Days Like That 70's Show

Below you will see the first episode of the American television series, That 70's Show.

First episode of that 70s show


Now here's "Days Like These."



You might not spot any similarities at first, but eventually you'll start to notice similar character names, vaguely familiar actors to fit the cast, and even scenes that are downright identical if not slightly altered. In fact, almost entirely identical.

Don't believe me?
Here's Episode 23 of That 70's Show. The one entitled "Grandma's Dead."



The reason for these similarities is simple. "Days Like These" was the British import of "That 70's Show," although not many people will ever remember it.
In 1999 the American series That 70's Show was remade by the British ITV network using almost "verbatim" scripts with minor cultural changes. As well as the obvious switch in locations from "I Love Wisconsin!" to Dunstable, Bedfordshire.

It failed almost as miserably as "That 80's Show."

After 10 episodes the series was permanently canceled, resulting in the remaining three episodes to go unaired.
That 70's Show from then on became imported directly to the channel, and it was one of the first.

Not so ironically, in days like these (and I mean our own) it's easy to view some of our best television here in America as being adaptations from what has been exhibited oversees. We have the Office for example.
But this case is an unusual one in not only who's doing the importing, but also in the interpretation. Something, be it cultural or otherwise, prevented That 70's Show from having the same effect when it was reinterpreted. Yet it was imported anyways in it's original form to find better success.

What that says exactly about peoples taste, or need for authenticity, is free to be interpreted.

In any case what we have to look at here is a version of "That 70's Show" from a different, entirely British, alternate universe. It's an uncanny, almost eerie, look at a world where Topher Grace has been replaced by an English android.