Cosby show or Martin

[Hypestyle]

ah... good memories of watching the cosby show... fine denise & sandra, and cute (for my age at the time) vanessa..
...who remembers when Cliff "gave birth" to a huge submarine sandwich? 
When the show introduced Erika Alexander it was kind of telegraphing 'this is our urban issues character'..  also Raven-Symone's introduction was also obvious to maintain cute-kiddie momentum.. not that it didn't work..    Theo got to represent for guys who were growing up with hip-hop but who didn't go and turn into a buppie thug (ahem, Puffy, Lil' Jon, etc...)
I watched most of the seasons as they came out.. I think I fell away from watching the first-run shows around the time I fell into watching Martin.. Cockroach turns into Cole!.. I think the martin show missed having Garrett Morris around after he left.. I give the show props for having crazy gags on a recurring basis (remember the riff on New Jack City, Martin walking around with a fake stuffed rottweiler?).. martin's multiple characters.. all the hip-hop guest stars.. was there ever a true revelation on tommy's "job"?.. the Pam-bashing jokes got dumber in the last few seasons.. and when the sex-harassment/blowup between Martin Lawrence and Tisha Campbell happened, that was virtually the nail in the coffin..

as of right now, if I were poised to buy a season set, I'd probably go with Martin first, just for the insanity..

[Princesa]

Martin, the reruns make me laugh. The Cosby show is not very funny to me and all I know of Bill is that angry old man with the eye surgery shades.

[Mastrmynd]

all i know is that i watch cosby all the time when the reruns are on.
i dont do the same with martin and they come on all the time on tv one.
i used to, but not anymore.

[Battle]

Let me just add:

'The Cosby Show' doesn't hold up for the same reasons that Perry Tyler's 'House of Payne'  won't hold up 15 years from today:

• Antiquated TV family values

Antiquated? Or timeless?
Can you expand on that a little?

Sure...

I  mean, antiquated as in, obsolete. TV family dynamics change over time, especially over a decade.  I can't think of any TV family situation comedy (black or white) that has a durable family constellation that holds up over time.  Do you? ...and please  don't suggest 'The Waltons'!!!

For instance,  in order for 'House of Payne' to stay relevant  in 15 years or so...  it has to be on the air for 15 years.  I don't think the show can do it and I don't think the cast would want to do it.




Martin,  y'all.

[Mastrmynd]

this poll shows the different thought processes between the younger folk and the older ppl on this board.

[Catch22]

this poll shows the different thought processes between the younger folk and the older ppl on this board.

That's what I was thinking reading through some of the posts on here.  I think the Cosby Show is a timeless TV show like Curtis iterated.  It's one of those shows like I Love Lucy, The Honeymooners, Sanford and Son...shows that will probably be in syndication forever because they're timeless and people, no matter how we perceive family values change, can relate to.

[Battle]

From BET.com:

Regarding my little comment about the TV parents of the Cosby Show...

Rare Black-White Twins … Again!

When Alison Spooner and Dean Durrant of Great Britain gave birth to a set of Black and White twins in 2001, it was described as a once-in-a-million occurrence.  Now, that it has occurred a second time – for the same couple – it’s almost like getting struck by lightening a second time on the same day, at the same exact hour of the day.  Actually, the phenomenon is so rare, doctors say, that there are no statistics to illustrate the probability of it happening. But one doctor told WPEC in Florida that for this to happen twice, must be one in millions.

"I was blown away as the rest of them, you know, father, Dean Durrant, told WPEC. “There's no easy way to explain it all. I feel like I'm still in shock myself, even though the first ones were seven years ago. It's amazing but we love them just the same."

The earlier twin daughters, Lauren, looks like her mom, and Hayleigh, looks like dad, the station reports.

“This time, baby Miya has her father's dark skin, while Leah looks like her mother,” WPEC reports.

----------------------------------------

Not so unsual.  Back-in-th'-day, I have a cousin who had a set of twins, fraternal twins; one of them is dark skinned and the other is light skinned. The father is dark and the mother is light however both are Black!

[Jenn]

You can't tell me this isn't still hilarious 16 years later. No cutesy kids, no ball-busting wife, no goofy husband or knucklehead sons...just plain, old-fashioned funny.

[voodoochild]

Cosby.

Martin had it moments, but too much of his bits seemed forced and tedious.  And they ran jokes into the ground.  It's funny, but REALLY exaggerated.

[Mastrmynd]

like i said, Cosby.

[Battle]

like i said, Cosby.

Really?  ??

[Reginald Hudlin]

I love when folks bring up old threads.

[James72]

This is definitely a hard choice.  I like both shows for different reasons, or I should say, they were both comedies but used the tools to
express a different things.  I like the "classic" feel of The Cosby Show and I like the "slapstick" appeal of Martin. Ahhhh....it's a toss up right now.

[Magic Wand]

Cosby.
It's classic and beautiful.

Martin was a coonfest.

[Reginald Hudlin]

Cosby.
It's classic and beautiful.

Martin was a coonfest.

Coonfest?  Not your cup of tea, fine, but I never was embarrassed as a black person when i watched Martin.