That ’90s Show
admonition : This clause contains despoiler for That ' 90s Show season 1 .
WhileThat ' 90s Showfeatures the hoary sometime Girlfriend In Canada storyline , That ' LXX Show ’s spinoff does manage to update and vitiate this classic trope . In the decades since Jan Brady splendidly claimed to have a hush-hush swain named George Glass , almost every situation comedy submarine sandwich has mentioned a girlfriend in Canada at some distributor point or another . This conversant image has appeared in all manner of situation comedy as eccentric who are romantically gainsay fail to convert their sceptical protagonist that they found lovemaking with an unseen paramour who handily lives far , far away .
Proving that the spinoff can update situation comedy clichés while still playing with them , That ' LXX Show’sspinoffThat ' 90s Showrevived this classic muzzle with a contemporary crook . InThat ' 90s Showseason 1 , episode 3 , “ Lip Smackers , ” the spinoff ’s heroine complained that she had never been kissed and nonchalantly presumed that her LGBTQ+ friend Ozzie is in the same boat . An pained Ozzie clarify that he in reality already had a swain , only for his friends to roll their eyes and notice that none of them fill this “ Etienne , ” Ozzie ’s potentially fictitious collaborator from Canada .
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Ozzie’s Etienne Romance Refreshes A Sitcom Trope
None of the cardinal friend chemical group had touch Ozzie ’s possibly fanciful love interest , allowingThat ' 90s Showseason 1to take a tired situation comedy staple and give the gag new sprightliness . While there are stacks of examples of sitcom Heron assay to convert their friends that their girl in Canada is real , Ozzie ’s unseen Etienne might be the first instance of a gay fictional character trying to examine that his boyfriend from Canada does exist . But , of class , since the world of sitcoms never changes too much , Ozzie is stillborn in this endeavor , and the episode ends with his admirer remaining suspicious .
How That 90s Show Subverts This Classic Gag
However , in the closing moment of “ Lip Smackers,”That ' ninety Showdoubly subverts this ancient gag . Not only does Ozzie have a boyfriend in Canada rather than a girlfriend , but his sexual love interestingness also call on out to be real . This crook has been done before ( unforgettably , Stranger Thingsseason 3 ’s funniest scenerelied on the revelation that serial bluffer Dustin was n’t rest about his summer camp love ) . However , in the episode ’s shutting fit , it turns out via a headphone call in French that Etienne is not only real , but his friends also do n’t believe that Ozzie live , so he is stuck in the same setup .
ThisThat ' 90s Showgag care to not only update a classic situation comedy trope to make the gag more inclusive but also subverts TV audience ' expectations by offering a Modern punchline to a frame-up viewers have seen countless times before . While the spinoff is n’t perfect , this chronological succession provesThat ' 90s Showis a hard follow - up to its harbinger . Thelimited role ofThat ' 70s Show ’s returning castmake the show ’s young characters more impactful , while the shrewd authorship show the series has something sassy to offer up . If the residuum ofThat ' ninety Showcan last up to this classic bit , theThat ' 70s Showfollow - up will be a worthy successor to the original series .
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