Thought I’d start with talking about individual shows by talking about Martin, the sitcom. It’s one of the funniest sitcoms of the 90s in my opinion and many others, but despite that, you don’t really see it listed on a lot of the various sites that list the top ten sitcoms of the 90s. I’m not sure why, but one of my theories is that people may have remembered the later seasons which weren’t as funny as the earlier ones; at least they weren’t as funny to me. The earlier seasons from the early 90s were absolutely hilarious and I can watch it today and laugh just as much now as I did then. Whoever came up with those characters, whether it was Martin Lawrence himself or someone else, is an absolute comedic genius. Sheneneh , the old security guard, Brother Man, and Martin’s mother are my favorites and they were all except Brother Man, played by Martin himself. Sometimes my friends and I who are all middle aged now, still will occasionally burst out with a quote from one of those crazy episodes.
Besides the really funny characters, the interaction between the many of characters are classic. Martin and Pam, Gina’s best friend, couldn’t stand each other, Sheneneh couldn’t stand Gina and Pam, and Martin’s mother had a strong disliking for her daughter-in-law, Gina. The insults that were thrown back and forth between these characters certainly made for some great comedy.
Now, I’m not sure why the seasons just stopped being funny in the latter years, but my guess is that there were some behind the scenes issues. I remember there being some gossip about how Martin Lawrence and Tisha Campbell, the actress who played his wife, Gina, had a falling out. I also vaguely remember hearing that he may have made a play for her, but you didn’t hear that from me. Anyway, if you haven’t seen the show and are curious about it, I’d stick with the earlier episodes and if you like it, check out some of the older episodes from the mid to late 90s. You might like it, who knows.
The sitcom seems to be fairly popular by the number of tweets I see about it. Apparently the younger generation appreciates it too. There really hasn’t been a sitcom like Martin since.
Some of my favorite episodes are:
“Forever Sheneneh” from Season one. Sheneneh wins a date with Kid from Kid n Play much to Kid’s dismay. Sheneneh’s at her finest.
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“Suspicious Minds” from Season two. When Martin loses his beloved portable cd player, he believes one of his friends has stolen it. Some classic scenes in this one.
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“Guard Your Grill” from Season two. Martin participates in a charity boxing event and after getting really cocky, he challenges Tommy Hearns to a boxing match. I’m laughing just thinking about this episode.
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“Control” from Season two. Gina agrees to work in Sheneneh’s salon because she wants to earn some basketball tickets that Sheneneh has. The salon scenes are hilarious.
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