On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Six of That 70s Show!
THAT 70s SHOW: SEASON SIX
2003-2004
25 episodes
131. The Magic Bus (11/12/03)
Eric is sad on his birthday with Donna's imminent departure for college. Kitty is excited to have sex with Red again after his heart attack.
I think the show made a real tactical error here with the storyline. Sure, Donna's reversal on leaving for college made for a romantic and surprising ending and it tied in well to the Casablanca theme they were using throughout the episode. But it prevents the show from growing and going somewhere different. Instead, it just seems we're going to settle in for another season of the usual Eric & Donna dynamics. Oh well. There is one really funny scene with Kitty returning to have sex with Red and trying to tiptoe around it before finally just admitting it to the gang.
RATING: 5.5/10
132. The Acid Queen (11/19/03)
Kelso doesn't understand why a girl he had sex with, Brooke, pretends that they didn't. Jackie is jealous when Hyde says Brooke is hot. Eric finds out they loan out Playboy magazines at the library.
After a couple weak entries to start the season, That 70s Show finally introduces a new story to the fold and it's a good one that catapults the Kelso character forward with the introduction and pregnancy of Brooke and Kelso's impending fatherhood. Shannon Elizabeth is a strong addition to the cast and the final scene with Kelso is a great moment for Ashton Kutcher. I also like the reaction from the rest of the cast when they hear of Brooke's pregnancy. The other plots (the library and the Jackie/Hyde fight) are thin but fun.
RATING: 8/10
133. I'm Free (11/26/03)
An immigration lawyer comes to check on Fez and Laurie's marriage. Kelso has trouble talking to Brooke after learning that she's pregnant.
This a great premise for an episode and a great showcase for Fez, but it doesn't work as well as it should have because it's easy to imagine how much funnier this could have been with Lisa Robin Kelly as Laurie. Christina Moore is in a tough spot, but she just doesn't do anything with the role or have any impact. The show seems to recognize that because they make her part much less prominent than they probably would have otherwise. The Kelso-Brooke story develops a little bit, but takes a backseat to the Fez story until the end. Either way, it's nice to not have more Eric-Donna plots in the A story.
RATING: 6/10
134. We're Not Gonna Take It (12/3/03)
Eric and Kelso compete for a waiter job at the restaurant where Kelso works. Jackie and Donna try to cheer up Bob after his breakup with Joanne. Red wants Laurie and Fez to end their green card marriage.
This episode seems to be built on one major premise and that is what a klutz Kelso is. That doesn't make for a very satisfying episode because they run that joke into the ground and it's pretty thin. The other plots are equally thin. Red spends the entire episode pestering the rest of the family about breaking up Fez and Laurie's marriage while the Bob story... does anyone really care about Bob anymore at this point? No offense to Don Stark, but his character has felt completely unnecessary for several seasons now and they just keep trying to either shoehorn him into plots or make a really dumb plot about him. This episode is the latter.
RATING: 2.5/10
135. Christmas (12/10/03)
On Christmas Eve, Donna has to work at the radio station, Hyde goes to the Christmas Eve Dance with Jackie, Kelso helps Brooke at the library and Red volunteers as a mall Santa.
I like Christmas episodes that have a very festive feel and this one certainly does. I'm sure someone in the writer's room for That 70s Show one day said "we should have Red be a Mall Santa" and the result didn't disappoint. It's an easy storyline and some may see it as a cheap gimmick but after knowing Red for five years, it's an audience pleasing one. Kelso's story with Brooke continues to be compelling and allows a new side for Ashton Kutcher. There's also the very funny moment of Fez doing an Elvis "Blue Christmas" impression and a funny yet surprisingly sweet montage at the end.
RATING: 8.5/10
136. I'm a Boy (1/7/04)
Eric takes advantage of his new job to manipulate both Kitty and Donna. Kelso and Brooke double date with Jackie and Hyde. Fez and Red fight after Fez drives Red to his appointment.
Oh boy, Eric is pretty insufferable here. He has funny moments but it also feels out of the blue so it feels like it's serving a plot for this episode instead of a character development. All of a sudden when this episode started, Eric turned into a manipulative and lazy character? The double date story has some funny moments but it's also worth mentioning that Jim Gaffigan's character has gotten pretty irritating at this point. Talk about a character that really doesn't go anywhere. I like Gaffigan, but his character got old fast.
RATING: 5/10
137. Young Man Blues (1/14/04)
Kelso begins police training. Fez and Laurie can't stop fighting. Eric agrees to start helping around the house. Jackie becomes a big sister for a program.
