting to stay. You know what, I’m gonna write my own fanfiction where Topher dies and her name is not Leia!
Eric puts his foot down with his TV dad’s foot-in-ass catchphrase, and the crowd cheers and for a beautiful moment I believed it really was 1995.
Of course, Eric ultimately allows Leia to stay, for no real reason other than this episode is already long af and needs to be wrapped up. Again, not believable at all! Why didn’t these writers just make things easy for themself and kill Topher Grace?!?!??!1
Eric and Donna hug Leia and leave for Chicago, and that’s a wrap on Topher! The episode ends with appearances by Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis, and their nonexistent buccal fat.
The rest of the season mainly focuses on the new, young cast, who are all perfectly lovely. The show is competent, but I can’t say it perfectly re-created the magic of the original. Ultimately, I would have preferred keeping it in the past.
Netflix already confirmed a second season of That 90’s Show, and I will def be watching. Here’s hoping they grow some balls and start offing characters. xoxo
On the show.