Kelso was first introduced in "That 70s Pilot" as
Eric Forman's less intelligent, loudly obnoxious friend who is dating a preppy, younger student,
Jackie Burkhart, whom he first met in 1968 playing "Fort." Later in the season, the couple goes through multiple breakups. To the frustration of his friends, Michael Kelso frequently asserts his intention to break up with Jackie, yet consistently fails to follow through, hoping she will eventually acquiesce to his desires (but instead, Jackie breaks up with him first). Kelso also unwittingly gets his friends into trouble after driving them around in an apparently stolen car. They were arrested, though Eric's connections with his father got them out of trouble. In later episodes, Kelso is given a neglected 1964
Dodge Van by his uncle, which becomes the main focus of his secondary story during seasons 2 and 3. On one occasion, Jackie wishes to decorate the van, resulting in its being temporarily covered in stuffed animals, though all were removed soon after. The van becomes the gang's main source of transportation on long-distance journeys, such as a "Van Stock" rock concert, and a trip to an ice fishing shack. However, it is at the ice fishing shack where it ultimately meets its fate when it breaks through the ice, and sinks to the bottom of the lake. Like Eric, Kelso buys his girlfriend Jackie a
promise ring to show how important the relationship is to him. However, while Jackie is overjoyed with her ring, Donna becomes unsure of her future with Eric, causing him to break up with her. In this future, Kelso and Jackie have broken up once again, only to consistently rekindle their relationship for a one-night stand every time they reunite. Kelso is also elected Snow King at the Snow Prom, much to Jackie's disapproval. Kelso and Eric's meeting is not explained thoroughly, but it is presumed they simply met in first grade. During the Season 4 finale, Jackie misleadingly believes that Kelso is proposing to her, causing him to decide to run off to California. After meeting up with Donna, who had recently been humiliated by her then boyfriend and Kelso's brother, Casey, they both take off. Eventually, Kelso claims to be over Jackie and renews his friendship with Hyde, and begins a relationship with Annette (
Jessica Simpson), a girl he had a short relationship with in California. Jackie, in the same manner as Kelso had, becomes jealous and even goes so far as to yell, "Get off my boyfriend!" when she sees Kelso and Annette kissing. Kelso responded positively to this and began to make a big show of it. Annette leaves him at the school dance, telling him he isn't over Jackie, and Kelso soon realizes that Annette is right. However, when Jackie chooses Hyde over him, he respects her decision and even helps to bring the two together again. From then on, Kelso and Jackie share a relationship as friends. In Season 6, Kelso is the focus of a major plot twist in which he accidentally impregnates a girl named Brooke in a bathroom at a Molly Hatchet concert. Brooke initially does not want Kelso in the baby's life, much to Kelso's relief. However, a pep-talk from Donna causes him to change his mind as he attempts to prove to Brooke he can be a father. Brooke leaves for Chicago, giving Kelso permission to see Betsy whenever he can. Kelso becomes a
policeman, albeit a bumbling one. He attempts to take his job seriously by growing a mustache and calling himself "Mike," and even going as far as flushing Hyde's marijuana stash down the toilet (in The Circle), but he quickly reverts when Hyde and Fez shave his mustache and made the mustache resemble the mustache
Adolf Hitler was famous for. He eventually sets the police academy on fire using a flare gun, but even before then, had broken into the academy and gets his supervisor's squad car stolen by Hyde & Fez. At the end of Season 7, Kelso drives Jackie to Chicago after her break-up with Hyde. When Hyde follows her there to propose, he finds Kelso naked, wrapped in a towel, making a comment implying that he and Jackie were about to have sex. Although Kelso frequently makes sexual comments to every female on the show, including Jackie and Donna, Hyde believes the two really were about to engage in sex, and drives off to Las Vegas, effectively ending his relationship with Jackie.
Ashton Kutcher did not renew his contract for the
eighth and final season of the series but he appeared in a recurring guest role in the first four episodes of season 8 in order to bring closure to the character. The series begins with Kelso avoiding Hyde after he catches him about to have sex with Jackie in a motel room. When Hyde finally catches Kelso, he punches him in the face and then decides to resume their friendship. With this storyline resolved and the end of Hyde and Jackie's relationship, Kelso resumes his police work duties. However, when Randy and Fez decide to throw a bachelor party for Hyde after his marriage to a stripper, Kelso is fired due to misuse of police equipment and unprofessional behavior. The Fox Network announced on April 4, 2012, that Ashton Kutcher as well as other cast members of ''That '70s Show'' had signed on to reprise their roles for a special Fox 25th anniversary reunion special. The episode aired on April 22, 2012, as part of a two-hour special. The cast reflected on the show after 100 episodes. In the sequel series ''
That '90s Show'', set in 1995, Kelso and Jackie are shown to be back together and have both a teenage son named Jay and a teenage daughter named Betsy and are about to marry for the third time.
