The disparaging range of comments on this show is amazing. Some love it, some say it wasn't funny or particularly irreverent or dramatic. And that's fine, as everyone is entitled to debate the show where the show's actual content is concerned. But I am amazed at the amount of patronizing comments which question the show's realism as a story about black colleges. One person calls it 'a black MELROSE PLACE,' while another says it preaches too much and another claims a black character sounds 'too white.' (You should check out the southern sounds of Atlanta's Spellman College if you really think that southern belles can't be black.) Television has the capability to expose different things to different viewers. It doesn't always do so well, but the chance to do it is sometimes better than the end product. Yes, ADW did try to teach the occasional lesson. But black America has just as many lessons to teach (and learn) as any other demographic. But it seems we must question the validity of black images on television that aren't stereotypes like GOOD TIMES or MARTIN or DEF COMEDY JAM. We seem to need black characters to be obstinate, sassy, or militant and raise the red flag should they be portrayed as smart, sensitive, or wistful. ADW had middle-class kids as well as the very poor and the very rich rolling through academics, arts, humanities, and athletics- just as if they were the real deal at Tuskeegee, Howard, or Morehouse/Spellman. I liked it best in its middle years when it was a full ensemble comedy and there were equal spotlights on med student Kim, social activist Freddie, future engineer Dwayne, and the fledging courtship of older students Jaleesa and Walter. Only after its third season did it become all about Dwayne and Whitley, but all of these characters were realistic. You can trust me.
Review of A Different World
