That 70s Show: "Thanksgiving"

Premiered November 22, 1998

Alright, that's it, hold it! Now Kitty, don't get worked up over my mother and you, you're sleeping in the basement! And we're all having a happy damn Thanksgiving!  -Red Forman

It's the day before Thanksgiving, November 24, 1976.  The Formans pick up their daughter Laurie (Lisa Robin Kelly) at the bus station.  Laurie has come home from college and brought her friend Kate (Jenny Maguire) home with her for the weekend.  Kate immediately starts flirting with Eric (Topher Grace).

Mom, Kitty Forman (Debra Jo Rupp) is dreading the arrival of Red's (Kurtwood Smith) mother.  Her mother in law has little use for Kitty and despises her cooking.  This adds to the family tension.  To make matters worse, money is scarce since Red is only working part-time.  But he refuses to scrimp on Thanksgiving.

   Eric's friends Kelso (Ashton Kutcher) and Hyde (Danny Masterson) are interested in Kate, asking how hot she is (Eric says "Oh,so hot!").  Jackie (Mila Kunis) and Eric's girlfriend Donna (Laura Prepon) overhear this, Jackie tells Donna she should be worried.

Eric goes up to his room to get a blanket when Kate (already "dressed" for bedtime) starts flirting with him some more.  She grabs Eric and gives him a very passionate kiss and he doesn't resist.

The next day he brags about the kiss to his friends.  Then he feels bad, since he and Donna "have a thing".  Kelso says he should "juggle them both until it all blows up in your face."

Eric can't keep a secret so he tells Donna as soon as he sees her.   She dumps him, saying he can "kiss whatever you want, why don't you start with your own butt!"

Eric feels guilty and tries to make up with Donna.  She won't have it.

It's finally time for Thanksgiving Dinner.  After the prayer, everyone is ready to chow down, but suddenly the phone rings.  Kitty realizes that no one ever picked up Red's mother at the bus station!

Eric makes one last attempt at reconciling with Donna.  He invites her to Thanksgiving dessert at his house and hopes they can remain a couple.

J.A. Morris says:

This is a very typical, formulaic episode of That 70s Show.  But it's a solid, entertaining formula, so that's okay.  Most storylines centered on interpersonal conflicts among the gang or the parent-child dynamic.  The script gives everyone at least one funny line. And Red gets to call Eric a "dumbass", which is always funny.

"I wonder if the Pilgrims were clever enough to put peanut butter in their celery?"

Thanksgiving is mainly the backdrop, but it helps drive the action.  We've all had relatives who drive us crazy on holidays.  They turn into food critics at Thanksgiving and we dread their arrival.

I was a regular viewer of That 70s Show during the first few seasons, and this is a fun episode.  So if you remember the show fondly, "Thanksgiving" is recommended for November viewing.

J.A. Morris' rating:

3 pumpkin pies.

RigbyMel says:

I remember watching this show when it was new.   It was fun in 1998 and it holds up well to repeated viewings.    It does a great job of playing with various Thanksgiving tropes within the snarky sitcom framework.  

This Thanksgiving episode of That 70s Show is well worth adding to your holiday viewing and is available in various formats.

RigbyMel's rating:

3 and a half pumpkin pies

That 70s Show: "That 70s Halloween"

Premiered October 26, 1999

“Hey, let's not fight, alright? It's Halloween, man, it's time for Peace On Earth and Good Will towards men!”-Kelso

In Eric's basement, he and his friends (Hyde, Donna, Kelso, Fez, and Jackie) are talking about how fun Halloween was when they were kids. They're all trying to figure out what to do to celebrate Halloween. Fez is fascinated by the concept of candy being given away for free, as it's not something that's done is home country. Kelso suggests they go see 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre'. Eric suggests they visit Old Main their old grammar school. It has recently been burned and boarded up. Eric says they should break in and tell ghost stories in the dark. But first, Fez decides he must go trick or treating...dressed as Batman! Fez wants free candy, but gets an apple. He's not happy about that.

Fez goes Trick Or Treating

We cut to Eric's house where his parents, Kitty and Red are waiting for trick or treaters. They flash back to the first Halloween they celebrated in their house, in 1957: Kitty is wearing a Catsuit (Kitty is "a kitty" for Halloween), she's preparing for a Halloween party. Red's mom Bernice Foreman shows up uninvited and is making fun of Kitty (as usual). Red (dressed in a Zorro costume) and his friend Frank (dressed as “a bum”) arrive at the house carrying copious amounts of beer. Kitty asks Red for help setting up for the party, he says no, he's got to go to the garage with Frank so they can get drunk. Kitty gets a phone call from her doctor and learns she's pregnant! Bernice asks if she knows who the father is!
Later in the flashback, trick or treaters arrive at the Foreman house. Red and Frank scare them away, causing some of the kids to drop their candy. Kitty says Red shouldn't do that to kids because “what if you has kids?” Kitty then drops the news that she's pregnant. Red says “oh crap!”.

After attending a screening of 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre', Eric and the gang break into the school. Eric tells a story about a gym teacher who died in the fire, his ghost still walks through the school. Kelso freaks out and runs away, Jackie is disgusted that he didn't stay to protect her from the ghost. She runs off, Donna goes after her. Jackie notes that Fez stayed behind to protect her.

The guys are getting bored with Eric's “scary” ghosts stories, when the Donna walks in with a stack of papers. She's discovered something verrry scaarry... their Permanent Records from grammar school!

Permanent Records!

Hyde's record says he's destined for a lifetime of crime, citing his destruction of a classmate's diorama in the 2nd grade. Eric then admits he broke the diorama because “it was better” than his. Eric's admission infuriates Hyde, because everyone turned against Hyde and labeled him as a bad kid when the diorama was destroyed. He accuses Eric of ruining his life. Eric objects and they're both ready to fight about it!

Kelso peruses his Permanent Record

What other deep, dark secrets will be discovered about the gang through their Permanent Records? Will the revelations turn them all against each other? And will Fez discover who stole his last box of Sugar Babies?

Jackie lets out a "Horror Movie" shriek when Hyde threatens to reveal her darkest secret!

J.A. Morris says:

This is no classic, but it's a good, solid episode. I watched 'That 70s Show' regularly for the first 3 or 4 seasons, but I didn't remember this one. It's easy to forget what a nice ensemble cast this show had. Wilmer Valderama (Fez) and Ashton Kuther (Kelso) got the biggest laughs from me, but everyone had their moment. In the parents' flashback, we got an "origin story" of sorts for Red's use of the word "dumb@$$", which was funny. And Marion Ross was always fun when she guest starred on the show as Red's mother Bernice.

My rating:

3 jack o'lanterns

RigbyMel says:

This is definitely a fun, silly and amusing episode. I was a bit puzzled by why the scary permanent records wouldn't have been salvaged from the remains of the school building, though - maybe it is part of their evil divisive nature or something?

I always tend to like the way that this series zaps back and forth in time as it does with Red and Kitty's 1957 Halloween flashback segments as well.

My rating:

3 jack o'lanterns