“Girlfriends”
Tonight at 9:30 p.m. on WWOR/Ch. 9
WHAT do you call a sitcom that actually makes you laugh out loud? Rare, that’s what.
So, it was really a shock when I popped in the premier episode of UPN’s newest attempt at humor, “Girlfriends,” and laughed. A lot.
The series, co-producers are Kelsey Grammer, (“Frasier”) and Mara Brock, (“Moesha,” “The Jamie Foxx Show”), who have certainly given us a coupla laughs over the years.
The series is a kind of cleaned-up African-American version of “Sex And The City.” Four girlfriends living through the trials and mysogynies of being single. This time they live in California.
There’s Joan (Tracee Ellis Ross, Diana’s daughter), an attorney, who’s 29 going on 26, and climbing – at least professionally – very quickly.
Joan’s assistant, Maya, (Golden Brooks-not Golden Books!) is her homegirl secretary from the projects, who couldn’t care less that Joan and her friends are sophisticated. Maya’s comfortable telling everyone off.
Toni (Jill Marie Jones) is a real estate agent who’s looking to marry some serious real estate.
And there’s Lynn, the professional student who believes in free love, free living, and free rent. (She lives in Joan’s apartment while finishing out her eighth year of grad school.)
In the premier, Toni brings Joan’s ex – maybe the best looking man in the world, the toe-sucking Charles (Jason Winston George) – as her date to Joan’s 26th/29th birthday party.
A thing ensues about when a guy is fair game. Is it OK if your friend breaks up with him, but not if he breaks up with her?
Is it never OK if he’s had sex with your friend? Is it always OK, as long as he and your friend are officially broken up?
So right about now I’m thinking, “Oh God save me! Not another unfunny blaxploitation thing!” But it’s not. It gets funnier by the minute.
Some of the lines – which I can’t actually write in the newspaper – were so funny, I was ashamed to laugh so loud seeing how I was sitting there all alone and all.
One of the key characters is a lawyer in Joan’s office, William (Reggie Hayes) whom you are sure is just a dork. And he is. Sort of.
And that’s what’s good here. He’s a dork in some ways, and in some ways, he’s clever and funny.
Now, I don’t know whether I can get away with this or not. But, in episode two, “One Night Stand” Joan admits that she hasn’t had sex in a year.
Maya looks at her like she’s crazy. “Girl you sure you’re still open for business? You know what happens when you don’t wear earrings!” Now, tell me that’s not funny.
I mean, really, “Girlfriends” is like hanging out with your real girlfriends. It’s the things you really say to each other. The only problem is that now guys will know it too. So far, I’m hooked.