Reviews

It was okay up until they introduced the rest of the gang. The "kids" overacting kept me from enjoying anything about the show. The only reason this episode even got 5 stars at all is because of Red and Kitty and the cameo of Eric, Donna, Kelso, and Jackie. Of the 4 aforementioned, only Donna will make a reappearance.

It appears as though there will be cameos of Fez, Bob and Leo as well, but I'm not sure it's worth continuing to watch if I'm just waiting for snippets of the old cast. Might as well go back and watch the original That 70's Show, which is exactly what my teen and I ended up doing. Be careful though, beginning a re-watch of That 70's Show will only further contrast the disappointment of the new with the greatness and nostalgia of the old.

TL;DR - Pilot relies heavily on characters we already know and love in an attempt to trick us into feeling connected to the uninteresting new "gang"

This episode is a an okay episode. The bulk of it is Lily and Marshall fighting regarding Lily's need to "make a mistake" and Ted trying to bag Robin (which is pretty much what we've been building to since episode 1).

My biggest sadness is that Barney doesn't play a larger role in this episode. His character really takes a backseat, which is understandable since the episode already has two major plot lines tying up, but his lack of involvement makes the episode less than stellar.

At about 15:00 into the episode, Lily and Marshall are having dinner and Lily begins to cry. I don't know if it was intentional or if Alyson Is just not good at crying, but her crying is overly animated, almost cartoonish and really ruins the mood of the episode. Alyson continues to cry like this throughout the series and it becomes more and more grating ever time she does so.

TLDR: overall good plot pushing information, no Barney, bad crying on Alyson's part.