“Nostalgia: it’s delicate, but potent.” Don Draper, the fictional advertising executive at the center of AMC’s “Mad Men,” said that in the show’s first season. Television executives have certainly subscribed to the second part of that notion.
It seems a month doesn’t go by without a new reboot, sequel, spinoff or remake of a beloved TV series or movie being announced. The Internet invariably gets excited about the announcements when they’re made but the success of those recycled ideas have has varied.
In 2011, MTV resurrected “Beavis and Butt-head” for only one season of new episodes. In the past decade, CW network executives brought back 1990s shows with “Melrose Place” and “The Carrie Diaries” — the latter a prequel to “Sex and the City” — each lasting two seasons or less. Other ‘90s reboots like FX’s Emmy Award-winning “Fargo” and Disney Channel’s “Girl Meets World” have had more success.
It appears more networks are banking on nostalgia as another slew of hit shows are making returns in one way or another. Here are eight popular ‘90s TV shows that are coming back:
“Coach”
This ABC sitcom originally ran from 1989 to 1997, following a college football coach played by Craig T. Nelson and his off-field relationships with friends, colleagues and family. It was announced Thursday that NBC was ordering a sequel to the show, starring Nelson — who just wrapped a six-season run on NBC’s “Parenthood” — and being crafted by the show’s original creator.
“The X-Files”
A nine-season run with multiple Emmy wins wasn’t enough for FBI agents Mulder and Scully. Chris Carter, the creator of the original sci-fi series confirmed this week that 20th Century Fox is producing a six-episode limited series that reunites stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson.
Characters from "The Magic School Bus" series. (Scholastic Corp.)
“The Magic School Bus”
Here’s something Millennials with kids can celebrate — Ms. Frizzle and her awesome, shape-shifting school bus are making a comeback. It was announced in June that Netflix had ordered a reboot of the beloved educational series, reportedly titled “The Magic School Bus 360°.”
“Twin Peaks”
Perhaps the ultimate cult TV classic of the ‘90s, the ultra-offbeat “Twin Peaks” is making a brief return to the small screen next year. Last October, series co-creators David Lynch and Mark Frost announced they would be crafting a nine-episode run set to air on Showtime. Stars from the original series will return, picking up the show’s enigmatic storyline after 25 years.
Bubbles, Blossom and Buttercup, lead characters from "The Powerpuff Girls." (Cartoon Network)
“The Powerpuff Girls”
It was a surprise when Cartoon Network — a channel with loads of nostalgic potential — announced it was rebooting “The Powerpuff Girls” for a 2016 return. The Emmy Award-winning cartoon ran for 78 episodes in the late ‘90s and followed a deceptively adorable group of superheroes.
“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”
The long-unanswered prayers of many overgrown ‘90s kids will be answered next summer when a “Power Rangers” remake hits movie theaters. The movie has some legitimate creative thunder behind it as the co-writers of “X-Men: First Class” have inked the script and the studio that made “The Hunger Games” series is producing.
Actor David Faustino (front) with his "Married ... With Children" cast mates. (Getty Images)
“Married … With Children”
Last September, reports surfaced that Sony Pictures Television was interested in producing a sequel to the series that put Fox on the map in 1987, likely following teen horndog Bud Bundy as an adult. The reboot wasn’t officially confirmed by the studio but original “Married … With Children” actors including David Faustino and Christina Applegate have given legitimacy to reports.
“Goosebumps”
People interested in some campy, nostalgic scares rejoiced in 2013 when episodes of the “Goosebumps” TV series hit Netflix. Later this year, a big-screen adaptation of the series of popular children’s horror books will premiere, with Jack Black starring. In the movie, Black will play “Goosebumps” author R.L. Stine, as creepy creatures from his books begin manifesting in the real world. The film is set to open in October.
Clint Davis is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @MrClintDavis.
