Neighbours. Everybody needs good neighbours. The thing about good neighbours is that they actually do develop into good friends over time. And in the 1990s, the Australian drama evolved into my closest cultural friend.

This quaint little soap opera, set in the fictional suburb of Erinsborough, was my first introduction to Australian culture. If baseball, pinball machines, and Norman Rockwell paintings defined Americana, then this was pure Australiana. It debuted on the BBC in 1986, airing twice daily at lunchtime and teatime. I still recall going downstairs as a testosterone-ravaged teenager and pleading with my mother to turn it on rather than the news. Despite being enthralled by Scott and Charlene’s romance, secretly, I wished she would leave the smooth-talking, blonde-haired Lothario and come to the UK to marry me. Come to think of it, I’m sure my mother was aware of my intense crush on Kylie Minogue from a young age. (I still do, three decades later.)

Despite being filmed in Australia, the majority of the show’s funding came from Britain, which was also its biggest market. At its peak, it drew close to 20 million viewers. The program shifted to Channel 5 in 2008 after a failed contract negotiation with its production company. On a much smaller network, however, the viewership gradually shrank until it tallied just over one million. It was the worst artistic decision since Toadie decided to get rid of his mullet.

Unfortunately, Channel 5 decided to cancel it in July of last year after 37 years on British television. Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue as the aforementioned Scott and Charlene, returned in the show’s final episode as an act of fan service to say goodbye to Lassiters and the sun-drenched cul-de-sac of Ramsay Street.

For fans of Neighbours, it’s good news. It has risen from the dead, much like Harold Bishop, albeit with a little help from Jeff Bezos, an unlikely source. That’s right, the show has been relaunched on the Amazon Freevee streaming service. Neighbours will be back on our screens as of Monday, September 18. Nevertheless, it might not be the wholesome family-friendly program you recall.

It has been changed for a modern audience, just like every other piece of cultural ephemera. Due to the fact that it is technically no longer constrained by the rules of terrestrial television, Neighbours can now pursue a more ‘adult’ theme. The show will reportedly feature ‘sizzling sex scenes’ between new cast members Mischa Barton and Xavier Molyneux. It seems that the days of Bouncer the Dog dreaming about getting married are over.

Intimacy coordinators are the newest must-have accessories in the entertainment industry, and the show has hired one to film what Molyneux has referred to as ‘hot and heavy scenes’. These highly paid professional ‘sexperts’ were hired to make sure that consent is acknowledged during the intricately choreographed and staged sex scenes in the wake of the #MeToo movement.

Despite portraying small-town life, the show fostered a ton of superstar talent, many of whom went on to become well-known worldwide. Liam Hemsworth, Russell Crowe, Natalie Imbruglia, Holly Valance, and even Barbie herself, Margot Robbie.

For almost four decades and 8,903 episodes, Neighbours was appointment-to-view television. Will it succeed in the on-demand television era? Similar to nostalgia, familiarity is a potent tool for evoking emotion; as such, it might persuade middle-aged viewers to subscribe to Amazon. Only time will tell if that ends up winning in the ratings.

Even though I doubt I’ll watch, I always dread the idea of a classic show getting a reboot. Having said that, I hope Neighbours succeeds in the digital era. I haven’t watched it in years because I no longer need to skive off from University to know what Kylie Minogue is doing. I mean the residents of Ramsay Street.