When The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Died…And It’s Not When You Think
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 พ.ค. 2024
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was a revolutionary ‘90s sitcom. But like most sitcoms things happened along the way that ruined the show for me before it went off the air. And if you’re a fan of the series, it’s not when you think it is.
Time Stamps:
00:00 - This is A Story…
1:23 - The Fresh Prince Arrives
5:47 - Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
8:57 - On Top of the World
11:54 - Breaking The Foundation
13:20 - Trouble in the Neighborhood
15:41 - “Very Special Episodes”
19:23 - Will (Almost) Gets Committed
23:24 - “I, Done”
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the "how come he dont want me" truly was one of the most emotional things i can remember seeing on tv, ever. that scene still gets me.
Forreals bro that made me tear up bad
I have asked that same question.
Same here…my dad who was never in my life ..resurfaced, promised to come to my graduation and never showed or called….I cried like child when I saw that episode…I still get cold chills thinking about it …
@@johnnelson3060very tough
At least Will had uncle Phil who was tough on him but loved him and sent him to private school, treated him like his own
That scene where Carlton and Will are in jail and they start singing Go Down Moses, and their thug cellmate joins in after being silent the whole time never fails to crack me up.
That cellmate was CLASSIC!!!🤣🤣🤣 The way dude would finish singing and go back to mean mugging🤣🤣🤣 BEST COMEDY EVER!!!
"Any time you see a WHITE person in jail, you know they've done something _BAD!"_ 🤣🤣🤣
@@von2300 And then they go to another scene, and when they come back, the thug is in the middle of his rendition of "MacArthur Park." 😂
Carlton running through the studio might be the funniest scene of the series
When he does that dance 2 the Oprah theme music I LMBO everytime I watch that
@@geeskin5750 Oprah theme music? He dances to Tom Jones' "It's not Unusual."
BTW, the stage direction in the script just says "Carlton dances." He based his dance on Courteney Cox and Bruce Springsteen in the video for "Dancing in the Dark."
@@johnanderson9765 season 3, their is an episode when the banks go on the Oprah show. Her theme starts Carlton begins a lil dance. It is so hilarious
Mine was when they were at the church and will was acting just foolish lol or when he voice overing a song with uncle Phil
Lol classic
Although the show started with issues on racism and class. I’m glad the show branched out and took on other topics because as a black person ( I can’t speak for all) I don’t wanna see issues of race on every show. It’s exhausting. I just want to see a funny show for entertainment.
☝🏾 yes
I like people like you that don’t make everything about race it causes more racism
I'm black also and I agree with you. Some people act like we'll forget that racism is a thing for 30 minutes while watching a TV show.
@@sean2382 lol no it doesn’t cause more racism
All lives matter huh?😂😂😂dumbass
While you made extremely valid points, we have to keep in mind, that in real time, in the 90s, it was a different era. Shows weren’t being binge watched the way they are now, so a sitcom didn’t have to have continuity the way shows do today.
Fair point, Home Improvement is another family sitcom that somewhat suffers from binge watching.
Cuzz that sitcom is white
That’s exactly how I look at it. I base it ep by ep. It’s being reviewed like a Netflix drama.
@MrYUNGT92 exactly!! It’s not that deep to me lol. It’s not a show tht follows 1 long story it’s a fun sitcom u can watch any ep at anytime.
You're right. Sitcoms back then hold up because of the quality, but a lot of them weren't made with the intention of having continuity. That's why clip shows were popular back then, because it was the easiest way fans could relive previous moments from the series.
Nickelodeon even had a rule for that back in the day. Shows weren't allowed to have series finales or acknowledge that they were ending. They wanted kids to keep watching the show forever, expecting it to come back one day. Shows would just produce all the episodes they're contracted to and then go off the air, unless they were really popular and become syndicated.
You made some great points with this video. I never liked the season five finale's ending because it invalidated everything that had been leading up to that point. And it was for something that didn't even matter (Will's mother marrying Lisa's father).
Since the show was going to end after season six anyway, having Will married wouldn't have had a negative impact on his character. It would have given him more of a direction. Instead, he spends the last season becoming some annoying manchild that's seen as irresponsible and stupid by everyone around him. In the series finale, they make it a point to mention that everyone is moving on in their lives except for Will. Even Ashley points this out, and Will was one of her best friends in the early seasons. Taking away all of Will's progression in the last season was pointless when he was originally in a position to move on more than anybody.
Well said!
Will and Lisa were a great couple.
Will had a really good position working for Hilary on her talk show. It made no sense that writers would have him turn that down, to just stay in L.A. with Jazz!! The whole point of Hilary moving to New York was because her show had been picked up nationally, so Will would've been making a boat load of money and possibly would have gotten other opportunities.
Took the words right out of my mouth
Still one of the worst moments in my tv watching history. You throw away all the stuff Will and Lisa went through for what? That was a crazy way to get her off the show lol
Good Times, Family Matters, and A Different World did the same thing like Fresh Prince of Belair with Wills mom, Vy, and Lisa dad, Fred. On Good Times, at the end of the 4th season, although it wasn't shown, but it was established that Carl and Florida had gotten married and moved to Arizona for Carl's health issues, and both were absent throughout the 5th season. When Florida returned during the 6th season, she mentioned Carl once, and after then, he wasn't mentioned or seen again. On Family Matters, Mother Winslow and Fletcher got married during the 4th season. Fletcher was seen a few more seasons after that and he mysteriously disappeared with Mother Winslow ever hardly mentioning him when she visits. On A Different World, Colonel Taylor and Jaleesa were married during season 5, and at the end of season 5, they had a baby, but in the beginning of season 6, Jaleesa and the baby disappeared along with Colonel Taylor's son, Terrance and they weren't mentioned by him again.
