by Mike Hilty, Contributing Writer
Now, this is a story all about how,
The Fresh Prince got flipped, turned upside down
And I’d like to take a minute
Just sit right there
I’ll tell you how I became a fan of a show called Bel-Air
On a streaming service born and raised
On Peacock was where Bel-Air spent all of their days
Switch Will Smith for Jabari Banks, all cool
Bel-Air’s a drama, not comedy like the old school,
During a B-Ball game, Will was so good,
He got in trouble in his Philly neighborhood
Will got in one little fight and his mom got scared
She said… you get the idea, he goes to in Bel-Air
Will adjusts to his cousins that he loves dear
He grows into his own while looking at himself in the mirror
His love for Philly will always be there
But Will’s got a chance to be something in Bel-Air
Season one has two more episodes after eight
After it was done I said can’t wait for more later
Banks looked at his kingdom
He was finally there
To sit on his throne, the new prince of Bel-Air
Bel Air is a modern take on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air about a kid named Will Smith (Jabari Banks), from west Philadelphia who gets into a fight and is whisked away to California to start anew until things calm down. He lives with his Uncle Phil, (Adrian Holmes), his Aunt Vivian (Cassandra Freeman), and cousins Hillary (Coco Jones), Carlton (Olly Sholotan), and Ashley (Akira Akbar). Will struggles with adapting to southern California life and struggles with adjusting to living with a family he barely knows. In addition to his family, Will also befriends the house manager Geoffrey (Jimmy Akingbola) and a local friend Jazz (Jordan L. Jones).
The tone is definitely markedly different from the original. This is a drama through and through. There’s a lot more conflict, struggle, and seriousness. But that’s not to say there aren’t funny moments. They’ve definitely modernized a lot of the characters to adapt to the 21st century. Hillary is an Instagram influencer, Carlton is a star lacrosse player, and Ashley is an avid online video gamer. Will is a star basketball recruit who showcases his love for Philadelphia while also showing off his smarts. Updating the genre and also updating the time makes the vibe of the show really different. It’s a nice change of pace, even though sometimes this feels a little like a soap opera at times. Now and then, I did miss the comedy. There are comedic moments, but I could have used a few more throughout the series. It sometimes becomes a little too soap opera-esque.
Bank’s turn as Will is a combination of a great deal of emotional moments and a lot of charm. I liked seeing the inciting incident that brought him to Bel-Air while also seeing how he struggles with the fallout. It gives Will a more holistic personality by showing not only his triumphs, but his struggles as well. It’s a huge adjustment for him, moving from the only place and people he’s ever known to a place that is completely foreign to him. Banks might also give Sterling K. Brown a run for his money as having the best crying face in Hollywood. I also loved seeing his interactions with his mom Vy (April Parker Jones). I don’t remember ever seeing that in the original, but it gives his connection to Philadelphia and his decision to leave more gravity. Will’s interactions with his family members each offer something different, but in particular, his moments with Phil are great. Although there were some great moments, I still wanted more between Will and Uncle Phil. They had some of the more powerful moments of the season together. As the season unfolds, Will’s relationship with Carlton becomes better. There was a lot of conflict to get to that point, but I greatly appreciate what they did. Will and Jazz’s relationship was good too, but there’s not enough time for them on screen together. Geoffrey is more than just a butler — he’s the house manager. He’s also got a bit of a dark side to him that remains a mystery. Some characters are simply not given enough to do or enough screen time. I wanted more Ashley and more Jazz. I did like how Aunt Vivian got more spotlight, particularly with her art. I feel like Aunt Viv didn’t get as much time to shine in the original run, so it’s nice to have her in a more prominent role. I also wanted to see more interaction between Vy and Aunt Vivian. These two have a lot of history, and they have one real episode where they interact together.
Commentary on class, racism, and struggles with the police are on full display in this. The very first episode deals with racism when a student says something inappropriate and Carlton does nothing. Will is noticeably upset, but Carlton has to just sit and take it unfortunately. It’s part of the struggle Carlton has been going through being upper class and African American. Whereas Will was surrounded by a community in west Philadelphia of African Americans, Carlton is surrounded by way more Caucasian individuals and feels forced to deal with racist rhetoric, even if it’s a joke or song lyrics. This comes up throughout the series about how Will and Carlton handle things that appear to be racist. I liked their conversations about it and how Will continues to push Carlton to stand up for himself. Police brutality comes up a bunch since Uncle Phil is running for District Attorney. Will’s incident in Philadelphia shows the police treating him badly while trying to uphold order. Defunding the police comes up, as well as the consequences of such rhetoric when it comes to politics. Another topic that comes up during Bel-Air is mental health. Some people in the show struggle with mental health, and we see the toll it takes on some people.
There are a number of plot points that are in play that I wonder where they’re going. They wrapped up Will’s story about the incident that got him in Bel-Air a little too nicely, and I’m wondering if it’ll come back at some point. Uncle Phil’s plans to run for D.A. in Los Angeles runs into an unexpected wrinkle, which makes me wonder where his story goes from there after the events of latter half of the season. I thought what Uncle Phil does in the D.A. race was admirable, but I’m wondering if there will be any consequences moving forward. The storyline I’m curious about is what will happen when Will meets a particular family member in the last episode of the season. It was an emotional scene and the acting was great, particularly by the person who guest starred as the family member. I just wonder what the fallout will be from this encounter. A lot is in flux at the end of the season.
Bel-Air is a great start to what I hope is a budding drama that will hopefully continue into the future. It’s a little too dramatic at times, but I did appreciate the performances from the majority of the cast, as well as the turns the story took. I’m hoping that with some tweaks, like adding more light-hearted fun and letting the family just be a family instead of something happening every episode, the sophomore season can build off of what the first season laid down for foundation. This is a recommendation for me, but go in by letting go of what the original Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was and let this one be itself.
Score: 7/10
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