That ‘90s Show is coming back for a second season on Netflix, but the reaction online has perhaps not been what the streamer hoped. The sequel series to That ‘70s Show arrived on Netflix on Jan. 19 and received mostly favorable reviews from fans, gaining itself a fresh Rotten Tomatoes score despite a lot of grumbling complaints about the quality of the script compared to the original series. Now as the renewal for season two has been announced, fans have been sharing their excitement, while many others have been slamming Netflix over its inconsistent renewal approach.
That ‘90s Show made its Netflix debut at No. 5 on their top 10 chart, and according to the streamer, the show received around 42 million viewed hours. Bringing back That ‘70s Show stars such as Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp, the show moves the story on to another decade and brings a whole new cast of younger characters to replace the now grown-up “kids” of the original series. While there is certainly a lot to be said for landing anywhere in the top 10, That ‘90s Show’s position well behind popular shows like Wednesday, The Sandman, and other shows that took much longer to get their second season’s green lit has meant the announcement has turned into a bombardment of questions about Netflix’s reason for the quick renewal.
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Has the Renewal of That ‘90s Show Come Too Quickly to Stick By Netflix’s Own Rules?
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Netflix has constantly been under fire for their numerous cancelations of seemingly popular shows after just one season. That ‘90s Show’s renewal comes just over two weeks after the debut of the series on Jan. 19, and, as many have pointed out, that is a long way short of the 28-day measure that has previously been cited as the benchmark for deciding whether shows survive into another season.
Shows like Wednesday and The Sandman had to wait well past the 28-day marker to get their second-season renewals, despite both having huge debut numbers and a No.1 spot on the Netflix chart. Other shows like Ginny & Georgina, which saw its second season debut at No. 1 and has seen very similar approval scores from both audiences and critics, are still waiting to learn their future fate despite having debuted earlier than That ‘90s Show. Combined, this has been enough to see a wave of backlash against Netflix, as well as petitions for other canceled shows, such as Warrior Nun, to be renewed instead.
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos recently made the case that the streamer has never canceled a popular show, and investing “big amounts for small audiences” just doesn’t work as a business model. However, with That ‘90s Show’s initial viewer numbers not exactly stellar, the quick renewal seems to go against everything Sarandos previously argued. However, some are happy to see the show renewed and look forward to seeing more of the comedy when the series returns.