They only wanted to keep black people down who were watching. Ruining the fantasy.
This is called "Chuck Cunningham syndrome". In HAPPY DAYS, The Cunninghams originally had 3 children. Joanie, Richie, and Chuck. Chuck was the oldest. Then one season, maybe it was the first, Chuck went up the stairs of the Cunningham home...and never came back down, again. The Cunninghams would never acknowledge his existence after that season. He just vanished.
Another Family Matters example is when Harriet's sister, played by Telma Hopkins, and her son just disappeared from the show one season. No one mentions them again.
@@adrianchannelle8651 But in Family Matters, Richie, Rachel's son, didn't disappear. He was there most of the series up until the Christmas episode of season 9 entitled "Deck The Mall". That was the last appearance of him, Aunt Rachel, Mother Winslow, and the original Harriette. JudyAnn Elder took over the role of Harriette for the rest of the series.
@@josephclegg3562 Really? I did not watch regularly. I thought the character disappeared.
@@josephclegg3562 Judy disappeared
For me, it had three phases to its death: 1.) The set change, 2.) Changing Aunt Viv's actress, and lastly 3.) When Nicki was born and immediately grew up. The comedic element just died a bit more with each phase.
EDIT: I do not have a problem with the set change itself; all I'm saying is that once it happens, the show begins to get less funny to me. I know the other two I said were kind of unavoidable, and the producers did what they could, but it still didn't make the show any better.
You’re right, so many characters disappeared with no explanation. I actually forgot about Nicky😅, that’s how forgettable he is to me
i was fine with the set change
@@Ishitonyou666 Agreed. I often forget he was on the show to being with. The only reason he was there was because Janet Hubert got pregnant.
@@lefez9015 I didn’t know that, I just know Cousin Nicky would disappear in a few shows then come back and I was like “oh I forgot you existed”!😅
THANK YOU! 👍🏻
One thing I wish they would have kept in was Will playing basketball. He was a star player, and he was even looking to be scouted and recruited when he had a match-up against Marcus Stokes (played by Allen Payne). Why couldn't they have kept him hooping when he went to ULA?
Good question
You got a point.. that's one character development they should have kept in..
@@therealityofitall4819 there is no explanation
Maybe to Will's character, B-ball was just something he did as a kid, not something he would do when he grew up. There was even an episode in season 2 that shows Will not wanting eventually to pursue this.
@@lexkanyima2195 You're right.. not showing or least telling the audience that he doesn't have it in him to play basketball anymore so he decided to not pursue it.. That's a plot hole..
James had such a better connection on screen with the first actress that played Vivian, I don't think anyone liked seeing her replaced.
Will's GF in the Earthquake episode is played by Tisha Campbell who would go on to play Gina in Martin (also played Jay in My Wife and Kids). I know she is not too well-known and the show is not acknowledged much outside of the Black community unlike Fresh Prince (only a few black sitcoms have "crossed over") so I get why it might've been overlooked but it should be noted.
I JUST said the same thing. That's a very telling symptom of the marginalization of black culture
🤨 4real, Tisha has literally been in almost everything B4 + After MARTIN. She still gets roles now. Same with Tichina Arnold whom has been with Tisha in Everybody Hates Chris + Little Shop of Horrors, outside of Martin.
She is actually really well known in all communities. 💯
She was also in House Party
What? Bro everybody knows Tisha Campbell..
I never looked at any episodes from this show this critically. They were always great for me.
Same Here💯
Say what you want, the Fresh Prince of Bel Air was a pretty good sitcom!
I second that emotion. I still enjoy the show whenever I manage to catch an episode. ❤
Same here thought every season was awesome.
@@Jeremy79807 season 6 is kind of weak.
Queen Latifah also played Hillary’s horrible boss!
yeah, the last episode of season 1
@@RGF91 I remember that, I was surprised the video didn't specifically state that Queen Latifah played two roles.
"Hickory! Hey Hickory!"
I dont kno why when she was wills love interest for an episode they made it seem like she was so big, she wasnt fat , if she was fat id call her fat, she was proper thick
"Papa's got a brand new excuse" killed me.. even today! that whole monologue brings me to tears
Great emotional episode 👍
Why doesn't he want me man
Everytime 😢
James Avery was Shredder on tmnt the cartoon
@@teen_laqueefa can’t believe this new year (2023) marks 10 years since he passed away
Can we talk about how empowering Aunt Vivian is in Season 1 only for the writers/producers to make her a laughing joke in Seasons 2-3?
Then they seemed to just make her a housewife when Daphne Maxwell-Reid took the role.
You know the industry doesn’t want you to inform the masses and brew them with knowledge concerning the world, so it eventually gets dumbed down.
@@RellyPendergrass exactly!
