That ‘90s Show’s Nostalgia "Problem" Repeats The Original’s Best Trick

That '90s Show must balance the nostalgia of multiple generations, but this 'problem' actually repeats That '70s Show's best self-indulgent trick.

Early concerns suggested That ‘90s Show’s many tiers of sentimentality would be too overbearing for the sequel series, though this actually repeats That ‘70s Show’s best nostalgia trick. While That ‘70s Show’s main concern was to pay homage to the culture, societal quirks, and popular figures of the 1970s, That ‘90s Show’s nostalgia won’t be so simple. Rather, That ‘90s Show must juggle the nostalgia of the culture of the mid-1990s, the leftover sentiments of the original series’ era, and tributes to That ‘70s Show’s returning characters.

That ‘90s Show repeats the original formula for That ‘70s Show, following Donna and Eric’s teenage daughter Leia as she stays with her grandparents Red and Kitty Forman for the summer. Introducing a new generation of Point Place teens, That ‘90s Show’s synopsis reads “sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll never dies, it just changes clothes.” This hints That ‘90s Show’s teens will be reusing The Circle running gag in the Formans’ basement, but with ‘90s rock bands and politics instead of Led Zeppelin and theories about cars running on water.

While That ‘90s Show having to balance the nostalgia of the new era of the 1990s with that of the original show and returning characters could pose a problem for the spinoff’s focus, over-indulging in nostalgia was actually the heart of That ‘70s Show’s original story. From absurd plotlines that were simply written to include some of the most notable trends of the 1970s or recruiting numerous celebrities to cameo on the series, That ‘70s Show’s best trick was that it was how heavily it prioritized nostalgia for the title era. Whereas most spinoffs leaning into stunt cameos and too much sentimentality for past eras can feel cheap, this was arguably the core appeal of That ‘70s Show. From roller disco to the premiere of Star Wars, That ‘70s Show truly placed audiences back into this timeframe, with That ‘90s Show set to do the same in more ways than one.

How That ’90s Show Can Fix That ’70s Show’s “Problem”

In fact, That ‘90s Show can even improve upon the nostalgia by revealing how sentimentality for the past passes on through multiple generations. While Eric Forman, Donna Pinciotti, and the rest of the original That ‘70s Show teens will be reminiscing about their youth in the ‘70s, audiences will be nostalgic for the same as they long to see the adult versions of the characters in the Formans’ basement again. The cameos from That ‘70s Show’s original characters also serve two forms of nostalgia: Reminiscing about the ‘70s culture and sentimentality for the ‘90s in terms of when the original sitcom aired. That ‘70s Show debuted in 1998, so the sequel series will be digging into the nostalgia of when the actors were becoming popular as well as the culture from this era not depicted on-screen.

That ‘70s Show was unashamed by its many cameos from 1970s actors, rockstars, and personalities like Mary Tyler Moore, Gene Simmons, and Billy Dee Williams, but That ‘90s Show’s nostalgic cameos will be far more sentimental. Rather than bringing on a slew of celebrities, the major cameos will be from That ‘70s Show’s returning characters, who dually serve as popular actor cameos from the 1990s and simply the stars of the original series. While it’s possible that some of the stars from Friends and Seinfeld or musicians like Eddie Vedder and Alanis Morissette could appear, That ‘90s Show’s most important era-specific cameos will come from the original cast members.