Every sitcom, and plenty of TV shows, in general, need that cool guy that we all want to hang out with or date or be like. But they’re just too cool for any of us to even aspire to. They’re also almost always the sidekick to our main hero – Slater to Zack, Dylan to Brandon, Fonzie to Richie. On That '70s Show, it was Hyde to Eric.

Steven Hyde personified what was cool about the seventies. Hyde was cool by any decade’s standards. He was able to relate to all of his friends, thanks to his rebellious nature. But also, thanks to being abandoned, he was able to grateful and respectful towards the Formans, who adopted him and just about all of the other adults on the show. That doesn’t mean he wasn’t above good pranks and troublemaking antics – he did make special brownies for the Forman’s garage sale. He does also supply the gang with his stash on a regular basis.

He’s the slacker who’s also the smartest guy in the room. He’s the hopeless romantic with the mystique of someone who doesn’t care. He thinks the government is out to get him and get everyone else. Even when he didn’t want to do the right thing, he always would, albeit begrudgingly. It made him a better man for it and made the show a lot funnier. Here are 20 Things Wrong With Hyde We All Choose To Ignore.

The Story Of Both His Fathers

The poor kid never had much of a chance growing up. The father he always knew he had was Bud, a sad sack who wasn’t amounting to much when he abandoned both his mother Edna and himself. Even when he tried to reconnect, he thought it would be a better idea to let his kid throw a party than actually parent.

Then there was the father he never knew he had – William Barnett. Thankfully when they finally did meet, WB was nothing but a nice guy to his newly found son. After basically being raised by the Formans, he was able to keep a level head about suddenly become the son of a wealthy man.

 He Tries To Steal His Best Friend’s Girl

While all of Eric’s friends have feelings for Donna, Hyde was the only one who actually did like his buddy’s next-door neighbor. As the show was first conceived, there was an underlining rivalry brewing between Hyde and Forman over Donna. It didn’t help much that Hyde was not so subtle in showing his affections for Donna.

Once Donna emphatically told him she’s with Eric, Hyde backed off totally. But lest we not forget that the guy seemingly had no qualms about trying to steal Forman’s girl.

He Does Steal His Best Friend’s Girl

Kelso was Hyde’s other best friend on That 70’s Show. Despite Kelso’s misgivings, he did date Jackie first. Then he bolted for California at the end of season four when Jackie tried to propose to him. He also got together with and returned to Point Place with another girl.

While Hyde might not have intended to steal Jackie, the two did start being together all summer long. In most friend circles, that violates silly bro code. Luckily, the couple worked for a long time on the show, and the pairing was a hit with viewers.

He Dates Another Girl

Hyde and Jackie were a hit with fans of the show. But even on a sitcom, if there’s no conflict between our beloved characters, there’s seldom a show to watch. So when Hyde and Kelso finally almost come to blows, they both realize Jackie’s been playing them both and demand she chooses.

Instead of just dealing with it mentally and being with her, Hyde decides that dating another girl to make Jackie jealous would be a bright idea. It might not have been smooth move on Hyde’s part, but at least we got a Grease-inspired fantasy from Jackie out of the ordeal.

He Gets Married

After having an on again / off again with Jackie, Hyde decides he’s going to go all in and decided once for all to stop being a slacker and go for it. When he heads off to find Jackie to declare all of this, he finds her with Kelso. Needless to say, he’s a little perturbed.

So, he does what any heartbroken man would do, heads to Vegas and winds up married. Even though the marriage was declared invalid when Sam’s husband comes looking for her, it spelled the end of Jackie and Hyde.

Doesn’t Mind Watching Friends Get Hurt

It was a momentous occasion when the gang defaced Point Place’s water tower. It was also one of the first times that one of the friends fell right off the water tower. Hyde had convinced his friend Kelso that their artwork didn’t look right, and he kept edging out further to see until he fell off.

It was just one of many instances where Hyde took delight in watching his friends get physically hurt. Seeing as how every male character took a nosedive at one point or another, Hyde had a lot of fodder for laughs.

Always Liked / Helped Jackie

He can deny it all he wants to, but much like Mrs. Forman has already known before he did, Hyde always liked Jackie. Perhaps he was wrestling with his feelings of how, he – someone who was so cool and nonchalant like a person so vapid and intense as Jackie.

But several instances throughout the series, Hyde steps in and stands up for Jackie, no matter who else he’s possibly hurting, including his best friend Kelso, or punching some random guy out for hitting on her.

Conspiracy Theorist

Hyde had a lot of hair-brained ideas over the years. Early on, he thought they were so good that they should record them and play them back (Fez pointed out that Hyde and his buddies were idiots). But Hyde, in general, thinks that the government is out to get him.

He might not be wrong with the life he’s had up until moving in with the Formans. But at the same time, some of his conspiracy theories are completely ridiculous; such as the classic staple – a car that runs on water.

He Watches Little House

Little House On The Prairie was a series of children’s novels by Laura Ingalls Wilder that was adapted into a very popular series throughout the late seventies and early eighties. It doesn’t seem like something the rebellious Hyde would ever sit through, much less be a fan of.

But Hyde is a much more complicated stereotype than first depicted is. After he was caught watching the Michael Landon series, he defended his fandom, stating it reminded him of a simpler time.

Tough Guy Loves The Attention

Don’t let his thick skin fool you, Steven Hyde is a big softie. The thick facade was no doubt from his initial upbringing on the wrong side of the tracks. But once he moved in with the Formans it became apparent that at least around Kitty, he would be able to show that he secretly loved the fact that a parental figure finally cared for him, and cared about him.

He would on several occasions swoop in for a hug from Mrs. Forman, he would also turn down certain treats only turn right back around when none of his friends were watching.

Anti-Authoritarian Becomes Authority

It happens with every generation. It’s bound to, right? No matter how much of a punk rock rebel you are, eventually you grow up, get older. Rebellious teenagers become decent members of society. It happened to Hyde too, it was just surprising that it happened before Hyde was 25.

He was gifted a record store from his old man, WB. For its continued success, and for Hyde to continue to be the rebellious slacker that we all know and love, he needed to work hard to make sure his father’s store would stay successful. For that to happen, he needed to become a boss.

Has Claimed He Disliked Jackie

Not only has he always liked Jackie, but Hyde even went so far to as to claim that he hated her. When Jackie had no one to go to the prom with because Kelso was taking Pam Macy, she confided in Hyde of all people. At that time, probably because he was the only one in Forman’s basement.

Hyde tried to tell her that he wouldn’t go to prom with her. Even went so far as telling Jackie that they hate each other. But by the end of Jackie’s crying fit – who was it that took Jackie to prom?

He Bosses Around His Boss

Hyde thinks he’s anti-authority and "darn the man" and everything a rebellious teenager would be, but he also loves being the one in power. Even when he’s just an employee. Hyde wanted to be able to contribute to the Forman household so he got a job at the FotoHut. That’s where he met ancient hippie, Leo.

If anyone needed to be bossed around and told what they had to do, it was Leo. Not only was Leo uncaring of his job, but he was just outright lazy. He needed a guy like Hyde to actually tell him how to run his own business.

He's A Grateful Rebel

The guy would have been a real cad if he wasn’t grateful, wouldn’t he? After coming from a broken, née, completely-shattered home life. Both of his parents split on him, leaving him to fend for himself. Eric wasn’t going to let his friend do that though and convinced his folks to take him in.

Instead of being the punk kid we all had come to know – he was the nicest kid you’d ever meet. He was being so nice and polite and grateful that Red and Kitty took him in, that he even tried to talk Forman out of doing something dumb, like hurtling a bowling ball through a TV.

He's A Smart Slacker

You ever meet someone growing up, and think about how smart they'd be if they’d just use their powers for good instead of evil? On That 70’s Show, Hyde was that person. He was one of the smartest if not the smartest member of the group. He definitely had the best memory, when not focused on other things – he was the only one who remembered Kitty’s birthday.

Whenever pressed with a topic, at least when he wasn’t in school, Hyde could give dissertation-level diatribes on Malcolm X. In school, with minimal effort, he got a B in Spanish – and he doesn’t even remember taking the class!

His Feelings About His Sister

Despite not knowing that he’s had a sister his entire life, the second he learned about Angie, Hyde did what he always does, tried to treat her right. But the brother and sister dynamic on sitcoms is never stable, and they were at odds several times over how to run the record store.

Angie even dated Kelso for a time just to annoy Hyde, which made Kelso happy as well. After Hyde started to warn his sister about her new doofus boyfriend, she started to feel like she had a real brother.

Had A Great Relationship With Red

Steven has a unique ability to get along with just about everyone else on the show. Including the adults, including Red. The very same Red who says he hates kids not only got along with Hyde, but Hyde was able to get along with him too. Even before he was living with the family.

Hyde had chosen not to go to the Disco and Red saw through his anti-disco nonsense and knew that Hyde could dance. After he let Hyde know that even though he was a guy, he’d still have to learn, he ushered him to Kitty who was able to teach him.

Always Does What’s Right

In the world of sitcoms, the slacker or the rebel with a heart of gold is one of the coolest stereotypes to be. You somehow are able to be to the coolest kid in the room and at the same time, teach the kids watching at home how to actually be an upstanding member of society.

It’s actually the kind of conspiracy theory that Hyde would espouse is going on. He’d yell it from the rooftops. Scream it from the water tower. But he’s too busy secretly being an upstanding member of society and always doing what’s right (minus the usual amount of teenage tomfoolery).

His Relationship With His Mother

It was a bit of inspired casting when That 70s Show tapped “Peggy Bundy” herself, Katey Sagal, to play Hyde’s mother, Edna. She spent over ten years not caring about Bud or Kelly, she could spend a few episodes not caring about Hyde.

Try as he might though – a boy just couldn’t let go of his mother. Even as Edna ripped into him and vice-versa. Even as Hyde would walk out on Edna in the middle of an argument, “just like his father.” He’d do his best to try and be a good son. Unfortunately, Edna made that very hard for him. She split on him too, but it did lead him living with the Formans and finally having a stable home life.