This is an episode with just too many storylines. There are some good ones mixed in there, but it's just too many for a 22 minute episode. The plot they develop the most is Kelso as a cop, but all the stories had potential. I would have liked to see more of the big sister story, the Red-Eric story and even the Fez/Laurie fight. I don't know why the show felt the need to cram four stories in this one. As I've said many times, this show works better when everyone is centered around one theme. At the very least, they can't have this many stories zigzagging. Some shows can, this one can't. I only rated it as high as I did because each story by itself really has potential.
RATING: 6.5/10
138. A Legal Matter (2/4/04)
After being labeled a stooge by the police academy, Kelso tries to break into it with Eric and Hyde. Fez studies US History to prepare for his citizenship test.
I would be interested to see how this episode would be done today. I know that That 70s Show was almost always played for laughs and rarely for serious moments and I know it's set in a very different era, but I still think the show would take more care with immigration/citizenship themed episodes. I think the whole Fez character would probably get a lot more scrutiny now that it did in the late 90s/early 00s. But this is still funny, especially the always comedic pairing of Fez and Red. The Kelso story is a little silly.
RATING: 5.5/10
139. I Can See For Miles (2/11/04)
Eric and Donna steal Kelso's van to look at a wedding site to get back at him for messing with their stuff. Red is alarmed when Bob gives him shoes as a gift. Jackie redecorates Hyde's room. Kelso tries to prove to Brooke he is responsible.
This episode is emblematic of why That 70s Show is past its peak in season six. Yes, there are funny moments from the characters we've grown to love. But almost every plot in this episode seems in service of a joke and not character development. Jackie redecorating Hyde's room very girly or Bob giving Red shoes are just silly and don't serve any long term character growth. The one exception is the Kelso/Brooke story, which has been consistently strong and a great source of character development for Ashton Kutcher.
RATING: 5.5/10
140. Sally Simpson (2/18/04)
Kelso tries to set Fez up with a colleague at the police academy. A stress specialist comes to the Formans to determine who or what is causing stress for Red.
It's an American Pie season on That 70s Show as we've already had Shannon Elizabeth in a recurring role and now we have Alyson Hannigan guest starring. Just over a year before she began her long run on How I Met Your Mother, Hannigan brings a fun energy to the episode and has good chemistry with both Ashton Kutcher and Wilmer Valderrama. The stress specialist story is another sort of gimmicky story at first but it does give Debra Jo Rupp some good comedic moments and also allows for some sweet moments between Red and Eric.
RATING: 8/10
141. Won't Get Fooled Again (2/25/04)
Donna and Eric panic when she realizes she forgot to take her birth control pill. Kelso and Fez get in a big fight.
It was probably only a matter of time until we get a "Donna might be pregnant" story. It's a little surprising they waited until season six to do it, but it plays out mostly how you would expect. I think the idea to make Red a little soft on it because he wants grandchildren is a nice twist on the typical Red response. Alyson Hannigan has her second straight appearance but is more of a catalyst to the Fez-Kelso story that has some funny moments but perhaps plays the "this is just like a couple breaking up" joke a little too much for a little too long.
RATING: 7/10
142. Baby Don't You Do It (3/3/04)
After their pregnancy scare, the Formans and Bob insist that Eric and Donna get pre-marital counseling. Kelso tries to prove to Brooke he's doing well at the police academy.
This episode continues some of the pregnancy scare storyline from the episode before to send Eric and Donna to pre-marital counseling. There are some funny moments related to that though I think it could have been funnier with someone better guest starring as the preacher. For a show that gets so many solid guest stars, I'm surprised they didn't get a well known name for it; maybe they tried. The Kelso story doesn't really go anywhere, but it's fine I guess.
RATING: 5.5/10
143. Who Are You? (3/10/04)
Jackie's mom comes back into the picture. Eric is frustrated by having to be celibate with Donna.
That 70s Show had definitely hit the "let's get as many guest stars as we can" portion of its run. In this case, Brooke Shields begins a run as Jackie's mother. Eve Plumb played Jackie's mother in the first season. I'm not sure if they tried to get Plumb back but my guess is they wanted Shields for this particular story and arc. Shields seems like a more natural choice for Jackie's mom than Plumb. However, putting her and Bob together seems a little silly and not realistic at all so that's somewhat of an issue.
RATING: 5/10
144. Man With Money (3/17/04)
Donna and Jackie try to get Bob and Pam to break up. Kitty is upset when Red's heart monitor only goes off when he's around Pam.
This is the second episode with Brooke Shields and it goes better than the first one. Shields seems more relaxed in the role and there are a lot of funny moments, even if almost every joke centers on Pam being a "hot mom." Although it is funny, it also suffers from one of That 70s Show's cardinal sins, which is running a joke into the ground. How many times do we have to see the joke of Red's heart monitor going off around Pam? At least this arc, even if it's unlikely, finally makes Bob seem useful again after years (yes, years) of seeming like an unnecessary character.
