While That ‘90s Show season 1 finale’s comeback from the stars of That ‘70s Show was appropriately nostalgic, the scene accidentally proved that Fez’s story was secretly sad. Like so many earlier sitcom spinoffs, That ‘90s Show had a hard time justifying the presence of That ‘70s Show’s returning original stars. In That ‘90s Show’s pilot episode, Eric, Donna, Kelso, and Jackie all came back for brief cameos, but the characters then left for the rest of season 1. However, in That ‘90s Show’s season 1 finale, they returned en masse once more through some shaky plot mechanics that accidentally made one subplot surprisingly sad.
Throughout That ‘90s Show season 1, Fez dated Sherri. He claimed he never got over Jackie’s decision to leave him for Kelso, even though That ‘90s Show’s Jackie/Kelso reunion was always going to happen. Despite this, Fez seemingly found happiness with Sherri, at least until an unlikely character return imperiled this. In the B-story of That ‘90s Show season 1, episode 10, “Kids in America,” Fez discovered that he would need to stand up to his old nemesis Fenton or risk losing Sherri. This led to a crisis for Fez, who soon had a pivotal hallucination/daydream that solved his uncertainty.
That ‘90s Show Proved Fez Misses Jackie and Kelso
When he doesn’t know what to do in “Kids in America,” Fez imagines/hallucinates a Circle scene from That ‘70s Show. Since Eric, Donna, Jackie, and Kelso are all present to advise him on his current quandary, it is clear that Fez misses all of his old friends. Otherwise, his hallucination of better times together would likely have left out Jackie and Kelso. Fez even decides to stay with Sherri after this scene, further reaffirming that he sees all of his former friends as a source of advice, strength, and companionship. While That ’90s Show outdid That ‘70s Show in some places, in this storyline, the show accidentally made Fez’s plot tragic.
Jackie and Fez were never going to work out after That ‘70s Show’s finale. However, as star Mila Kunis noted, they were still together at the end of the original series and That ‘90s Show did throw out this storyline swiftly in the spinoff’s pilot. It was funny and deeply in character when That ‘90s Show revealed Fez was still bitter about Jackie choosing Kelso over him even decades later. However, the events of “Kids in America” made this twist less comedic. The revelation that Fez misses his friends in general, including Jackie and Kelso, made That ‘90s Show retconning Jackie and Fez sadder.
That ‘90s Show’s Best Twist Was Accidentally Tragic
Fez and Jackie should never have ended up together. However, the fact that they canonically did means That ‘90s Show inevitably reuniting Kelso and Jackie came at the cost of their friendship with Fez. “Kids in America” proved that this rendered the rest of Fez’s story accidentally tragic. Fez stayed in Point Place and only began dating Sherri years later. In contrast, Jackie and Kelso and Donna and Eric are married with children. While the messiness of Jackie and Kelso’s relationship makes it clear that Fez and she wouldn’t have worked out, Fez’s loneliness is still a surprisingly sad detail for the spinoff to throw in during the busy season 1 finale.
That ‘90s Show Season 2 Should Fix This Problem
It would be easy for Kelso and Jackie to mend their friendship with Fez in That ‘90s Show season 2. Despite his pride, Fez always wanted to hang out with his friends in That ‘70s Show. It seems likely that the happy-go-lucky character would still be quick to forgive Jackie and Kelso if the pair apologized and this could result in That ‘90s Show season 2 providing something that the spinoff failed to offer in season 1. If That ‘90s Show season 2 reunited Fez with his former friends, then Jackie, Kelso, Fez, Donna, and Eric could all partake in a real circle scene in the spinoff’s second outing.
Since That ‘90s Show‘s spinoff success resulted in a longer (22-episode) season, there is no reason for the show to avoid this plot. An imagined circle scene in the season 1 finale was a poor substitute for the real thing, particularly when this inadvertently revealed how sad and lonely Fez’s life was. To make up for this, That ‘90s Show season 2 needs to mend Jackie and Kelso’s relationship with Fez. This would give the stars of That ‘70s Show more to do in That ‘90s Show season 2 while simultaneously finally bringing back the show’s iconic Circle scenes.
