And You Thought It Would Fail: To say the deck was stacked against the revival upon release would be an understatement due to the original iCarly being one of Nickelodeon's most beloved shows. Some of the concerns included the fact that some of the original cast and crew wouldn't be returning (most notably series creator Dan Schneider and co-stars Jennette McCurdy and Noah Munck), it being exclusive to a relatively new streaming service, and general concerns that it wouldn't be anything more than a shallow nostalgia cash-in with none of the original's charm. Despite all this, the revival was an instant success, with many applauding its transition to a more adult style of humor yet remaining faithful to its origins. High audience numbers led to Paramount+ renewing the series for a second season only a month after it started airing.
Millicent's birth father is dead, but she doesn't seem too shaken up about it. It's implied that her father has been dead for at least a few years, so she's likely had enough time to process it and depending on how old she was when he died, she may have been too young to remember him. Millicent's reluctance to accept Freddie as a father at first may have something to do with her feelings about her biological father's passing.
Harper's cousin Maeve seems quite well-adjusted for someone who's spent the last four years being held captive by pirates, aside from having developed an aversion to action-adventure movies. "iCan Fix It Myself" acknowledges why this is: She admits to Spencer that she faked the kidnapping to evade paparazzi and debt collectors. The rest of their subplot revolves around them trying to keep Harper from finding out.
Ass Pull: In "iRobot Wedding", Nevel's wedding to Prunella is revealed to be a sham in order to trick Carly into marrying him. Then, when Prunella reveals that she really does love Nevel, he immediately forgets about Carly, whom he's been obsessed with for more than a decade, and marries Prunella for real. This is a jarring turn of events to say the least.
Awesome Moments: You have to give Lewbert credit here. In the original series, the guy had nothing going for him: he took horrible care of himself, was stuck in a job he both hated and sucked at, and nobody liked him, not even his own mother. After leaving Bushwell Plaza, the guy forged his own path to attain everything he could ask for, putting himself through law school, opening a successful practice, scoring a huge settlement in a fully justified lawsuit, and even reconciling the only healthy relationship he ever had.
Base-Breaking Character: Harper. Given that she replaced Sam — who is a divisive character herself — as Carly's best friend, this reaction was inevitable. Some like her more than Sam, while others see her as a Replacement Scrappy for Sam. Then there are those who either like or dislike Harper based on her own merits.
Captain Obvious Reveal: Many viewers theorized that Maeve was lying about her kidnapping in "iTake a Girls' Trip" due to her being a bit too well-adjusted following said ordeal. The following episode "iCan Fix it Myself" confirms that this was indeed the case.
Crosses the Line Twice: Considering the show's target demographic, it's more than appropriate. Either way, if you thought the original show did this more than enough times, this one goes even further.
Spencer's reaction when he realizes he's doing the baby bit again?
Freddie vomiting on Alexavier as a result of him being shit-faced drunk from trying to relive his youthful days. Enough said.
Mystic Zagnut having an aneurysm shortly after helping Carly with her bad luck? Tragic and unexpected. Spencer going out of his way to try to hide any evidence of the fact? Okay, that's a chuckle. Spencer actually managing to hide the paramedics from Carly? Priceless.
Epileptic Trees: There's no end of various fans guessing who else could show up in the show, whether they're from the original show, or other Nickelodeon sitcoms. One of the popular options is Brennan Mejia as Brennan Yuberly, as not only has he become a Power Ranger, he's also expressed enthusiasm at the idea.
Ho Yay: There is a one off joke about Paul bringing poppers to the Lewbert bachelor party.
Iron Woobie: Freddie. Sam's treatment of him in the original series aside, he went through two divorces, has split custody of Millicent, a failed start-up, and is currently living with his mother despite pushing 30. Despite this, however, he's still just as chipper as he was before, and not only is Mrs. Benson still supportive (if overly so) of him, but despite her attitude, Millicent also clearly cares about her adopted stepfather, to the point of sabotaging any hookups because she didn't want to see him heartbroken in the fifth episode. His relationships with Spencer and Carly also help, since they're still just as amicable as they were previously, if not even more so.
When the guest cast was announced, some tuned in to see their favorite influencer or social media star, even though most were just a cameo appearance.
And then there are those who just wanted to see some of the main characters return, all grown up. Especially since they can now use swear words, drink alcohol, talk about sex and experience situations that were off-limits in the old show.
Memetic Mutation: The show was surprisingly cancelled before it could get a Season 4, and the final episode ended on a cliffhanger, teasing the reveal of Carly's mom but never showing her. This led to more than one tweet saying that an Asian actress like Sandra Oh or Lucy Liu (see here for an example) was going to play Carly's mom going viral. It's pretty common to joke now that Season 4 would've revealed that Carly is half-Asian. Even though Miranda Cosgrove is of white and remote Mexican descent, as far as the public knows, plenty of people think she looks at least partially East Asian. The lookalike for Carly in "iLook Alike," an episode from the original series, is even played by Malese Jow who is of Chinese, white, and Cherokee heritage.
One-Scene Wonder: Guppy and Chuck each get a brief, yet spectacular scene when they return in "iObject, Lewbert!".