RATING: 6.5/10
145. Happy Jack (3/24/04)
Donna walks in on Eric pleasuring himself. Hyde and Fez visit Kelso at the Police Academy.
That 70s Show isn't the first sitcom to tackle masturbation, but it is still one of the early ones (this is coming about a decade after the famous Seinfeld episode). It's still a subject that is pretty taboo on network TV but this episode cleverly handles the topic without actually being very descriptive. That's a fine line to walk and if you want to do an episode on something like this, it needs to be cleverly written and this indeed is. It pretty much takes over the bulk of the episode so the side story of Kelso at the academy is funny, but slight.
RATING: 8/10
146. Do You Think It's Alright? (3/31/04)
Eric tries to get out of doing wedding shopping with Donna. Hyde tries to keep Jackie from hearing Eric and Donna talk about the wedding. Red gets into an erotic novel.
There's a lot of standard sitcom plots filling up this episode. A guy tries to play dumb to get out of wedding shopping with his fiancee, a man gets into a woman's erotic novel, these are all standard sitcom plots that are all fine but don't allow That 70s Show to bring anything new to the table. This episode also annoys me because of Jim Rash, who is back for his fourth appearance and now gets a name ("Fenton"). I know he's supposed to be annoying, but there's a difference between an annoying character and an annoying performance. This is an annoying performance.
RATING: 5/10
147. Substitute (4/21/04)
Eric asks his nemesis Mitch Miller to hang out after injuring him while mini golfing. Bob and Pam break up after Pam tells Bob she's seeing someone else.
I really enjoy when That 70s Show plays up Eric's nerdiness. I think it's something the show would do even more now in a post-Big Bang Theory world. This is the best episode for both Seth Green and Brooke Shields, who are hit and miss in their guest appearances on the show. I think the show especially did well by Seth Green who was nothing more than a caricature in his previous appearances. This episode also made me wish there were more shows that had mini golf scenes but I'm also a sucker for golf-themed episodes.
RATING: 7.5/10
148. Squeeze Box (4/28/04)
Hyde and Red see Pam topless and can't stop thinking about it. Mitch competes with Eric for Donna's affection just as Donna and Eric are fighting.
After I just praised That 70s Show for using Mitch and Pam effectively in the previous episode, we have an episode that does not make as good use of them. Brooke Shields is basically just used as a prop in this episode for an uncomfortable Red & Hyde story while the virtues of the Mitch character that happened last episode have already been sapped dry. Was That 70s Show experimenting with having Green become a regular? And boy these Eric and Donna fights are getting old. That being said, Kelso breaking Eric's Star Wars toy is a funny moment. There's very little of Fez in this episode.
RATING: 4/10
149. 5:15 (5/5/04)
Mitch asks Donna to be his date for a family wedding. Fez meets a girl at the wedding. Kelso accompanies Brooke to a baby class taught by Kitty. Red and Hyde get into watching cable TV.
This is a group of disparate stories that, not surprisingly, produce mixed results. The best story is Kelso going to the class with Brooke. Not only is there a great scene with him, Red and Kitty to start, but there's a lot of funny moments at the class and some great work by Debra Jo Rupp. The wedding story has a couple funny bits but Mitch is back to being a pretty grating character. Fez pushing Jackie aside for his "new whore" is funny too. The Hyde and Red story is utterly pointless but I guess they needed something for those two characters to do?
RATING: 7/10
150. Sparks (5/12/04)
Eric accidentally sees and then rips Donna's wedding dress. Red drunkenly buys a canoe and Hyde, Fez and Kelso try to find a way to get rid of it.
This is an episode built on sight gags but it works surprisingly well. Each new thing that happens to Donna's wedding dress is a joke that builds on itself to pretty hilarious results. The scene between Eric and Kitty in the kitchen is a great moment between two characters who don't seem to have as many stories together at this point in the show's run. Equally, the canoe story seems like it should be a really dumb one but it actually is pretty funny too thanks to complete commitment from Ashton Kutcher to the bits.
RATING: 8/10
151. My Wife (5/16/04)
Donna buys a trailer for Eric and her to live in and Eric worries about her wanting to stay in Point Place. At the trailer park, Donna runs into Kelso's brother. The guys take Eric to a strip club for a bachelor party while Donna, Jackie and Kitty have a girls' night out.
Any show with large ensembles tends to have episodes where they split up the guys and the girls for an evening. This episode was going okay until we get the dreaded return of drunk Donna. I can't think of an actor who plays a less convincing drunk than Laura Prepon. She's not a great actress to begin with and boy, she is just terrible as a drunk character. I don't know why the show didn't realize this and never use that ability (or lack thereof) again. At least we get drunk Kitty out of it for a second and Debra Jo Rupp is far more adept at playing drunk.