@J Ant We were talking about one character specifically that was presented as a strong black educated woman that warranted those issues until they watered her character down and completely changed it. I wasn’t talking about the sitcom as a whole. I’m talking about how Vivian’s character toned down and changed completely.
Janet Hubert was such a wonderful and no-nonsense Vivian, to the point where she was almost my favorite character… until Ms. Hubert was replaced with Daphne Reid and everything that was charming about Vivian completely went away.
Anybody remember the one where Will boxes a female boxer and gets whooped? Will was so hilarious in that scene😂😂😂
The woman that played The boxer in that episode died a couple years ago I believe
@@ghariiscool I'm saddened to have read that. She was a beautiful woman.
Then they ended up being something after he returns to stand up to her, but that didn't go any further than the end of the episode.
The female boxer on the Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Was she a real boxer?
@@jaycomplexkidrandle1889 No.
My understanding was that the show was supposed to end after season 4, with the Banks and Will visiting Philadelphia, the Banks return to Bel-Air and Will telling Phil he wasn’t returning.
Will Smith only took the job to payoff his debts, but in 1994 it was announced that 1995-1996 would be the last so the storylines were usually single episodes and not season long story arcs.
Tyra Banks left the show so the character was dropped.
Why did she leave the show? I always wondered about that, and what could've been between Will and Jackie.
@@jaycomplexkidrandle1889 As Gary Collins explains above, it was 1993 and she believed that Season 4 would be the final season of _The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air._ She wanted to capitalize on audition offers she had begun receiving from feature film casting agents as a result of her work on the show. Director John Singleton's _Higher Learning_ project had completed development, was green lit, and moved into pre-production as Season 4 began airing in September of 1993. Banks was cast in the role of *Deja* and the film went into production in 1994. It premiered in theaters in early January of 1995.
@oubrioko I don't think he elaborated on why Tyra left but just on when she left. But I do appreciate you elaborating on why she left. You covered it well enough so that he wouldn't have to.
@@jaycomplexkidrandle1889 Was just piggybacking on what he said about Season 4 having been widely rumored to be the final season. Tyra opted to move on once she had satisfied her contractual episodic commitment.
@@oubrioko but did Tyra is aware that it was going to end at that time ?
For me, it ended when they replaced Aunt Viv. The other episodes weren't the same at all.
For me at least, I stopped caring about this show halfway through Season 3.
As a one of the millions of sons of single mothers, that Will and his father's episode still makes me cry to this day...
I always felt that the first three seasons were better than the last three, even though I didn't hate the last three. And also, Will Smith and Nia Long actually were in the movie "Made in America" together as well.
I never understood why they didn't ever show Jewel after Jazz and her got married.
@@josephclegg3562 Yeah, I don't get that either. Strange.
And crazy. Before she was Lisa she played another character in like season 2. The episode with queen latifah. The 2nd one. Where her & will were hanging out & nia was Wills prom date but he wasn't feeling her lol
@@BxWhatup Yeah, I know.
I totally agree the first 3 seasons were better. After they changed the first Aunt Viv the show went downhill.
As many memorable episodes this show had, “Bullets over Bel-Air” is my personal favorite mainly because of how deep it went with Carlton’s realization that the real world is harsh beyond the gates of the community he grew up in, also I always laugh at the scene when Carlton flips the tray with Will’s food out of frustration and Will just looked like “I was gonna eat that” 😂 I’ll always remember watching that episode at 9am on BET during a school break on a rainy morning while making some coffee 😌
Hey! I was about to eat that, man!
@@aaroncreagh4402 that part made me bust out laughing because the tone was so serious until he said that 😂
we needed that joke to cut the tension of the entire theme of Will getting shot and then finding the gun on Carlton and confronting him they were not downplaying it
LOL literally just finished watching this episode and dying over him flipping the tray
I loved that episode!
I agree. They should have kept Lisa & Will through season 6 and end the series with the family moving them getting married
I agree, I thought that’s what happened lol
I agree..
But it was a missed opportunity
I'm going to say that jefferey never had any resentment, maybe a family like disappointmentat times but never disdain or long lasting issues. He keot himself professional and kept the line between master and employer
. The amount of love and caring Jeffery showed the family made him part of it.
When he say goodbye and used "will" instead of "master". Tear kerning.
Geoffrey used the sarcasm as a way of dealing with the fact that he had to work for these snobbish uncle fuckers.
@sha11235 🤣🤣🤣🤣wow you really are trying to make it seem Jeffery hated them which is very appre t he loved and cared for them. You really need to work on those mental issues bud
The butler's name was spelled Geoffrey that's why Will would refer him as "G" to me it was like a wink to our community.
@@100lamadrina8 I knew I was getting something wrong. And he's British so that makes sense.
Love it!
I didn't think he resented the family. But they did show at times that he resented his job.
I cant get thru "how come he don't want me" without crying- every single time
Every. Single. Time.
Every👏🏼Single👏🏼Time👏🏼 (typing this with tears in my eyes from just watching it)
Will Smith should've done a new rap intro for Seasons 5 and 6, since he was sent back to Bel-Air by an NBC exec and no longer had issues with the dude in Philly.
That would've been interesting
You do have a point..
How they gonna do that ?
"How come he don't want me?"
That line lives rent free in my head and I ask of that of every senseless rejection I have received.
First two seasons are UNMATCHED and both are excellent in their own unique ways.