Overshadowed by Controversy: After Jennette McCurdy released her autobiography, I'm Glad My Mom Died, detailing her experience on the original show, iCarly's original run and the revival came to be seen in a more controversial light. However, McCurdy never vocally opposed the revival, she simply declined the opportunity to participate in it.
Millicent in the first three episodes was almost universally disliked due to her sassy attitude towards everyone, her tendency to disobey and manipulate Freddie, and was considered a carbon copy of Megan (humorously, Miranda Cosgrove’s character before iCarly). Later episodes noticeably toned down a lot of her negative behaviors and viewers soon warmed up to her.
Harper was initially hated by some people simply for not being Sam, but she quickly became popular for her hilarious and endearing personality (in addition to being a genuinely supportive friend and roommate to Carly). It also helps that the writers go out of their way to make Harper her own character as much as possible.
The revival addresses many issues with Carly being a Designated Hero in the previous series. Despite being the polar opposite of Sam, Carly can be overly mean at times when dealing with people who wronged her or she doesn't like or manipulating Freddie's feelings for her. Assuming that it was Carly who thought of them, some of the webshow sketches that involves pranking Lewbert and Gibby can be downright abusive at times. Yet, not only Carly is still treated as being in the right, she does not feel guilty for those things. Here, Carly has to face the consequences of her actions and is often called out how bad of a person she can be. In "iObject, Lewbert!", Lewbert sues her for the pranks she pulled on him (with Gibby's abuse even being mentioned by Guppy during his testimony) and Carly ends up losing the case, albeit with a lighter punishment than Lewbert demanded, despite successfully ousting Lewbert for faking his distress. Freddie even acknowledges that they did a lot of messed up things as kids and that they'll probably be getting more lawsuits.
In the previous series, Spencer was treated as a failure for dropping out of law school to be an artist even though many fans felt it was understandable why he wouldn't want to spend the rest of his life in a job he realized he didn't like and it was hypocritical given how often the cast encouraged his artistic talent. The revival shows Spencer being more successful than even most lawyers would be. Also, Freddie does actually bring up a valid point in "iObject, Lewbert!" that him going to law school and dropping out after three days means he essentially took the spot from someone who might have stuck with it.
They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: Although the revival has been well-received and was quickly renewed for a second season, some fans of the original iCarly don't like the different direction that this show takes. Examples include the absence of Dan Schneider's input, no Sam or Gibby (the former especially among Seddieshippers), the adult content, less focus on the web show, the additions of Harper and Millicent and Freddie being a parent in general.
Some fans detested the fact that the start of the revival skims over Carly returning from Italy after the sad farewell in the original show's finale. Though to be fair, she'd been back for several years by the time of the first episode.
A common complaint among fans is that the eponymous iCarly web show is barely featured at all, with most season one episodes after "iFauxpologize" omitting it entirely. In the few episodes where it is shown, it’s only briefly shown not even as a subplot. Actually having to see Carly rebuild her web show from the ground up while having to deal with the many other content creators that have emerged since the show's heyday would've been a very interesting story arc. Although it's not far-fetched to assume that Carly stayed popular & well known enough (and on top of that she became a minor celebrity in European television) that she would quickly build back her fandom on the In-Universe equivalents of Youtube or Twitch.
After Harper and Dutch received a Relationship Upgrade in the season one finale, it is squashed in the subsequent episode. This was notable for being the first same-sex relationship in the franchise and many are not happy that it ended so soon.
Freddie's comment in "iObject Lewbert!" that they're going to face a slew of lawsuits for what they did as kids would've made a good sequel episode or Running Gag of people they wronged, regardless of how much they deserved it, like Wade Collins suing them.
Many were surprised to see Duke Lubberman return in "iM Cursed", given that he hadn't appeared since season one in the original series. Especially since his actor made his name in the Disney Channel sitcom Sonny with a Chance/So Random!, which of course, ended about a decade before this episode. Also the fact that he had lost weight and grown his hair longer made it so some people didn't immediately recognize him.
A few other minor characters from the original iCarly returned in season three episode "iReunited and It Felt Okay", including Rip-Off Rodney (who only appeared in two episodes of the original: "iDon't Want to Fight" and "iGot Detention"), Magic Malika (from "iSpeed Date") and Shane (the guy that Carly and Sam were fighting over in "iSaw Him First"), none of whom are characters most fans would've expected to see again.
Because nothing has been mentioned about the character before note Except for an off-hand comment made by Nevel in the Sam & Cat episode #SuperPsycho, the revelation that Carly and Spencer's mother returning, albeit off-screen, in the third season's finale was quite a curveball, especially because much of the Season's arc was about developing Carly and Freddie's relationship.
Unnecessary Makeover: Freddie's new hairstyle and facial stubble in the first season did not sit well with many fans. Season 2 rectifies this by shaving his stubble and restyling his hair to how it was back in his teen years.
What Do You Mean, It's Not for Kids?: The original series was intended for young children, otherwise it wouldn't have been on Nickelodeon. However, the revival series is meant to appeal to adult audiences who grew up with the show. With the characters now being adults, the show allows for more mild swearing, consumption of alcohol, and more explicit talk about sex, making it more for the older adolescent crowd.
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