RATING: 5/10
152. Going Mobile (5/19/04)
Eric seemingly gets cold feet before the wedding. Kelso makes a bad first impression on Brooke's mother.
It's weird that Laurie is back for this episode. The show tried Christina Moore for several episodes and then they seemingly ditched her because it wasn't working. Then all of the sudden, she's randomly back in this episode. My bigger problems is that this episode seems devised to be dramatic for a season ending arc as opposed to a true character story. This is not something the Eric character would do given everything we know about him so it's not servicing character development. Morgan Fairchild was fresh off of being Chandler's mom on Friends and now makes an appearance as Brooke's mom in an okay side plot that probably could have gotten more attention as an A Plot in a different episode.
RATING: 4.5/10
153. The Seeker (5/19/04)
Donna still doesn't know why Eric has abruptly left. Donna accidentally pushes Hyde off the water tower. The Formans find out that Hyde has a different father than he thought.
Tanya Roberts makes her grand return in this episode after last being seen way back in season three. She does a nice job and it's nice to have her back as Bob was always a better character when she was around. The "Eric goes missing" story seems odd as I mentioned in the previous episode. When he returns, it doesn't carry the weight that it should. That being said, there is a sweet ending followed by a very funny moment with Fez. You can tell it's season six because they are rehashing a story. Of course Hyde has a different father - because the whole father story didn't work several seasons back so the show decides to try it again. It works even less this time.
RATING: 6/10
AVERAGE RATING FOR SEASON SIX:
5.8/10
The Best Episodes
1. Christmas (#135) - 8.5/10
2. Happy Jack (#145) - 8/10
3. Sparks (#150) - 8/10
4. The Acid Queen (#132) - 8/10
5. Sally Simpson (#140) - 8/10
The Worst Episodes
1. We're Not Gonna Take It (#134) - 2.5/10
2. The Kids Are Alright (#129) - 2.5/10
3. Join Together (#130) - 3/10
4. Squeeze Box (#148) - 4/10
5. Going Mobile (#152) - 4.5/10
2003-2004
25 episodes
Season six of That 70s Show is definitely a show past its peak. The show has lost Lisa Robin Kelly for good but has to keep the character so they re-cast unsuccessfully. The Eric and Donna stories become almost insufferable by this point. However, this is probably the best season yet for Ashton Kutcher's Kelso character as his character's life actually moves forward while so many others seem stuck in a rut. Although it is on the decline, there are still several episodes that manage to be funny enough to get good scores. Every episode this season is named after a song by The Who.
Starring
Topher Grace as Eric Forman (25 episodes)
Mila Kunis as Jackie Burkhart (25 episodes)
Ashton Kutcher as Michael Kelso (25 episodes)
Danny Masterson as Steven Hyde (25 episodes)
Laura Prepon as Donna Pinciotti (25 episodes)
Wilmer Valderrama as Fez (25 episodes)
Debra Jo Rupp as Kitty Forman (25 episodes)
Kurtwood Smith as Red Forman (25 episodes)
Don Stark as Bob Pinciotti (17 episodes)
Christina Moore as Laurie Forman (6 episodes)
Tanya Roberts as Midge Pinciotti (1 episode)
Shannon Elizabeth as Brooke (8 episodes)
Brooke Shields as Pamela Burkhart (6 episodes)
Jim Gaffigan as Roy (4 episodes)
Jim Rash as Fenton (1 episode)
Luke Wilson as Casey Kelso (1 episode)
129. The Kids Are Alright (10/29/03)
Red comes home from the hospital and Kitty tries to keep the peace with Eric. Jackie tells Hyde she is choosing him, but he has other plans. Laurie returns from going on her honeymoon without Fez.
Season 6 of Bewitched opens famously with Dick Sargent nonchalantly taking over the role of Darrin. Season 6 of That 70s Show makes a switch as well and although it's a smaller character, it feels even weirder in a more recent sitcom. Lisa Robin Kelly has left for good as she continued her tragic downward spiral that eventually led to her death in 2013. For all her offscreen problems, she brought a spark to the show and with her being gone and Christina Moore put in the unenviable position of trying to replace her, this season gets off to a weird start. There's also a Grease parody that could have been so much better so it's not a great first episode of the season.
RATING: 2.5/10
130. Join Together (11/5/03)
Eric worries about staying home while Donna goes to college. Jackie tries to use seductive techniques to make Hyde jealous while Kelso also gets involved. Kitty tries to keep Red from having things that are bad for his heart.