I never took any of the bait and switch storylines serious, it was always pure comedy in my eyes 😂
The first three seasons of this show were literally can't miss...
They were great
The fourth season was decent to good but not as funny as the first three but it was still good
The fifth season had some really really dry moments but it had some good moments as well
The 6th season was a nice bounce back from the 5th season
Season 4 seems like the darkest season to me
@@sparksup327 Season 4 was the WORST season of the show and the creative writing took a major decline. Seasons 5-6 saw an uprise but not enough to come close to Seasons 1-2.
First 3 if you look back was The Fresh Prince and the Final 3 was Will Smith.
He kinda stopped being the wacky colorful, Jordan wearing FP and even the stylization changed the early 90s thematic influence (after school special and good clean 90s fun type of stuff) changes and 4-6, the tone becomes more serious and “Deadpooly” at the same time
Season 5 and 6 has some of the best surreal, wall breaking humor in the show and then I feel like in the 6th season, they sort of gave up and became cartoony and screamed for jokes and I loved it all lol
@@spms52 Yeah not to mention this season had too much filler and underwhelming plots.
Goes to show how great The Fresh Prince of Bel Air was.. it was competing with itself and not other shows that were going on at the same time like Family Matters, Full House, etc.
Great breakdown. They did do a bait and switch often in the series. I especially don't like when a character is just erased from a series. Where was Vi's husband? John Amos just doesn't have luck with TV wives.
Yeah, honestly not sure why they just got rid of the Lisa character after season 5.
What gets me...Carlton studied hard and sacrificed everything in hopes of getting into Princeton....just to go to the same college as Will.
Status quo maintenance in terms of Will's and Carlton's brotherhood. At least there were gems to be found, most notably Season 4's "Blood is Thicker Than Mud" and Season 5's "Bullets Over Bel-Air."
Fresh Prince of Bel-Air show was a 90s Schizophrenic Chameleon which kind of reflects the shows it was inspired by and competing with at the time.
-Slick teen antics type show
Like Saved by the Bell/Ferris Bueller, Full House, Silver Spoons, Different Strokes, Family Ties
-social issues/after school special/Black empowerment
Cosby Show, Different World, Living Single, Martin, Family Matters
-Surreal and Wacky Humor along with sometimes no lessons/no hugs
Seinfeld,In Living Color, Martin, Married with Children
I feel like in this way the show bounced it’s identity around due to it’s inspirations and competition.
It wanted to address social issues but also not take it self seriously at all. All a part of the surreal 90s atmosphere
I always thought that the reason the show ended was because Will didn’t wanna do it anymore. He was becoming a huge movie star and wanted to move on from Fresh Prince
And Will knew he want to do something big
I understand your point about the missteps and lack of commitment to storylines but almost all of them made it possible for will to be in situations later in the show that were iconic.
It had a reason, sitcoms reach a high and low point.
Another thing to point out is how Carlton was more sarcastic and witty in early seasons but the later seasons make him more eccentric and exaggerated
That’s a good point. He did become a clown as the show went on.
Yeah they kind of turned him into a buffoonish character.
The show started out with a one note "fish out of water" theme where all the characters were stereotypes. They had to change in order for it to survive. For example, Uncle Phil loosens up a bit as the show goes on, learns to appreciate the man his nephew becomes, and isn't ALWAYS wearing a suit like in Season 1, Hillary goes from being a stereotypical valley girl to showing that she has a softer side and actually does care about people, Ashley becomes a teenager with all the personality changes that come with adolescence, and Geoffrey gets a sense of humor instead being the straight man in his bits all the time.
That very well may be but it doesn’t mean it was all for the better. The early seasons hold up a tad more than the later ones. Also Funny how you didn’t mention Aunt Viv as she goes from being just as empowering as Uncle Phil to becoming softer (but then that was a result of the recast) Hilary also while shallow in the early seasons got more goofy later on. Flanderization played a massive part in Fresh Prince.
@@paulgilbert5278 I don't know if you'd call any particular era "better" than the other, but if they were doing Season 1 episodes in Season 6, the show would not be held in the same reverence. It definitely evolved, as most successful shows do.
I loved the dad episode. I bawled my eyes out when will did the monologs. Having very close relationship with my father, him being my best man at my wedding and was there before my mother right after my son was born, disappeared for years due to lies created by my stepmother. This effectively ostracized them from all sides of the family. When I saw this, I lost it. All those emotions lined up with this episode.
My favorite episode was the one where Will was drafted to drive Ashley to her violin lesson. At the end it's revealed that she only took violin lessons to please her father. Same thing with the drums to please Will. I took violin lessons as a child but unlike Ashley I wanted to for myself. And I loved the violin!
Do you still practice?
@@mat7083 To be honest it's been a long time since I practiced! After I graduated I only played it as a hobby.
Love that one! One of the best actually.
First three seasons of the Fresh Prince are great, but it starts going downhill a bit when you get to Season 4, some episodes are tolerable but you can definitely notice the change too.
Season 3 could be in this but the way they treated Vivian's character in Season 3 is terrible. She was a top star in Season 1.
...Its Not UNUSUALLLLLL
Season 4 was supposed to be the final season of the show but it got six seasons as fans rioted when they learned the show was gonna end with Season 4.
