What's Happening: The Complete First Season

So what's it all about? What's Happening detailed the travails of three African-American teenage boys living in a Los Angeles suburb: Roger "Raj" Thomas (Ernest Thomas), Dwayne "Hey hey hey!" Nelson (Haywood Nelson), and Freddie "Rerun" Stubbs (Fred Berry). Their relationships definitely create a trinity of comedic archetypes: Raj is the brainy one, Dwayne the smooth-talking jive-ass ladies man, and Rerun the tubby comic relief. Thrown into the mix is the acerbic Shirley (Shirley Wilson), the waitress at the burger joint where the boys often hang out, and Mama (Mabel King), Raj's hardworking, single-parent mother who dispenses worldly wisdom to her son when she's not threatening to kick his ass up and down the block for drill.

But no character could possibly be more endearing than Dee (Danielle Spencer), Raj's sarcastic and quick-witted younger sister. With her endless array of one-liners, put-downs, subtle manipulations, and caustic comments, Dee rules the What's Happening roost. She's as quick with a witticism as she is with the constant threat of informing Mama of Raj's transgressions. If you've ever had a younger sister, you know Dee. You know Dee very, very, very well. What easily could have been a cliché is just a joy to watch.

So we know all about the show's setting and characters. So is What's Happening a worthwhile show? I think so. No one will ever confuse What's Happening for high (or even middle)-brow entertainment. The humor is extremely broad, the characterizations rather simplistic, and the storylines standard mid/late 1970's sitcom fare. However, the show works pretty well, and generates more than its fair share of laughs and gentle humor. The chemistry and camaraderie between the three leads is warm, friendly, and natural. The supporting cast is also enjoyable to watch in action. What's Happening also has a tone that never takes itself too seriously at all, demonstrating how the show doesn't have to carry a serious, social-minded undercurrent (like the ponderously overrated Good Times and the hysterical but often ham-handed The Jeffersons) to be entertaining. It's not classic television, but it's enjoyable for what it is.

Columbia has released What's Happening: The Complete First Season on DVD. The following twenty-one episodes are included in this release:

Disc One

1. The Runaway
2. The Birthday Present
3. When Daddy Comes Marching Home
4. My Three Tons
5. Saturday's Hero
6. The Burger Queen
7. Speak For Yourself, Dwayne

Disc Two

1. Shirley's Date
2. The Sunday Father
3. Christmas
4. The Maid Did It
5. The Incomplete Shakespeare
6. The Hospital Stay
7. The Firing Squad

Disc Three

1. The Boarder
2. Dwayne's Dilemma
3. The Tickets
4. What's Wrong With Raj?
5. Nice Guys Finish Last
6. From Here to Maternity
7. Puppy Love

Video:

What's Happening is presented in its original television fullframe aspect ratio of 1.33:1. With seven episodes per disc, there's a ton of compression going on here, and the video presentation suffers accordingly; compression noise and pixellation are evident throughout the presentation. Colors are strong and well delivered, while sharpness and fine detail suffer due to the inherent limitations of thirty-year-old videotaped source material. The overall quality is pleasant if not overly impressive.

Audio:

The audio is presented in monaural Dolby Digital 2.0, and is appropriate for the source material. Dialog is clean and bright, without discernable hiss, noise, or distortion. The overall quality suits the presentation of the show quite well, but like the video the audio is hampered by the age and limited fidelity of the original source material.

Extras:

The only extras on this set are trailers for other Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment releases of television on DVD, including Sanford and Son, The Jeffersons, Soap, What's Happening, Good Times, Barney Miller, All in the Family, The King of Queens, The Steve Harvey Show, Dawson's Creek, Designing Women, Married With Children, My Big Fat Greek Life, Mad About You, The Larry Sanders Show, The Critic, The Tick, and Dilbert.

Final Thoughts

There's not much here in terms of extras, and the presentation of the show is reasonable and serviceable, if not overly impressive. However, What's Happening fans will still have reason to enjoy this DVD release. All twenty-one episodes of the show's first season are included here at an extremely reasonable price (as always, search online to find this set well below retail). For the casual DVD fan I can only give this set a "Rent It" rating, but first What's Happening aficionados, the purchase of this set is pretty much a fait accompli anyhow.