Oof. That 70s Show is spending the early parts of season six really spinning its wheels. Already, I feel tired of the stories with Eric & Donna and Hyde/Jackie/Kelso while the only story with real potential - Fez and Laurie - was disrupted by Lisa Robin Kelly leaving the series. It really highlights how That 70s Show can occasionally give into running a plot into the ground. They took a plot that was once really interesting (a Hyde/Jackie hookup) and put it in this constant triangle with Kelso that it feels like things never go anywhere. I mean, at least Donna is going to college.
RATING: 3/10
Starring
Topher Grace as Eric Forman (25 episodes)
Mila Kunis as Jackie Burkhart (25 episodes)
Ashton Kutcher as Michael Kelso (25 episodes)
Danny Masterson as Steven Hyde (25 episodes)
Laura Prepon as Donna Pinciotti (25 episodes)
Wilmer Valderrama as Fez (25 episodes)
Debra Jo Rupp as Kitty Forman (25 episodes)
Kurtwood Smith as Red Forman (25 episodes)
Don Stark as Bob Pinciotti (17 episodes)
Christina Moore as Laurie Forman (6 episodes)
Tanya Roberts as Midge Pinciotti (1 episode)
Shannon Elizabeth as Brooke (8 episodes)
Brooke Shields as Pamela Burkhart (6 episodes)
Jim Gaffigan as Roy (4 episodes)
Jim Rash as Fenton (1 episode)
Luke Wilson as Casey Kelso (1 episode)
Red comes home from the hospital and Kitty tries to keep the peace with Eric. Jackie tells Hyde she is choosing him, but he has other plans. Laurie returns from going on her honeymoon without Fez.
Season 6 of Bewitched opens famously with Dick Sargent nonchalantly taking over the role of Darrin. Season 6 of That 70s Show makes a switch as well and although it's a smaller character, it feels even weirder in a more recent sitcom. Lisa Robin Kelly has left for good as she continued her tragic downward spiral that eventually led to her death in 2013. For all her offscreen problems, she brought a spark to the show and with her being gone and Christina Moore put in the unenviable position of trying to replace her, this season gets off to a weird start. There's also a Grease parody that could have been so much better so it's not a great first episode of the season.
RATING: 2.5/10
130. Join Together (11/5/03)
Eric worries about staying home while Donna goes to college. Jackie tries to use seductive techniques to make Hyde jealous while Kelso also gets involved. Kitty tries to keep Red from having things that are bad for his heart.
Oof. That 70s Show is spending the early parts of season six really spinning its wheels. Already, I feel tired of the stories with Eric & Donna and Hyde/Jackie/Kelso while the only story with real potential - Fez and Laurie - was disrupted by Lisa Robin Kelly leaving the series. It really highlights how That 70s Show can occasionally give into running a plot into the ground. They took a plot that was once really interesting (a Hyde/Jackie hookup) and put it in this constant triangle with Kelso that it feels like things never go anywhere. I mean, at least Donna is going to college.
RATING: 3/10
131. The Magic Bus (11/12/03)
Eric is sad on his birthday with Donna's imminent departure for college. Kitty is excited to have sex with Red again after his heart attack.
I think the show made a real tactical error here with the storyline. Sure, Donna's reversal on leaving for college made for a romantic and surprising ending and it tied in well to the Casablanca theme they were using throughout the episode. But it prevents the show from growing and going somewhere different. Instead, it just seems we're going to settle in for another season of the usual Eric & Donna dynamics. Oh well. There is one really funny scene with Kitty returning to have sex with Red and trying to tiptoe around it before finally just admitting it to the gang.
RATING: 5.5/10
Kelso doesn't understand why a girl he had sex with, Brooke, pretends that they didn't. Jackie is jealous when Hyde says Brooke is hot. Eric finds out they loan out Playboy magazines at the library.
After a couple weak entries to start the season, That 70s Show finally introduces a new story to the fold and it's a good one that catapults the Kelso character forward with the introduction and pregnancy of Brooke and Kelso's impending fatherhood. Shannon Elizabeth is a strong addition to the cast and the final scene with Kelso is a great moment for Ashton Kutcher. I also like the reaction from the rest of the cast when they hear of Brooke's pregnancy. The other plots (the library and the Jackie/Hyde fight) are thin but fun.
RATING: 8/10
133. I'm Free (11/26/03)
An immigration lawyer comes to check on Fez and Laurie's marriage. Kelso has trouble talking to Brooke after learning that she's pregnant.
This a great premise for an episode and a great showcase for Fez, but it doesn't work as well as it should have because it's easy to imagine how much funnier this could have been with Lisa Robin Kelly as Laurie. Christina Moore is in a tough spot, but she just doesn't do anything with the role or have any impact. The show seems to recognize that because they make her part much less prominent than they probably would have otherwise. The Kelso-Brooke story develops a little bit, but takes a backseat to the Fez story until the end. Either way, it's nice to not have more Eric-Donna plots in the A story.