I wished the Smith sisters were in more episodes. Aunt Helen (Jennifer Lewis) was my favorite!
Yess, I loved them and how they interacted with each other
She play's Dre's mom on Black-ish with Laurence Fishburne as the dad
@@aleccampbell7707 she was great in that show as well!
I love aunt Helen's feistiness!
"Who'd you think you were you bringing him home to? Stevie wonder?"
Me: 😂😂😂😂😂😂
I love all of them! They had great chemistry together..
Loved a college episode where Will drops a class as he fears its difficulty, even though he thinks the teacher is amazing and Phil talks some sense into him. That some of the best things in life are hard and running from the hard things will have a cost. In this case, he could lose out on a learning experience from someone that might become a mentor. In the future, things could get even worse. So he returns to the class but must complete it while he will receive no college credit for doing so due to his having dropped it in the 1st place.
Funny thing: The actor who played Prof. Mansfield would also play Hillary's producer.
The Fresh Prince of Bel Air is one of my favorite TV shows of all time, a show I grew up on in its original run and in syndication. The show is a serious classic. To me, this show never died. It just went down in quality in two periods: when Janet Hubert-Whiten (the original Aunt Viv) got fired after the 1992-1993 season (Season 3) and after Season 4. Granted the show was still a top-notch comedy in its entire run in my opinion, but something was missing or lacking in Seasons 5 and 6 which made the show a runaway success in Seasons 1 through 4.
Couldn't agree more. Will and Lisa's break up killed the show for me and I struggled to watch any of the season six episodes because of it
I hated that so much. It mad no sense.
That’s life tho lol it really be like that sometimes
Dope review. Not sure if you know, but the show was actually cancelled after season 4. The show technically ended with him moving back to Philly. They eventually brought the show back for a season 5 and used that NBC employee skit as a way to show that they messed up and continue the story.
I see how it can be abrupt if you don’t have that context in mind. I remembered being UPSET when I heard that was the series finally growing up.
How it was going to be cancelled ?
@@lexkanyima2195 It was officially canceled due to a decline in ratings after season 4. That's why they had him moving back to Philly. But fans were upset and let NBC hear about it, so they brought it back for two additional seasons.
@@eric_auzenne and also at that time Will was shooting Bad Boys, so it was not sure
Wow what a flash in the past. This show really had a big impact on me growing up. Haven’t seen a show like it since but I know Family Matters also had a huge impact too!
I remember getting the first season of "Fresh Prince" on DVD for my 13th birthday, and it came with another DVD that had an episode of both "Head of the Class" and the first episode of "Family Matters" on it. Now I have the complete series of both "Fresh Prince" and "Family Matters" on DVD.
Family Matters & Fresh Prince are my 2 Favorite sitcoms of AllTime.
@@gabrielalele8603 The Cosby Show and Family Matters are my top 2. Fresh Prince is in the top 5 for sure, probably 3rd.
Can’t leave out Martin
Just to make one point
I remember Vy being apprehensive about Janice marrying the white guy because she was worried about how their marriage would be accepted in society and what sort of impact negatively society would have on them or their children by people who are too ignorant to see the beauty in their marriage.. it wasn't so much that she herself had disdain for Janice marrying a white man
Great video just letting you know the reason why the end of the season's off like that and they started it so abruptly rapidly was because every season after the 3rd season season the show was gonna get canceled and so or something but a fan's protesters are bringing the show back into a will said that the 6 was gonna be this last
Apparently, the show was never in danger of getting cancelled. Halfway through season five (around the holidays), Will sat everyone down and told them he wanted to end the show after season six. He did that because if everyone got an advance warning, they would be able to get their affairs in order and make sure they were set up for the future once the show ended. Will was also convinced by John Amos not to stick around too long, and Will himself believed that the show jumped the shark with "Bullets over Bel-Air."
@@frostyfreezyfreeze54 ohhh wow it seemed like season four was like a final season or not kinda feel....I know about the John Amos convo too
When he decided to ' stay ' in Philly that was the series finale until the fans wrote NBC and it was renewed
Loved this show when I was younger, especially when they hit those serious notes. The one that really hit hard to me was when Will got shot and Carlton then ended up getting a gun. With how young I was, I never did question things like the Aunt Viv recasting and just kept enjoying things even with all the reruns during Nick at Nite.
I didn’t like that they dumbed down the whole cast outside of Wills. And recasting ain’t viv. It lost its balance
The Aunt Viv change was the biggest thing that killed the joy of the show. Original Viv was funny and charismatic.... the show had a real family comedy dynamic which was lost when she was changed.
Facts big facts i aint like thzt neather
If you haven't done it yet, The Cosby Show would be cool. I personally think that the Cosby Show died when Olivia came on. The other kids started to appear less and there was too much focus on her.
I have thought about doing that show. Good to know there’s interest
No I think when Sandra and Elvin had them Twins Winnie and Nelson and Them kids wasn't cute no more they was getting older and Olivia then Pam Claire cousin
I'm not sure of a particular moment where the show died, and that might be because this is my all-time favorite show but there are episodes that I just flat out don't like. Most of them are episodes that don't focus on the Huxtables, like the one with Sammy Davis Jr. for instance.
