That '70s Pilot

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“That '70s Pilot”
That '70s Show episode
The first scene of the series.
Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 1
Guest stars	Paul Kreppel (Mr. Burkhardt), Wayne Pére (Randy)
Written by	Bonnie Turner and Terry Turner, Mark Brazill
Directed by	Terry Hughes
Production no.	101
Original airdate	August 23, 1998
Episode chronology
← Previous	Next →
"Series pilot"	"Eric’s Birthday"
List of That '70s Show episodes

"That '70s Pilot" is the pilot episode of the sitcom That '70s Show. It was aired on FOX on August 23, 1998.

1 Plot
2 Continuity
3 Trivia
4 External links

[edit] Plot

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

May 17, 1976, 8:47pm. Hyde, Donna and Kelso pressure Eric to steal beer from the party his parents are throwing upstairs. Eric gives in and goes upstairs, where he runs into his mom Kitty preparing snacks for the party, Midge and Bob Pinciotti who take the opportunity to show off Bob's new hair, and finally his dad Red who regretfully mentions that he bought a new Toyota because the on-going oil crisis made his old Vista Cruiser too expensive to use. However, he didn't trade in the Vista Cruiser, as the dealership wasn't offering him enough money. Eric jumps on the opportunity and asks his dad to give him the car. Finally, as Red and Kitty turn their attention to their guests, Eric is able to secure four beers and return to the basement. There, Eric impresses his friends, first with the beer, then by announcing that his dad might give him the Vista Cruiser. Kelso blurts out that Donna finds Eric cute and that it's a secret, oblivious to the fact he's telling everyone a secret.

The next day, Eric, Donna, Kelso and Jackie are in the basement watching TV, and Kelso once again blurts out a secret, that the gang is going to see a Todd Rundgren concert this weekend without telling Jackie. This leads to Jackie disputing Kelso until he agrees to let her come. The two kiss and make-up, then leave Eric and Donna to share an awkward silence.

Later, Eric, Kelso, Hyde and Fez are again in the basement, smoking marijuana in a circle, when Eric's parents call him. While Eric does his best to focus, Red and Kitty lecture him about what a responsibility it is to own a car. Finally, they give him the keys to the Vista Cruiser.

It's the evening, and Eric, Donna and Kelso are preparing to leave in the Vista Cruiser to pick up the others and go to the concert. Red walks in and wishes them a good time, but warns Eric that, since the car is old, he's not allowed to take it out of town. After Red left, Donna and Kelso convince Eric to ignore his father so they can attend the concert, which takes place in the neighbouring town of Milwaukee. Unfortunately for them, the car breaks down out of town. Short on cash, the gang is forced to trade two concert tickets to the mechanic for a new battery. The gang finally makes it to the concert, but Kelso and Jackie are forced to wait in the car.

After the concert, Eric and Donna are relaxing in the Foreman's driveway. Donna gets up to go to bed, but before leaving, she kisses Eric.

Spoilers end here.

[edit] Continuity

The beginning of the first circle.

The episode setup many of the storylines the show would follow:

Eric and Donna's romantic relationship.
Jackie dominating Kelso, and Kelso trying to break up with her.
The fact that Jackie does not like the other members of the gang besides Kelso, and vice-versa.

Many recurring jokes also began with this episode:

Bob's hair.
Kitty's laugh.
The circle.
The fantasy scenes.
Fez's lack of knowledge of American culture and expressions.
Hyde's distrust of the government and fondness for conspiracy theories.
Kelso's simple-mindedness.
Jackie's control over Kelso.

There were only minor differences between the pilot and the rest of the series:

The video arcade where the gang met up was changed to The Hub restaurant in later episodes.
Hyde called Eric by his first name instead of "Forman".
Eric called Red "pop" instead of "dad" or "sir".

[edit] Trivia

Donna says that Eric is 17, but in the next episode, the gang is celebrating his 17th birthday.
The show Eric, Donna, Kelso and Jackie are watching is The Brady Bunch episode "The Subject Was Noses". More specifically, they're at the part where Marcia gets hit in the face with a football.
This episode was the first time Jackie met Fez. In the arcade, she asks who he is.
In Eric's fantasies, the adults at the party spontaneously start dancing the Hustle.
According to the eighth season special "The Final Goodbye", the gang's laughter in the circle scene was not scripted. Three of the actors just lost control during the scene and started laughing.
Although mentioned in the dialogue, Laurie did not appear in this episode, and Lisa Robin Kelly is not credited in it. Her first appearance will be in the next episode, "Eric’s Birthday".
Red will bring up the fact Eric disobeyed him, took the Vista Cruiser out of town, and lied about it, in the season 2 episode "Eric Gets Suspended".
Scenes from this episode – specifically, Eric and Donna kissing at the end, and Eric and Donna talking while sitting on the basement stairs – were reused in the fourth season episode "It's a Wonderful Life". That episode will also establish that Hyde was waiting for Donna in the Pinciotti's back yard after the concert, with the intention of making a move on her if nothing happened between her and Eric in the driveway.
Steven talks about the car running on water, which he mentions again in the finale.