RATING: 6/10
134. We're Not Gonna Take It (12/3/03)
Eric and Kelso compete for a waiter job at the restaurant where Kelso works. Jackie and Donna try to cheer up Bob after his breakup with Joanne. Red wants Laurie and Fez to end their green card marriage.
This episode seems to be built on one major premise and that is what a klutz Kelso is. That doesn't make for a very satisfying episode because they run that joke into the ground and it's pretty thin. The other plots are equally thin. Red spends the entire episode pestering the rest of the family about breaking up Fez and Laurie's marriage while the Bob story... does anyone really care about Bob anymore at this point? No offense to Don Stark, but his character has felt completely unnecessary for several seasons now and they just keep trying to either shoehorn him into plots or make a really dumb plot about him. This episode is the latter.
RATING: 2.5/10
On Christmas Eve, Donna has to work at the radio station, Hyde goes to the Christmas Eve Dance with Jackie, Kelso helps Brooke at the library and Red volunteers as a mall Santa.
I like Christmas episodes that have a very festive feel and this one certainly does. I'm sure someone in the writer's room for That 70s Show one day said "we should have Red be a Mall Santa" and the result didn't disappoint. It's an easy storyline and some may see it as a cheap gimmick but after knowing Red for five years, it's an audience pleasing one. Kelso's story with Brooke continues to be compelling and allows a new side for Ashton Kutcher. There's also the very funny moment of Fez doing an Elvis "Blue Christmas" impression and a funny yet surprisingly sweet montage at the end.
RATING: 8.5/10
136. I'm a Boy (1/7/04)
Eric takes advantage of his new job to manipulate both Kitty and Donna. Kelso and Brooke double date with Jackie and Hyde. Fez and Red fight after Fez drives Red to his appointment.
Oh boy, Eric is pretty insufferable here. He has funny moments but it also feels out of the blue so it feels like it's serving a plot for this episode instead of a character development. All of a sudden when this episode started, Eric turned into a manipulative and lazy character? The double date story has some funny moments but it's also worth mentioning that Jim Gaffigan's character has gotten pretty irritating at this point. Talk about a character that really doesn't go anywhere. I like Gaffigan, but his character got old fast.
RATING: 5/10
137. Young Man Blues (1/14/04)
Kelso begins police training. Fez and Laurie can't stop fighting. Eric agrees to start helping around the house. Jackie becomes a big sister for a program.
This is an episode with just too many storylines. There are some good ones mixed in there, but it's just too many for a 22 minute episode. The plot they develop the most is Kelso as a cop, but all the stories had potential. I would have liked to see more of the big sister story, the Red-Eric story and even the Fez/Laurie fight. I don't know why the show felt the need to cram four stories in this one. As I've said many times, this show works better when everyone is centered around one theme. At the very least, they can't have this many stories zigzagging. Some shows can, this one can't. I only rated it as high as I did because each story by itself really has potential.
RATING: 6.5/10
138. A Legal Matter (2/4/04)
After being labeled a stooge by the police academy, Kelso tries to break into it with Eric and Hyde. Fez studies US History to prepare for his citizenship test.
I would be interested to see how this episode would be done today. I know that That 70s Show was almost always played for laughs and rarely for serious moments and I know it's set in a very different era, but I still think the show would take more care with immigration/citizenship themed episodes. I think the whole Fez character would probably get a lot more scrutiny now that it did in the late 90s/early 00s. But this is still funny, especially the always comedic pairing of Fez and Red. The Kelso story is a little silly.
RATING: 5.5/10
Eric and Donna steal Kelso's van to look at a wedding site to get back at him for messing with their stuff. Red is alarmed when Bob gives him shoes as a gift. Jackie redecorates Hyde's room. Kelso tries to prove to Brooke he is responsible.
This episode is emblematic of why That 70s Show is past its peak in season six. Yes, there are funny moments from the characters we've grown to love. But almost every plot in this episode seems in service of a joke and not character development. Jackie redecorating Hyde's room very girly or Bob giving Red shoes are just silly and don't serve any long term character growth. The one exception is the Kelso/Brooke story, which has been consistently strong and a great source of character development for Ashton Kutcher.
RATING: 5.5/10
140. Sally Simpson (2/18/04)
Kelso tries to set Fez up with a colleague at the police academy. A stress specialist comes to the Formans to determine who or what is causing stress for Red.
It's an American Pie season on That 70s Show as we've already had Shannon Elizabeth in a recurring role and now we have Alyson Hannigan guest starring. Just over a year before she began her long run on How I Met Your Mother, Hannigan brings a fun energy to the episode and has good chemistry with both Ashton Kutcher and Wilmer Valderrama. The stress specialist story is another sort of gimmicky story at first but it does give Debra Jo Rupp some good comedic moments and also allows for some sweet moments between Red and Eric.