@@FunFactFilms No actually The Cosby Show died when The Simpsons moved to Thursday Nights LOL! This was an intential move by FOX at the time!🤔🙄🤨📺
Yeah The Simpsons took down the Cosby show that's why Olivia was added ( I believe ) to bring in a younger audience
I enjoyed your take. I still think the show died when Vivian was replaced. During the first 3 seasons, I felt like the character of Vivian was the one who held the family together. From seasons 4-6, she was too soft and almost a secondary character.
Wow good job! As many times as I have seen the Fresh Prince, I didn't realize a lot of the things you pointed out. I look at the series a lot different now
What a wonderful review of the Fresh Prince. Brings back memories. This show will live on forever through videos like this.
Great show - I personally think it should've ended at the end of Season 4, perhaps with this Season being a little longer because it's a series finale season. The first 3 seasons were really good and so was the 4th, however, it felt like the CHARACTER of Aunt Viv (this is not to shade the second Aunt Viv or the first) changed way too much, and too many weird things started happening in the show (seances, Playboy photoshoots etc.).. Season 5 was a filler and Season 6 was losing the plot, the best thing they did between the end of S5 and then was the last episode of S6. Respectfully.
Right, and we all know OG Aunt Viv would never allow that Playboy mess. Second Aunt Viv was very passive.
But season 5 would have been memorabel how they will end the show.
@@Tha90sKid she would be involved
The plan was for the show to end with Season 4 but when fans learned of this, they rioted and Will had no choice but to renew the show for two more seasons.
@@Tha90sKidIt's safe to say that Denise Maxwell Reid Vivian is the worst character in the second half of the show.
This was one of those shows I used to put in the background because I would always leave a TV running after coming home from school or any job I had. The same thing can be said for Cheers and other shows of that nature between 1985 and 2005. It was customary for me to leave a TV running in the background on a channel playing sitcoms or dramas.
José Martín Mesa González 🇮🇨
Fresh prince of bel air is truly a masterpiece. It has everything you want in a sitcom. It lifts your spirits up, makes you cry, makes you thrive for success. All the rehash scenes to me are genuine and I don't want it done any other way.
theres 2 episodes that influenced my life forever i agree
😂👌 well said , my thoughts exactly 👍
That’s why Martin was a way better show than The Fresh Prince💯
What ?
I love them both. I really do. I think this show did better with characters and stories though. "Martin" was mostly about jokes, but that's okay though. It worked.
I agree with the no follow ups in major plot points but I enjoyed the shows ability to be diverse and be able to treat racial issues with seriousness and ability to show that it doesn’t always have to turn to radicalism or it doesn’t have to be so taboo to joke about. For me that’s props to the writers to not become too boxed in.
To this day, I hated how they handled Will and Lisa’s relationship in the end. I felt that they should’ve pulled the trigger on them getting married as it would’ve showed that he was ready for a commitment and left his womanizing ways. Adding Nia Long to the principal cast would’ve given the show a new dynamic seeing how she fit in well with the cast and helped developed Will’s character into a responsible, married man. Separating Will and Lisa negated all the character development for their relationship and it also made Vy and Fred into total hypocrites as they they kept lecturing Will and Lisa for being impulsive and rushing into marriage only for them to do that exact same thing. It was a total cop out way to end things and the show went back to the status quo of Will chasing women and Vy being single.
I love this take on The Fresh Prince. Your analysis is so full and rich
Another Psyche you missed. There was an episode in which Will's mom was going to marry a man in who has a daughter played by Raven Symone. They get married and are never seen or mentioned again.
That’s true! Though it was mentioned again later on, but I get what you mean. It was a main storyline once and never again.
Actually he was mentioned in a later episode at one point
Will's mom comes home to visit and tells everyone that she broke up with Robert
@@FunFactFilms Thanks. It was an interesting video
Bringing in Nia long is when the show slowly was beginning of the end especially when they got engaged. Should be last episode type thing. Original Aunt Viv leaving didn't help either
To me, it died when they added Nicky. Thats when u know a show is done..Adding a unnecessary new kid. The only show where that worked was the cosby show, with Raven added
Very true, They did that same s@@t in Family Ties, Growing Pains, Roseanne, Family Matters and so many others. It really is the jumping the shark moment for most shows.
@@BishopWalters12 the annoying kid added on The Brady Bunch
No it died when aunt viv left ok
I won't even lie, I actually forgot about Nicky for a little bit.
@@wingchundragon Oh yikes, Cousin Oliver on The Brady Bunch was super annoying.
SO the funny thing about back then, someone already pointed out the shows were episodic in nature and never really related, but also I would like to add that we loved seeing characters back then. It didn't really have to join together or make sense, we got the new episode once a week and as long as we got to see our favorite shows/actors, we were happy. It didn't have to ever have an over arching plot line that tied everything together.
I love that show! It’s the funniest sitcom I ever watched as a kid! If you love Will Smith, you should make a video of Men in Black, Independence Day, Shark Tale, or why you think Suicide Squad is a bad movie and how it became a box office success.
Honestly the show started going downhill interms of story is when vivian was replaced for personal reasons by the other one. Not to say i stopped watching the show it was still good but in terms of character development it just wasnt the same.
Vivian character for example seemed less strong willed than the og Vivian. Like that episode where Phil took some higher politic title for a job without consulting with her she instead of having it out and tryna see things his way or make her valid points just leaves the house to stay with one of her sisters (I can't remember which one could of been wills mom or her other 2). The og Vivian like I said would have definitely had it out with phil that way they can work out the problem, cause her replacement just leaving the house made her look slightly weak.