Personality Among Kelso's most famous personality traits are conceit and sheer stupidity, performing a great number of idiocies on a regular daily basis. Despite his stupid nature, he shows moments of shining intellect, demonstrating the ability to do fast mathematical division and fixing Red's Pong machine. During a flashback scene, it is implied that Kelso used to be a bookish, motivated student until Hyde introduced him and Eric to marijuana when they were in junior high. Throughout the series, Kelso has made a large quantity of moronic quotes and performed many dimwitted blunders, and possesses numerous infantile qualities such as enjoying Christmas specials deemed childish by his peers and fussing when something is preventing him from viewing them. It also been hinted Kelso loves dogs. Like the other teenage male central characters of the series, Kelso also possesses an abundance of "horny" personality traits and appears especially fond of the idea of having sexual relations and the willingness to spoil his virginity results in the impregnation of a librarian named Brooke and the birth of a little girl named Betsy toward the end of the series. He fancies himself as quite attractive and capable of winning the affections of women such as Jackie Burkhart, with whom he has shared an on-again/off-again relationship throughout the course of the series. Kelso also likes bands such as
Led Zeppelin,
Foghat,
Deep Purple,
Aerosmith,
Kiss,
Ted Nugent,
Pink Floyd,
AC/DC,
The Rolling Stones,
The Who and
Molly Hatchet. It is revealed in the Halloween special that Kelso is a year older than the other teenagers due to being held back a year in the first grade, which angers Hyde knowing that all along Kelso is legally allowed to purchase beer for the teenagers. It is clear from Jackie and Kelso's relationship that Kelso definitely is not the one wearing the pants in his relationships; he is easily manipulated (Laurie pointed this out once and called him a "tool") and never fulfills his promise of breaking up with his girlfriend, although later it may simply be because he is afraid to break a woman's heart. When he dates Annette in Season 5, he even remarks "It's good to be under someone's thumb again!" with a grin, suggesting he prefers his women to be controlling. After uttering this line, Fez asks him, "What did your mother do to you?" which Kelso answers with a stupid grin. In the Season 2 episode "Kelso's Serenade," he says, "I wish Jackie was still controlling me, I love being on a short leash." Kelso often remarks that he has an entire future planned out for him. He says this several times in the third and fourth season. This was apparently a way to convince others he was mature, but his friends viewed it as boastful and annoying. Kelso's only plan was to coast through his life on his good looks, and when he believes this might not happen, he greatly overreacts. He also has fallen off the water tower every year since Jr. High, a fact either explaining or explained by his idiocy. Kelso is naive and simple-minded compared to his other friends. Also, Fez describes him as being delicate and sensitive. However, as the series progresses, a slight growth and maturity can be seen in his character. It is revealed in the episode "
Over the Hills and Far Away" that his stupidity was a result of being dropped on his head as a kid. This easily upsets him because everyone else had the grace to never mention it.
Family Kelso's family is frequently referred to by other characters as being a large one, despite only one of his siblings, Casey, actually appearing on-screen throughout the show's run. Some episodes portray his household as loud and obnoxious, such as when he opens the door, yelling can be heard. From the characters' dialogue, it can be assumed he is one of six Kelso boys and also has a younger sister, who Hyde implies to be fairly unattractive. In "That 90s Show", Kelso's son Jay mentions that he has an aunt named Lisa. Since his mother is an only child, it is presumed that Lisa is the name of Kelso's sister. In another episode of "That 90s Show", Jay mentions an "Uncle Ron", implying one of Kelso's brothers has this name. One grandmother, mentioned in the episode
Dine and Dash, has, in Kelso's words, "honkin' whiskers." Despite Kelso's protests that his own mom is very beautiful, Jackie insists she too has the same whiskers then calls her "whisker face." Kelso's father, John Kelso, appeared in the episode
Career Day, portrayed by
Francis Guinan. John Kelso's office job as a "Senior Executive Statistical Analysis Technician" is unclear and confusing to Michael, who decides to make it up and say his dad is a farmer. ==Reception==