RATING: 8/10
141. Won't Get Fooled Again (2/25/04)
Donna and Eric panic when she realizes she forgot to take her birth control pill. Kelso and Fez get in a big fight.
It was probably only a matter of time until we get a "Donna might be pregnant" story. It's a little surprising they waited until season six to do it, but it plays out mostly how you would expect. I think the idea to make Red a little soft on it because he wants grandchildren is a nice twist on the typical Red response. Alyson Hannigan has her second straight appearance but is more of a catalyst to the Fez-Kelso story that has some funny moments but perhaps plays the "this is just like a couple breaking up" joke a little too much for a little too long.
RATING: 7/10
142. Baby Don't You Do It (3/3/04)
After their pregnancy scare, the Formans and Bob insist that Eric and Donna get pre-marital counseling. Kelso tries to prove to Brooke he's doing well at the police academy.
This episode continues some of the pregnancy scare storyline from the episode before to send Eric and Donna to pre-marital counseling. There are some funny moments related to that though I think it could have been funnier with someone better guest starring as the preacher. For a show that gets so many solid guest stars, I'm surprised they didn't get a well known name for it; maybe they tried. The Kelso story doesn't really go anywhere, but it's fine I guess.
RATING: 5.5/10
Jackie's mom comes back into the picture. Eric is frustrated by having to be celibate with Donna.
That 70s Show had definitely hit the "let's get as many guest stars as we can" portion of its run. In this case, Brooke Shields begins a run as Jackie's mother. Eve Plumb played Jackie's mother in the first season. I'm not sure if they tried to get Plumb back but my guess is they wanted Shields for this particular story and arc. Shields seems like a more natural choice for Jackie's mom than Plumb. However, putting her and Bob together seems a little silly and not realistic at all so that's somewhat of an issue.
RATING: 5/10
144. Man With Money (3/17/04)
Donna and Jackie try to get Bob and Pam to break up. Kitty is upset when Red's heart monitor only goes off when he's around Pam.
This is the second episode with Brooke Shields and it goes better than the first one. Shields seems more relaxed in the role and there are a lot of funny moments, even if almost every joke centers on Pam being a "hot mom." Although it is funny, it also suffers from one of That 70s Show's cardinal sins, which is running a joke into the ground. How many times do we have to see the joke of Red's heart monitor going off around Pam? At least this arc, even if it's unlikely, finally makes Bob seem useful again after years (yes, years) of seeming like an unnecessary character.
RATING: 6.5/10
145. Happy Jack (3/24/04)
Donna walks in on Eric pleasuring himself. Hyde and Fez visit Kelso at the Police Academy.
That 70s Show isn't the first sitcom to tackle masturbation, but it is still one of the early ones (this is coming about a decade after the famous Seinfeld episode). It's still a subject that is pretty taboo on network TV but this episode cleverly handles the topic without actually being very descriptive. That's a fine line to walk and if you want to do an episode on something like this, it needs to be cleverly written and this indeed is. It pretty much takes over the bulk of the episode so the side story of Kelso at the academy is funny, but slight.
RATING: 8/10
146. Do You Think It's Alright? (3/31/04)
Eric tries to get out of doing wedding shopping with Donna. Hyde tries to keep Jackie from hearing Eric and Donna talk about the wedding. Red gets into an erotic novel.
There's a lot of standard sitcom plots filling up this episode. A guy tries to play dumb to get out of wedding shopping with his fiancee, a man gets into a woman's erotic novel, these are all standard sitcom plots that are all fine but don't allow That 70s Show to bring anything new to the table. This episode also annoys me because of Jim Rash, who is back for his fourth appearance and now gets a name ("Fenton"). I know he's supposed to be annoying, but there's a difference between an annoying character and an annoying performance. This is an annoying performance.
RATING: 5/10
Eric asks his nemesis Mitch Miller to hang out after injuring him while mini golfing. Bob and Pam break up after Pam tells Bob she's seeing someone else.
I really enjoy when That 70s Show plays up Eric's nerdiness. I think it's something the show would do even more now in a post-Big Bang Theory world. This is the best episode for both Seth Green and Brooke Shields, who are hit and miss in their guest appearances on the show. I think the show especially did well by Seth Green who was nothing more than a caricature in his previous appearances. This episode also made me wish there were more shows that had mini golf scenes but I'm also a sucker for golf-themed episodes.
RATING: 7.5/10
148. Squeeze Box (4/28/04)
Hyde and Red see Pam topless and can't stop thinking about it. Mitch competes with Eric for Donna's affection just as Donna and Eric are fighting.
