‘That ’90s Show’ on Netflix: A blissful trip to the past, but one that leaves doubts about its future | Review | Review | Criticism | flow | videos | Skip intro

Trying to stop Netflix in its quest to catch new users in the fierce competition it has with Disney Plus, Prime Video and HBO is difficult, if not impossible. So, in their various strategies to maintain leadership in the subscriber table, they are of course the current proposals that have had tremendous success in the past.

They’ve already done that with “Fuller House” and “Gilmore Girls” whose reception in public opinion has been rather lukewarm. Analyzing what happened with the first, perhaps what we know in Peru as “Tres por tres” should have been left as it was in 1995. In the second case, the impression was that an attempt was made to cover many themes and personalities. that the final product was inferior to the series released by Warner at the beginning of the new millennium.

Without neglecting the other proposals (perhaps we can add here “Cobra Kai”, a TV adaptation first released by YouTube and then properly taken over by Netflix), on this note we will comment on the recent attempt made by this broadcast series to lead with the nose towards Past. On January 19, “That ’90s Show,” a spin-off of the hit sitcom, premieres. “That ’70s Show”, It was released between 1998 and 2006.

Look: ‘That ’90s Show’: What happened to ‘That ’70s Show’ characters in the Netflix reboot?

With 200 episodes in tow, “That ’70s Show” He was not very deep in his suggestion. The series depicted a group of young “middle-class” Americans from the late 1970s (the series takes 1976 as a starting point) learning about life through intense conversations in the basement of the home of Eric (Topher Grace), son of the adorable Kitty. (Debra Jo Rupp) and the grumpy but incomparable redhead (Kurtwood Smith). Added to this are fun scenes in different locations, music, choreography and, of course, a lot of humor.

Even with scripts that today might seem too light, the FOX series was a success, managing not only to enchant an audience outside the US, but also – with exceptions – having the potential to place several star-studded Hollywood cast members (Ashton Kutcher or Mila Kunis). , only two examples). Then we encounter a proposal that, from its simplicity, shows great power to attract nostalgia.

The same formula can be seen on “That ’90s Show”. Now under the strong support of Netflix, the series has moved 19 years back to 1995. Leah Foreman (Kali Haverda), the daughter Eric and Donna (Laura Prepon) had years ago, decides to spend the holidays at the home of her paternal grandparents (Red and Kitty). All this without imagining what will happen in the coming weeks.

As the main character, Leia is a noble and charming young woman who commits indiscretions at supersonic speed in her quest to become a father (“You are 50% your father,” as Grandpa Red puts it at one point in the series). But what seemed like a mere getaway with the grandparents quickly turns into something more: Modern-day neighbors show up at Point Place. Many here may think that these are updated versions of characters from “That ’70s Show”. But this is not necessarily the case.

The new Netflix series includes a spunky young woman named Gwen (Ashleigh Aufderheide), sister Nate (Maxwell Assy Donovan), a chubby teen who is in a relationship with Nikki (Sam Morelos), perhaps the quietest member of the gang. On the other hand, two very likable characters. The first is Ozzie (Reyn Doi), an openly gay teen who is two steps ahead of everyone else in the group because of his enviable guile. Finally, the group is closed by Jay, the son of Michael Kelso (Ashton Kutcher) and Jackie Burkhardt (Mila Kunis). The latter, although portrayed as a handsome (but very absent-minded) boyish ‘hunk’, attracts Leah’s attention with great ease.

Above the basement, of course, the homeowners. Red and Kitty’s grandparents. Given their presence in the ten episodes of this show in perspective, it’s very clear that they both form the anchor that made it possible (at least in this first season). Perhaps because of the impossibility that the famous heroes of the day “That ’70s Show” The “repeat the dish,” ancestral pose is a left hook for our deepest nostalgia.

Of course neither Red nor Kitty have the same speed (in verbal reactions and less when walking or running around the house). But – in case you choose to watch the series in English – the high-pitched voice of the first and the boisterous laughter of the second is all one needs to smile at one of the 200 episodes of the old series that originally ended airing in 2006.

Jumping to the other side, this show that Netflix is ​​giving us also has some weaknesses. While Eric and Donna’s cameos are vital to placing us in the world of Leia, our protagonist, the feeling that using that same resource leaves us with Michael Kelso and his wife, Jackie, is very different. There is almost no dialogue or rapprochement with the “son” of the two. Plus, the pair’s dialogues with Kitty and Red are forgettable. And to end the cameo, even though this person is probably involved in something else, Donna’s father, Bob Pinciotti (Don Stark) appears and evaporates without us being able to fully comprehend his existence.

In the midst of all these sometimes charming characters, it must be said that in this series there is a clear attempt to maintain the “gangster” atmosphere that was present in the series. “That ’70s Show”. The aforementioned Formans basement is central to this. Kitty’s dining room and kitchen are equally cozy. Then camera games come in the middle of “seasoned” conversations with the boys’ first forays into consuming banned substances. And though, to a lesser extent, flashbacks we’ll see Eric and Fez (probably the least-aged of all the repeaters of this show) and even Jackie contemplating messing around or smiling for absolutely nothing.

Now it’s time for the big question: Did this spin-off outpace the version released in 1998? Despite the positive points we made on this note, the truth is that it is only because of its setting steeped in the past that the series cannot survive in the long term. Netflix has already shown that, just as they invest millions in their bets, they are also able to patch and cancel them without worry after a season or two. So, when the magic of Forman’s adorable basement vision passes, the question will be whether Leia and Jay’s love story is enough to give new seasons for granted. Time and cool numbers will tell.

This is a ’90s show/ Netflix

creators: Greg Mettler

ejaculate: Kurtwood Smith, Debra Jo Rupp, Kali Haverda, Ashley Aufderheide, Miss Coronel, Reine Doi

summary: Kitty and Red Foreman welcome a new generation of teens to their basement when their granddaughter, Leah, decides to spend the summer in Wisconsin.

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