The second was Ashley character development. At the start of the show she was a bright and smart girl and you could tell she's more of like a girl who would either follow every rules the parents say and live off the wealth of find her passion in something else, and she eventually decides to drop out of be lair academy to attend to public school. Now there's nothing wrong with that at all but just becomes less motivated and becomes somewhat dim witted at times. To me its like she drops all of her redeeming and great qualities and decides to somewhat just want to blow through the wind and not strive to give her life more meaning.
I may be reaching with the Ashley take a lil bit but thats just how I personally feel about these developments
Personally, I like Daphne Maxwell Reid as Vivian #2, although I do have the same gripes as you do about her. In the case of Ashley, I guess I got a little annoyed with her sometimes, because she kind of just turned into the typical teenage girl and there was nothing really special about that that you hadn't seen on a dozen other shows. Fun fact : Daphne Maxwell Reid is the wife of actor Tim Reid from "Sister, Sister" and "WKRP in Cincinnati".
Yeah I agree with both parts of your comment .
@J Ant so how am I wrong I'm saying the story had kinda declined, but other than that the show was and is still amazingly funny. If you disagreed with my reasoning for why the character developments weren't so good later on then ok
The show went down when janet Hubert Was fired
No it didn't
@@MightMouse2174 yes it did
100% true. Janet Hubert portrayed Aunt Viv much better.
The episodes were better in the first 3 seasons than the last 3.
@J Ant actually they were.
Do 'The Nanny' next. While i don't remember every episode, i felt like during the last few seasons, CC and Niles the Butler carried the show
Great video. Looking back there were some puzzling aspects of the show. I was like 10 when the show first aired and for some reason I always remember the serious message episodes. But then the creators would make a mockery out of the seriousness by doing stupid storylines like the NBC executive kidnapping Will. But as the show progressed even I recognised the duplication of themes throughout the series. But ultimately I still remember the serious message shows up to this day. Also, the series problem went on a season or 2 too long.
Season too long ?
Fresh Prince... Saturday morning 🌄 eating Cereal. My parents working so we got the house to ourselves until 4:30 PM.
*We felt so free as kids* ✊🏽
i do agree on the failure to follow through and it was very noticeable when i went on a rewatch binge streak. the best moments of fpba was definitely those moments that tackled serious issues. this difference of follow thru was so noticeable cause i re binged friends too during that time and friends did a much smoother job following its general plot
According to IMDb: Nbc actually was going to end the series after season 4. But then fans of the show started sending letters demanding that they keep doing the show. So that’s when season 5 and season 6 came.
Back then, we honestly didn't notice most of your points. We were just there lol. Aunt Viv was the only big difference to most ppl. Basically, continuity wasn't at the forefront of peoples minds when it came to this show in particular. We just knew that after a long day of school you could flip to NBC at 8pm and catch some laughs, or more surprisingly..a lesson.
I used to feel the exact same way! When you are young, you watch a show and if you like it, you ignore most of the mistakes. In the 90s, you didn't have DVDs or streaming and there surely was no necessity to write essays about flaws on popular sitcoms (if you were not a professional writer) because the internet didn't really exist. All you wanted to do is come home from school and watch something entertaining.
I think if you reach a certain age or level of understanding or if you get old and still have time for and interest in watching stuff from your younger days, you will notice a lot of things if you are used to question at least a little bit what you are watching.
The scene with the gun. Carlton drops it at the foot of the bed, between Will's feet. That is horrible gun safety control (I just had to say that); and it occurs in a hospital. They will call the police. It's a good scene, written horribly in the context of realism.
Lol this was the 90s when everything wasnt do detailed
Fun fact film You made valid point. And i felt the same way as you especially with the lack of commitment
My favorite episode of fresh Prince Bel Air had to be that she ain’t a heavy episode with Queen Latifah. I don’t think Will would’ve ultimately stayed with her but I would’ve liked to see her in a couple of more episodes. As
that character
I agree but rumor has it Queen Latifah went on to have her own sitcom Living Single and star in several movies so....
I loved this show. IMO there wasn't a point where it jumped the shark, at least not for me. I still love the show.
They should have definitely followed through with Lisa and Will's marriage and then explored that dynamic in season 6. Could have been a story to whether they would follow Hiliary's show to NY for Will's job or stay in LA cause Lisa didnt want to move east. Could have had them living in the pool house while their house got built, if they wanted to keep the family under 1 roof for the final season, they could have taken it to a bunch of different places that would have continued every one's progression and growth and come to the same conclusion with everyone moving out at the end going their different ways in life. Even have Lisa reveal shes pregnant at the end and have Will say J.Cole's line before J. Cole. lol
I have no foul intentions when explaining this: Vivian Banks in the dancing episode was the moment I realized pants could become tents, but the way she looked in that pink leotard..........oh man oh man she was one of the crushes a middle school kid and let's just say I recorded the episode and rewatched after dark.