After I just praised That 70s Show for using Mitch and Pam effectively in the previous episode, we have an episode that does not make as good use of them. Brooke Shields is basically just used as a prop in this episode for an uncomfortable Red & Hyde story while the virtues of the Mitch character that happened last episode have already been sapped dry. Was That 70s Show experimenting with having Green become a regular? And boy these Eric and Donna fights are getting old. That being said, Kelso breaking Eric's Star Wars toy is a funny moment. There's very little of Fez in this episode.
RATING: 4/10
149. 5:15 (5/5/04)
Mitch asks Donna to be his date for a family wedding. Fez meets a girl at the wedding. Kelso accompanies Brooke to a baby class taught by Kitty. Red and Hyde get into watching cable TV.
This is a group of disparate stories that, not surprisingly, produce mixed results. The best story is Kelso going to the class with Brooke. Not only is there a great scene with him, Red and Kitty to start, but there's a lot of funny moments at the class and some great work by Debra Jo Rupp. The wedding story has a couple funny bits but Mitch is back to being a pretty grating character. Fez pushing Jackie aside for his "new whore" is funny too. The Hyde and Red story is utterly pointless but I guess they needed something for those two characters to do?
RATING: 7/10
Eric accidentally sees and then rips Donna's wedding dress. Red drunkenly buys a canoe and Hyde, Fez and Kelso try to find a way to get rid of it.
This is an episode built on sight gags but it works surprisingly well. Each new thing that happens to Donna's wedding dress is a joke that builds on itself to pretty hilarious results. The scene between Eric and Kitty in the kitchen is a great moment between two characters who don't seem to have as many stories together at this point in the show's run. Equally, the canoe story seems like it should be a really dumb one but it actually is pretty funny too thanks to complete commitment from Ashton Kutcher to the bits.
RATING: 8/10
151. My Wife (5/16/04)
Donna buys a trailer for Eric and her to live in and Eric worries about her wanting to stay in Point Place. At the trailer park, Donna runs into Kelso's brother. The guys take Eric to a strip club for a bachelor party while Donna, Jackie and Kitty have a girls' night out.
Any show with large ensembles tends to have episodes where they split up the guys and the girls for an evening. This episode was going okay until we get the dreaded return of drunk Donna. I can't think of an actor who plays a less convincing drunk than Laura Prepon. She's not a great actress to begin with and boy, she is just terrible as a drunk character. I don't know why the show didn't realize this and never use that ability (or lack thereof) again. At least we get drunk Kitty out of it for a second and Debra Jo Rupp is far more adept at playing drunk.
RATING: 5/10
152. Going Mobile (5/19/04)
Eric seemingly gets cold feet before the wedding. Kelso makes a bad first impression on Brooke's mother.
It's weird that Laurie is back for this episode. The show tried Christina Moore for several episodes and then they seemingly ditched her because it wasn't working. Then all of the sudden, she's randomly back in this episode. My bigger problems is that this episode seems devised to be dramatic for a season ending arc as opposed to a true character story. This is not something the Eric character would do given everything we know about him so it's not servicing character development. Morgan Fairchild was fresh off of being Chandler's mom on Friends and now makes an appearance as Brooke's mom in an okay side plot that probably could have gotten more attention as an A Plot in a different episode.
RATING: 4.5/10
Donna still doesn't know why Eric has abruptly left. Donna accidentally pushes Hyde off the water tower. The Formans find out that Hyde has a different father than he thought.
Tanya Roberts makes her grand return in this episode after last being seen way back in season three. She does a nice job and it's nice to have her back as Bob was always a better character when she was around. The "Eric goes missing" story seems odd as I mentioned in the previous episode. When he returns, it doesn't carry the weight that it should. That being said, there is a sweet ending followed by a very funny moment with Fez. You can tell it's season six because they are rehashing a story. Of course Hyde has a different father - because the whole father story didn't work several seasons back so the show decides to try it again. It works even less this time.
RATING: 6/10
AVERAGE RATING FOR SEASON SIX:
5.8/10
The Best Episodes
1. Christmas (#135) - 8.5/10
2. Happy Jack (#145) - 8/10
3. Sparks (#150) - 8/10
4. The Acid Queen (#132) - 8/10
5. Sally Simpson (#140) - 8/10
The Worst Episodes
1. We're Not Gonna Take It (#134) - 2.5/10
2. The Kids Are Alright (#129) - 2.5/10
3. Join Together (#130) - 3/10
4. Squeeze Box (#148) - 4/10
5. Going Mobile (#152) - 4.5/10
Tomorrow: The Friday Five - Top 5 TV news stories of the week!
Next Thursday: A look at the seventh season of That 70s Show!
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