Support the Free Press | Facts matter. Truth matters. Journalism matters Salt Lake City Weekly has been Utah's source of independent news and in-depth journalism since 1984. Donate today to ensure the legacy continues.

News » TV & Games

Living in Oblivion

Fox’s That ’80s Show takes a bad trip back to the center of the cheese.

by Bill Frost

January 17, 2002

comment

Only a year ago, we were waiting for the Greatest Can’t-Miss TV Idea Ever to debut, the XFL—remember that? The attitude and flash of the World Wrestling Federation applied to football, with slutty cheerleaders and cameras everywhere! With the built-in WWF audience and additional multimedia mega-hype from NBC, how could it possibly fail?

Tube StopsThursday, Jan. 17: The Tick (Fox, 7 p.m.) New Episode, Finally: The Tick is jailed for contempt of court after testifying against Destroyo, who’s putting the moves on Captain Liberty ... oh, this is sooo canceled.

Friday, Jan. 18: Movie: Desperately Seeking Susan (1985, American Movie Classics, 6 p.m.) You can’t get much more ‘80s than this, the only good movie Madonna ever made—yes, that includes Shanghai Surprise.

n Saturday, Jan. 19: Babylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers (Sci-Fi Channel, 7 p.m.) The Babylon 5 crew takes the New York Rangers in a hockey match to determine the fate of the universe ... or something.

Making the Band (MTV, 10 p.m.) Season Premiere: O-Town is back, yo! The boys consider opening for Britney Spears, but they haven’t had shots.

Sunday, Jan. 20: 59th Annual Golden Globes Awards (NBC, 7 p.m.) Just when the entertainment world was running dangerously low on glitzy awards shows, here’s the Golden Globes! Three freakin’ hours! Joy!

n Monday, Jan. 21: Daria: Is It College Yet? (MTV, 9 p.m.) Series Finale: After five years, Daria finally moves onto higher education, because that’s what the college system really needs: Cynical feminists with big boots.

n Tuesday, Jan. 22: Undeclared (Fox, 7:30 p.m.) If Fox would put half as much hype behind this much funnier sitcom as they have That ’80s Show, you might actually know it exists—leaving it on the schedule once in awhile wouldn’t hurt, either. Report now to your Freaks & Geeks website.

n Wednesday, Jan. 23: That ’80s Show (Fox, 7 p.m.) Series Debut: Yeah, it’s OK, but my script treatment for a sitcom based on American Psycho is waaay better. It would star Phil Collins, a true artist—Sussudio!

Switch to Desktop