There seems to be two different kinds of retro-universe stories.

There are fics that were written as futuristic fiction at the time - but have since become "jossed" by different technological advancements. I suppose Jules Verne could fall into that category, and even the 2015 portion of BTTF2 - even though I don't see why things like the internet and the cellphone couldn't have existed, even if we've never seen them. Then there's also Orwell's 1984, and you can hardly get more depressing than that.

Then there are also alternate histoy fics that speculate over how the world might be different, if technology has taken a different turn. Flaming Trails' favourite webcomic series, Girl Genius, fall into that category. A Series of Unfortunate Events also seems to fall into that category, at least with the choice of outfits worn - and computers also don't seem as advanced in that universe.

I think the first bttf script falls more towards the second.

Oh, yeah, there is that one! While I'm so glad that the script was never used, it does present an interesting concept - even though you have to feel bad for poor Marty.

Yeah, he has to reinvent Rock and Roll, because no one else has heard of it. That's sad.

Yeah, I think we can both sympathize with Marty in that area. There do seem to be some parallels between the new 1982 from the first draft and 2015 from Part Two, though.

It's my understanding that The Jetsons is often cited as an example of retro-futuristism - that was simply future-futuristic at the time it first came out. I never saw the series, so I don't know much about it. I guess it first came out in the 1960s, though - and it was set 100 years later, in the 2060s. So we're actually not even at the halfway mark, yet - and so many things about the series ae now considered outdated.

Of course, if you want to go very futuristic, there's Futurama - which, I guess, is set 1000 years later.

I suppose, in a way, it would be somewhat sad for BTTF fans - when the year 2015 finally comes and goes. It would make for some very interesting fanfic, though.

I know HG Wells The Time Machine is extremely futuristic, which is part of why I don't really have much interest in checking it out. I mean, it goes way outside the four-digit years. I guess it's supposed to be about an entirely different civilization, though.

It's somewhat commonly believed that we've had civilizations with advanced technology way in the distant past - which, in a way, is kind of scary. I mean, what if we end up losing all our technology - and have to start all over again? It'd probably take thousands of years to build a society as advanced as the one we have now - and, by then, it wouldn't even resemble ours in the least. That's part of why we really have to think about our environment, so that we don't end up losing everything that we have.

One movie I'll have to check out is The Jetsons meet The Flintstones.

I'm not too familiar with either series - but both families have a lot in common.

The Flintstones is part of very pre-historic civilization that somehow really mimics ours. They even have their own form of rock and roll music. Of course, since the genre is called *rock* music - and the series have a real metaphor of "rocks" - I guess it's only fitting to have *rock* music be the predominent genre of music in their civilization, too.

The Jetsons, of course, a futuristic family that now appears very retro-futuristic. I don't know if they ever updated the Jetson family, even though I know the series was popular for at least three decades.

You've never seen the Jetsons? I watched it all the time as a kid.

Between Back to the Future, Family Ties, and A Series of Unfortunate Events - I'm not sure if I really have enough room to actively invest in another fandom. I have to get back on track with my fic writing as it is, and I have some fics I want to write for ASOUE. I might watch a few episodes, though - if it's available on DVD.

I think it's cool, though, how the families come from two very different eras - yet they both have so much in common.

Yeah, both of their civilizations mimic the '60s.

Right, exactly, which is why The Jetsons are now considered retro-futuristic - while The Flintstones are... the opposite of retro-futuristic?

If you remember the show Dinosaurs, that's another show that's kind of like the Flintstones, except the family is dinosaurs instead of cavemen.

Sounds kind of cool. One thing I think is real neat about The Flintstones is how Pebbles and Bam-Bam were best friends from infancy - then they became boyfriend/girlfriend, and then they were finally married. It's kind of like Marty Jr and Harmony from my fics.

I suppose Marty wouldn't really mind spending time in that era, especially since a form of rock music existed back then. Although, he might be turned off by some of the food - but I suppose bontasaurus meat could taste just like beef. I'd still be very leary, though.

I guess it's sort of like an alternate universe, though - different from "our world" - and The Flintstones and The Jetsons are a part of the same shared universe.