Netflix has a new No. 1 show on its Top 10 list , one that appeared there instantly and has attracted a large audience in short order. That series is A Different World , and critics have chimed in with their thoughts after its debut, resulting in a Rotten Tomatoes score. It’s pretty decent.

The 10-episode A Different World has an 83% score on Rotten Tomatoes from a dozen and a half critics, and as you may recall, this series has a long history that extends all the way back to the Cosby era. Yeah, not a fun name to mention these days, but he has nothing to do with this iteration.

The original series starred Denise Huxtable, played by Lisa Bonet, who departed The Cosby Show f or Hillman College, a historically black college in Virginia. The show ran for six seasons, though it eventually lost Bonet, who was replaced with new characters played by Jasmine Guy, Maleah Joi Moon and Kadeem Hardison. It was a deeper series than the original, dealing with issues like sexual assault and race relations.

Now, the new A Different World on Netflix directly connects back to that series, with Jasmine Guy, Maleah Joi Moon, and Kadeem Hardison returning as their original characters after 33 years, as the show ended in 1993. The series first started in 1987. Other actors from the original show periodically appear.

Obviously, the main focus is on new characters like Dwayne and Whitley’s daughter, Deborah, now attending Hillman College. The show also stars Alijah Kai, Cornell Young IV, Jordan Aaron Hall, Kennedi Reece, Chibuikem Uche and Elijah Roberts. Almost all of them are up-and-coming actors with few credits to their names. Here’s the official synopsis:

“Deborah Wayne enters her freshman year at Hillman College, her parents’ HBCU alma mater; here, she must escape their shadow and build her own legacy.”

While the original A Different World was created by Bill Cosby himself, he’s not involved with this sequel series at all, even as a producer. No doubt that would have caused some issues. Rather, 2026’s A Different World was created by Felicia Pride, who has written on shows like Queen Sugar and Grey’s Anatomy . She also worked on another long-term revival, Bel-Air.

It’s certainly significant when any Netflix show immediately reaches No. 1 on the service. The audience here is likely a combination of veteran viewers who watched the show 30-40 years ago, or new viewers who are just being introduced to the series for the first time. I cannot imagine they’re ever going to do an actual Cosby Show reboot at this point.

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Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy .