JAM! - TELEVISION

Friday, August 21, 1998

Simpsons and the '70s

By TYLER McLEOD -- Calgary Sun

They are three of the most beautiful words in the English language:

All new Simpsons.

Even though the season premiere of The Simpsons isn't scheduled to air until Sept. 20, the Fox network is giving us an all new Simpsons Sunday at 9 p.m. on HC and c featuring guest voice Lisa Kudrow.

And to what joyous occasion do we owe the honor?

The premiere of Fox's new Sunday lineup.

Or, more specifically, the premiere of That '70s Show.

True, World's Funniest is also starting up again (goody) and Holding the Baby will debut on Sunday as well, but the real draw here is That '70s Show. (The X-Files, cross your fingers, will return before November.)

Like Happy Days was to the '50s and the Wonder Years to the '60s, That '70s Show could be the TV flashback for its designated decade.

On the surface, That '70s Show -- airing Sundays at 9:30 p.m. on c -- is fairly run of the mill.

Eric Forman (Topher Grace) is a regular suburban kid in 1976 Wisconsin with an diverse array of friends, embarrassing parents and a pesky sibling.

But in this case, the kids are more than alright. They're hysterical.

The difference between That '70s Show and a sitcom like, say, The Brady Bunch is this:

If Greg stole beer, smoked pot or took the family's Vista Cruiser across state lines to see a Todd Rundgren concert, he would be caught, reprimanded, lectured and the episode would end with a family hug.

When the characters on That '70s Show commit any of the above offences, they find out how much fun it can be and make plans to do it again.

Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner have proven in the past they can produce successful sitcoms with Roseanne and The Cosby Show.

Meanwhile, series creators Bonnie and Terry Turner have shown a knack for teenage comedy (they wrote Wayne's World), a feel for the '70s (The Brady Bunch Movie) and an ability to develop clever premises (3rd Rock From The Sun).

Hopefully the gimmick won't wear off as quickly as 3rd Rock, but that seems doubtful.

That '70s Show is more than cheap bell-bottom jokes and 8-track gags.

With a likable cast, authentic setting and insightful observations, That '70s Show is setting the bar pretty high for all the other sitcoms yet to debut this year.

Case in point: Holding the Baby at 8:30 p.m.

Based on a Britcom of the same name, Holding the Baby does not benefit from airing on the same night as The Simpsons and That '70s Show. In comparison, its faults are magnified and it appears embarrassingly bland.

On the surface, Holding the Baby, too, seems run of the mill. Mostly because it is. Jon Patrick Walker plays a workaholic executive whose wife runs off and leaves him ... holding the baby.

With a wisecracking secretary, an eccentric boss and sexist brother for a roommate, Holding the Baby's paint-by-numbers setup prevents the show from becoming anything more than mediocre.

Mediocre is a very polite word to describe World's Funniest at 8 p.m.

In tribute to That '70s Show, World's Funniest digs up a few bloopers from WKRP in Cincinnati and The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Which are fun.

They also dig up some bloopers from the new Leslie Nielsen "laugh fest" (to quote host James Brown) Wrongfully Accused. Which are not fun.

Unfortunately, the public does not have the luxury of a TV critic with preview tapes does -- being able to fast-forward through Brown's time-killing banter.

There are some great clips on the show -- the ones with babies and pets, generally -- but more often than not the video footage of people colliding with trees and bodies of water make you wonder about our species' survival prospects.