The Wonder Years is finally back on ABC, and I still don’t know why ABC held it for so long. It is a much better sitcom than the ones they have, and I watch them all but Home Economics.
Tonight’s episode at 9p is full of heart as the Williams family head back to school. Little Dean (Elisha “EJ” Williams) is excited because he is going to be on the football team. What could go wrong?
Broderick (Chinua Baraka Payne) is still sad that Kiesa (Milan Ray) broke up with him. And because of that, his football game has gone to crap. However, when he finds out that she cheated on him, he promises to kill the guy she cheated on him with. So when Dean, who is that guy, finds out that Broderick thinks it is Norman (Caleb Black), he is willing to sacrifice his friend. But will he have a change of heart and come clean that he was the one kissing Broderick’s girl?
Then there is his big sister Kim (Laura Kariuki). Since she took all the math she needs to graduate high school, she takes the morning off from her classes. Her mom (Saycon Sengbloh) is not going to let that happen. Therefore, she tells her to take a math class at her father’s (Dulé Hill) college.
Big Dean also has the morning off, but now he has to drive his daughter to his school. Neither one of them are happy about Lillian’s plan. But she is the boss in the Williams household.
However, Dean is the boss at his college, and Kim sees how well-liked her father is. And she likes one of his students who also likes her. What happens when he shows up that night to take Kim on a date? Will Dean “be cool” about it?
There are some sweet daddy/daughter scenes between the two actors. And that is enough reason for you to tune in. But there are so many others. Like how sexy Hill’s accent is on this show. OK, that just might be my thing. Seriously though, there are so many reasons to watch. The chemistry between the actors is like a real family. The writing is so well executed it feels like you are watching home videos of a family in 1969.
A family that you become invested in because you have a caring, standoffish dad, a loving but stern mother who wants the best for her kids, a daughter who is rebelling against the past and excited for the future, and a nerdy son who has a bright future ahead of him. It is a slice of Americana told through the Williams’ eyes. So much was happening outside of their household, but inside, one thing was remaining the same. They will always have each other to lean on, no matter what is happening outside.
In a way, The Wonder Years is a history sitcom where you learn about the past through one family’s eyes. So it is about the experiences as compared to what you read in a history book that is all about the facts. And let’s be honest, the late ’60s would’ve been a groovy time to live.
That is why this show won a Peabody. And that is why you should be watching. So check it tonight on ABC or tomorrow on Hulu.
The Wonder Years, one of last season’s best new shows, is finally back on ABC tonight at 9p. And the second season is just as darling, informative, and funny as the first.
The Williams are an African-American Alabaman family, who are stuck in the wholesomeness of the way the times were, but also wanting to experience the exciting changes that are happening all around them.
It is the Summer of ’69, and we are going to the moon. Woodstock is going to change the music scene forever. And Stonewall is going to finally open the closet and allow people to come out!
For the Williams, it means they will be in two different states. Not because there are problems in their marriage but because Dean (Dulé Hill) has the chance to write a song for Marvin Gaye. So he and his son, Dean (Elisha Williams), are in NYC, living the dream.
However, not everything is going as they planned. Big Dean is having writer’s block, and his son hasn’t made a single friend. But that is all going to change when they meet one of their neighbors. He is going to open them to a whole new world, and that is going to make their summer something to remember.
They are not the only ones having a memorable summer; so are his wife, Lillian (Saycon Sengbloh), and their daughter, Kim (Laura Kariuki). Lillian’s sister, Jackie (Phoebe Robinson), comes for a visit, and she takes them for a ride they will never forget.
Jackie is a free spirit, unlike her sister, and because of that, the kids love her. However, Lillian wants her to tame her ways. And she is going to do that in the second episode that airs at 9:30p.
Lillian takes Jackie and her family to church, and she quickly regrets it. But not as much as when she gets a sister a job at her company. Can the wild sister finally be tamed?
And she is not the only one being wild. Little Dean and Keisa (Milan Ray) are sneaking around because she is dating his friend. Who will Keisa choose?
A lot of things happened during the Summer of ’69, both directly and indirectly, to the Williams family. And I can’t wait to watch how the rest of the year plays out for them.
I grew up watching the original Wonder Years, and I loved it. But this one is even better. So I don’t understand why ABC didn’t just hold it for the Fall instead of being all reality. I think the show deserves better than it’s gotten.
So help it find a new audience because this show deserves to stick around. It has a cast that feels like a family and writing that draws you in and keeps you wanting more! We get to experience the era that took us out of the dark ages and ushered in a light we so desperately needed. The Wonder Years does this by telling stories of how one family who is stuck in the middle is going to live in a world that is trapped in the past and welcoming of the future at the same time. Give into the scary change, or stay where it is safe. That is for them to show us. And we are here to watch them experience it all.
There is a strike going on in Hollywood. And the Writers’ strike is probably going to be the first one. Chances are either the DGA or SAG are going to follow suit in the next few months.
Therefore the networks have had this in mind as they planned for the Fall. CBS is going on as is. NBC had a few shows in the bank. Fox is yet to announce their schedule. And today, ABC revealed that they are going all reality, game shows, and repeats.
And that makes me wonder, are people going to tune in for that, or will they watch something original on streaming?
I mean, old people on The Bachelor, aka The Golden Bachelor, could be fun. Or it could get old, pun intended, quickly.
Although I have to admit, Disney and ABC played this round well. Because they are trying to tell everyone that they are not afraid of your strike because they will find ways around it.
However, we won’t know if they won that round for a few months. I am hoping they lose because I prefer scripted over unscripted. What about you?
MONDAY
8:00 p.m. “Dancing with the Stars” (two hours)
10:00 p.m. “The Golden Bachelor”
ABC did not pick up most of their shows before the clock struck midnight. So today as the clock gets ready strike 12, they renewed nine of their series: The Conners, Not Dead Yet, America’s Funniest Home Videos, American Idol, The Bachelor, Bachelor in Paradise, Celebrity Jeopardy!, Celebrity Wheel of Fortune and Shark Tank.
They join 9-1-1, Abbott Elementary, The Good Doctor, Grey’s Anatomy, The Rookie, Station 19 and Will Trent.
While those shows are on definitely on the lineup, The Rookie: Fed and Home Economics are still waiting to hear if they are in the ABCool club!
Hopefully, Feds will be back and The Conners will be told next season will be their last. I don’t know why and how I am still watching. And it is all about me.
ABC is going to announce its 2023-2024 schedule next week, but they are not going to wait until then to reveal three shows that will not be on it. Those shows are David E. Kelley’s Big Sky, and Freshmen shows Alaska Daily, which starred two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank and The Company You Keep with Milo Ventimiglia.
Still waiting to find out their fate are The Rookie: Fed, The Conners, Home Economics, and Not Dead Yet. It will be interesting to see how many or if any of them will be renewed.
