That’s what made the series so delightful. The future promises to be wonderful but not solve all our problems. Human nature itself would still be present, unchanged, and present the usual challenges and dilemmas. The series both ramped up our expectations and dialed them back.

It was oddly realistic. We did (eventually) get video phones, electronic teachers, and work itself would be lessened in physical difficulty and time spent. But that would only leave us with the same old problems of quirky personalities, family instability, problems with coworkers, and capital depreciation (everything was always being repaired).

In that way, the series perfectly captured the culture of a time and its forward vision.