After a four year wait, Netflix has officially announced new episodes of Arrested Development aiming to debut in 2018.

This is not a trick (or an illusion). This morning Netflix officially announced that Arrested Development had been officially renewed for a fifth season due in 2018. For those unfamiliar, the Emmy winning series follows the lives of the eccentric Bluth family, and after a low-rated but much beloved run on Fox, the series was revived in 2013 by Netflix for a fourth season. And while the signs had been pointing to another season with the Bluth clan, including star Jason Bateman recently signing on officially for the new episodes, this news marks not only the first official confirmation of more Arrested, but also a loose arrival date.

Series creator Mitch Hurwitz offered a tongue and cheek statement on the renewal and the surprising similarities to the current first family: "In talks with Netflix we all felt that that stories about a narcissistic, erratically behaving family in the building business — and their desperate abuses of power — are really underrepresented on TV these days. I am so grateful to them and to 20th TV for making this dream of mine come true in bringing the Bluths, George Sr., Lucille and the kids; Michael, Ivanka, Don Jr., Eric, George-Michael, and who am I forgetting, oh Tiffany. Did I say Tiffany? — back to the glorious stream of life."

Still there is a fair amount of uncertainty about what this new season will look like and whether fans will get on board. This is due to the polarizing reception the fourth season had, with many fans criticizing the season being structured around character specific episodes rather than letting the show's beloved ensemble cast play off each other. This being a result of the busy careers of the cast, the new season may attempt to solve this problem by double casting the main family with younger actors for a prequel component. While there's been specific names mentioned for these younger versions of the Bluths, in season four the show did a similar move casting Seth Rogen and Kristen Wiig as the younger versions of Jeffrey Tambor's George Sr. and Jessica Walter's Lucille.

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Additionally while the series' fans had been fervently waiting for the series to return after the seven years of anticipation, the attitudes of fans have changed since the fourth season. While the series' revival was something of an unprecedented event, since then beloved series coming back from the dead has become status quo, with series like The X-Files, Gilmore Girls, Will & Grace, Twin Peaks, and more following in the footsteps. Without the novelty, the prospect of new episodes may not carry the same excitement as they once would have, especially coming after the mixed reception many of these revived series have faced. Still, perhaps with lower expectations the series will have the leeway to engage with the original offbeat spirit fans fell in love with.

Though we may have far more questions than answers about what this fifth season may look like, given the talent involved and the comedic absurdity they've reached in the past, I'm certain there'll be plenty willing to give it a chance.

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