My mom would ask me the next day of why I always watched that show....... "It makes me stay up" I said. 🤣🤣
@Fun Fact Films. I have to say... THIS WAS GOOD! I really did not expect to be sitting here doing my hair, to be soooo into this, and actually watched the whole video. The build up and your reveal at the exact moment the show ended for you was really great and understandable. I am thoroughly impressed so I liked and subscribed. Keep up the great work! 😘🥰🤗 Side bar.... the show lost it's momentum for me after Aunt Viv. was re-casted and ended when the NBC executives threw Will in the back of the van lol.
Thank you so much for those compliments!
Season 4 was very confusing
The first season was just so good we all forgot how bad some of the other episodes/seasons were.
The show never really got bad. But then it was never amazing to start with. It was a solid show thruout it's entire run IMO and obviously launched the career of a major movie star. It wasn't like happy days where the show morphed into a completely different(and much worse) show.
The biggest departure was it moved away from the constant hip hop themes of the first season into a more generic sitcom.
I love when Ashley started her actually singing career on the tv show. That song she was singing was fire.
I always liked Season 4 with the college setting, especially the cafe where Will and Carlton worked. It was a big part of growing up.
I don't think the show really died. I just think you wanted the show to be more committed to story lines like other sitcoms did. But those same things you don't like made the show better to a ton of different people.
I completely agree with all your points in this video but I still enjoy the show regardless. I treat it now as for "episodic" viewing now more than for storyline since there were so many inconsistencies. Will and Lisa not getting married was also the big sore point for me as well. I think if they got married and lived in the poolhouse, I think it would have been an interesting new dynamic
I’m shocked you didn’t mention the worst episode of all which is when Will lives in some trailer park for an entire episode. Even as a kid that was confusing and made you forget what show you were watching.
I never noticed all of the false start plots points. For me the show ended when the plots got silly and storylines were just there for laughs, for example the seance episode. One of my favorite episodes is the Bel Biv Devoe episode when Phil and Vivian go to a hotel and Will shoots a music video at the house.
Another plot point that was thrown away was Jazz and Hillary hooking up. They made out once at the end of an episode and it was a funny unexpected moment but it was for nothing because Hillary didn’t even go back to being disgusted by Jazz, she barely interacted with him throughout the series after that.
Ashley’s singing career was another unexpected plot introduction that was abandoned and frankly thrown together. Will a womanizing basketball player is suddenly a record label executive sneaking her tape onto the radio? The show was flailing around all over the place in those last 3 seasons. You could actually do a part 2 to this video because there are so more blubs in the show that make you go, “what was the point of that?”
An awesome spinoff series would have been around Aunt Viv. Moving from Philly, meeting Phil falling in love, adjusting to LA affluent life and building their family. Having her introduce Phil to her family back home and seeing them navigate the world while they grow to the family we know and love would be interesting, very interesting.
Fresh Prince still stands up today
I do respect the show with pointing out the flaws in black culture and racism from the other side. Hollywood today would just want to lecture white people and put agendas above comedy.
Really enjoyed your death of home improvement video, best of luck! Tons of content for you to explore and examine in the future
I feel The Fresh Prince was more about the laugh first than the drama. All were great, but even though they would have these big plot holes (like staying in Philly). To me, just to be literally pulled from Philly by NBC to go back to BelAir, was really funny. Sure, seems lazy, but I liked that a lot.
Another thing that was funny was when they switched Aunt Viv’s, and when Nicki goes from baby to 4-5 years old, I loved how Jazz points out the obvious. Well done
Still one of my favourite sitcoms ever
Another fun fact: Noah was played by Shavar Ross...AKA Dudley from Dif'frent Strokes.
And he was Weasel on Family Matters.
I knew that he was Weasel on "Family Matters" but I totally forgot that he was on "Diff'rent Strokes".
I met him.. he is a really nice guy
@@ghariiscool Cool
I agree, the wedding ending was trash. I always thought the the end of the series was when baby Nicki ( the big head kid) was introduced. It didn't fall off because of him ( eventhough most of his scenes are cringeworthy) , but anytime im flipping through channels and see a rerun playing and see him on screen I know it's a trash episode.
That Dougie episode was the worst
My cousin loved this show back in the 90s. Interestingly, in real life, he has a very similar personality to Will (in the show). He is confident and good-hearted, but often breaks social norms and is sometimes inconsiderate to the people around him.
great analysis dude
I watched the show growing up...and enjoyed it . There were funny moments serious moments. And occasionally something to learn. Hope a new generation of kids watch it
I watched all episodes of the show in like 4 months!! I love the fresh prince of Bel-Air!!!
One of the greatest shows of all time.
I'm not too fond of the drama series.
@@josephclegg3562 the remake?
No the original
This show never gets old!
The episode with Wills dad was POWERFULLY EPIC MY FAV EPISODE OF THE SHOW
I'm very happy to have known this show since it was pretty new as it ran on german TV since 1992 i think and it was pretty popular here. The first momma Vivian was still the best. Such an absolute stunner and as an actress i respect her a lot as she always speaks her mind. When they changed the actress i was like "Are you kidding me?" I also hated that in the last season of "Family Matters". However I really really liked the fresh prince as a show because the characters were fantastically written, interesting and really felt like a family. I loved the Cosby Show already by that point so the Fresh Prince felt like a different take and was just as entertaining. And yes this was also one of the first shows i ever saw that added outtakes at the end of the shows end credits. Loved that so much since "Roseanne" and "Home Improvement" did that too.