Summary

• That ’90s Show honors its parent series by including characters and references from That ’70s Show in its storyline.
• The casting of Kevin Smith as Sonny creates a paradox within the show’s universe due to his iconic movie roles.
• The inclusion of Smith’s character may pose challenges for future movie references, creating a dilemma for the show’s writers.

When That ’90s Show recently brought an unseen character from That ’70s Show onscreen, it contradicted its own canon. The series is a fantastic spinoff of the original series about a bunch of 1970s Wisconsin teenagers on the cusp of adulthood that has proven to be just as popular. The series will soon stream the second half of its second season on Netflix, although it seems That ’90s Show season 2 will lose another original cast member ahead of the new episodes.

That 90s Show has not forgotten where it has come from. Not only does it include important characters such as Red and Kitty, who are now grandparents rather than parents, but it sometimes reintroduces characters and references from its parent show, such as when That 90s Show season 2 introduced a replacement character for Crazy Caroline. It also brought a character on-screen as part of its season 2 finale who has often been referenced but never seen before.

That ’90s Show Casting Kevin Smith As Leo’s Son Creates A Paradox With Season 1’s Clerks Storyline

Clerks Both Exists And Doesn’t Exist In That ’90s Show Universe

The final episode of the first part of season 2 introduced Kevin Smith as Sonny, Leo’s son, who had often been mentioned on That ’70s Show but had never been seen on-screen before. Sonny crashed his car into the Formans’ living room with his friend Bunch (Jason Mewes). He was likely brought on to replace That 90s Show​​​​​​’s Leo (Tommy Chong), as the legendary actor who plays him is now in his mid-80s. This casting decision is on-brand for That 90s Show, which features the children of many characters from its parent sitcom; however, it inadvertently creates a paradox.

Smith and Mewes dressed like their Jay and Silent Bob characters even though that’s not who they were supposed to be.

Kevin Smith is well known for his starring role in Clerks, the cult ’90s slacker comedy about a pair of convenience store clerks that spawned two sequels and led to a series of spinoff movies starring Smith and Mewes as Jay and Silent Bob. Mewes and Smith dressing like their characters to literally crash a party at the Formans’ house is a cute reference to their iconic roles, but it contradicts established canon becauseLeia spent an entire season 1 episode trying to rent Clerks. Thus, Jay and Silent Bob both exist and don’t exist in the That ’90s Show universe.

Kevin Smith’s Character Creates A Problem For That ’90s Show’s Future Movie References

Smith’s Movies Were A Big Part of 90s Culture That Now Can’t Easily Be Referenced

Kevin Smith joining the That ’90s Show cast could cause problems that the writers didn’t foresee because of this paradox. Smith’s movies were an important part of teenage culture in the 1990s, which is why That ’90s Show chose to give him and Mewes a cameo in episode 8. However, it will become more difficult to ignore the fact that Jay and Silent Bob’s doppelgängers exist in the show unless the writers also choose to ignore some of their other movies. For example, 1997’s Chasing Amy was both popular and controversial, making it a must-watch for these characters.

The series is left with a paradox that cannot be resolved and which might annoy those members of the audience who also love Kevin Smith’s 1990s-era movies.

That ’90s Show could turn the paradox into a running joke by having the characters note that Jay and Silent Bob remind them of people they know or that Sonny and Bunch seem familiar. However, that type of joke will grow stale quickly. The series is left with a paradox that cannot be resolved. Regardless of how it’s handled, it’s still a fun nod to have such iconic symbols of the ’90s in a show that is all about the decade.