Recently BET has been playing A Different World daily, and I for one is truly happy about it. That show was my live action blueprint for college life. Every Thursday, my friends and I would plop down on the couch and watch this great series.
Now, I as look at the old shows, I realized a few things. There's not many shows about college or about black students. There are so few sitcoms and Debbie Allen should direct more TV.
Seriously, there's not a lot of shows focusing on the college years or early 20 year olds. You can say Real World and College Hill does, and I would say "poppycock". Those shows reminds us of the times we might not want to remember.
But what about the shows like A Different World? Are they even relevant these days? I like to think they are. As a teenager, I found myself learning a lot about how to be responsible, goal driven, and complexed watching Denise, Dwayne Wayne, and Whitley. I also had a good idea about college, what I should be doing, and what I shouldn't do (but I did it anyway).
It was also nice to see people of color on a regular basis discussing things like careers, classes, the future, relationships, and major issues like drugs and AIDS. Now these same age people are talking about who's the daddy, how many times you cheated on me, Apple-jeans, baby mamas and list keeps going. Today's youth are influenced by Rock of Love, Flavor of Love, Gossip Girl, The Real World, and Tila Tequlia. Where's the balance? Sure, the TV shouldn't be the teacher or parent, but it still can educate and motivate. I just wish there was more educated, but fun TV shows. I don't need every show to be sexy or thrilling. Just witty and cute, with a bit color every now and then.
1 comment:
I LOVED "A Different World" and never saw it as about black kids in college. Frankly, college kids, to me, are their own population. My own son arrived home for the weekend last night and brought friends and having just read your post, I realize that one of his friends is Hispanic, one is black, one appears to be from back East and another is Asian. Thank God we have a big house. But I listen to them talk and it's about school and girls and professors and movies and some comedian that canceled an appearance at the university....they ARE in a "different world", they are in their own world of growing up. Like the TV show, my son and his friends have differing ethnicities and their skins are various shades of beige, but they're immersed in the "world" of college and I love having them here. (I had a "Whitley" roommate for one semester and I wanted to smother her in her sleep. She kept wanting maid service in our dorm room. I hope she outgrew that snotty behavior.)
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