Memories are not made of the mid-'80s retread, What's Happening Now!! - the ill-advised revival of another Classic Urban Sitcom, What's Happening!!, which I loved as a youth, but which should likely be known as only a lesser light.

As far as What's Happening Now!!, - forget it. It's amazing it lasted long enough to garner episodes numerous enough (22 episodes of about 22 minutes each) for this 'The Complete First Season' collection. (Not to mention the subsequent two seasons.) Don't get me wrong, though. As sitcoms go, it solidly cruises down the middle of the road. But middle of the road for sitcoms is like bread and water for sustenance, if you catch my drift. Cue laugh track.

Anyway, Raj, Rerun, Shirley and the other guy are back in the old neighborhood, and up to less timely, more pedestrian tricks. Raj is married and an author, and then decides to open up the old diner with Shirley. Raj and his wife adopt an orphaned child, etc.

I'd say the show 'jumped the shark,' what with adoptions and marriages, except that reviving a sitcom that wasn't THAT great in the first place somehow involves sharks jumping over each other ... on motorcycles.

Ernest Thomas, Fred Berry, Haywood Nelson and Shirley Hemphill all carry on admirably, wringing what laughs are to be had from material that's far less inspired than the first go-round. They all have fabulous comic timing, and play broadly, with enthusiasm. But their efforts are at the service of very little. Raj meets up with an old high school bully, a teen gang tries to mess up a party, Raj's wife's mom falls for the neighborhood drunk, etc. Likable stuff, but certainly by the numbers.

The DVD

Video:
What's Happening Now!! is presented in the original full screen format, and visually is nothing special. I'll assume it was filmed instead of shot on video, owing to its origins in 1985, so if it's not showing the limitations of the source, then the transfer is a tad shabby, not too sharp, a bit grainy, with colors washed out in the way only old sitcoms appear.

Sound:
Dolby Digital audio is largely unnecessary, also in keeping with the source material.

Extras:
Extras are slim to none. Closed captioning for the hearing impaired, episode selections, previews of three movies and blanket previews of both Sony '80s movies and Classic Urban Sitcoms round out the package.

Final Thoughts:
Real hardcore What's Happening!! fans are out there and some seem to feel it's important to buy this collection, in hopes that further seasons will be released on DVD. Since What's Happening Now!! - despite being much beloved by a small section of the public - is really just a second generation, run-of-the-mill sitcom, maybe it's better to let these half-hearted memories appear on late-night TV instead. With apologies to the fans, I'm saying skip it. On the other hand, the night is young, and I am sooo beautiful!

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