LITTLE ROCK — What is it? Family Matters Season 1, 22 episodes on three discs from Warner Home Video.
When? Now
How much? $29.98
Sounds familiar. Back in the late 1980s, ABC ruled Friday nights with its “TGIF” lineup of family-friendly sitcoms like Full House and Family Matters.
Family Matters follows the day-to-day life of the Winslow family: police officer Carl (Reginald VelJohnson), security director Harriette (JoMarie Payton-France), cool slacker teen Eddie (Darius McCrary), smart middle school student Laura (Kellie Shanygne Williams) and sassy youngest child Judy (Valerie Jones and then Jaimee Foxworth). Also sharing the Winslows’ Chicago home are Carl’s mother, Estelle (Rosetta LeNoire), Harriette’s widowed sister, Rachel (Telma Hopkins), and Rachel’s infant son, Richie.
There’s nothing really groundbreaking here. The plots follow the usual family sitcom formulas: first dates, bad grades, unplanned parties while the parents are gone.
And the show itself is standard fare of the time with decent cast chemistry, predictable jokes, stereotypical characters and a “touching discussion” at the end of every episode. It’s not bad. It’s just not earth-shaking.
Wait. Wasn’t this the show with ... Urkel? Yes. Yes, it was.
It was the introduction of uber-nerd Steve Urkel (Jaleel White) that turned the showfrom bland family sitcom into a cultural force of nature. Remember the talking dolls? The crossover promotions? The increasingly outlandish story lines? If not, you’re lucky.
But this was before all that. Urkel isn’t introduced until about halfway through the season - though once he shows up, he immediately becomes a permanent fixture. At this stage, he’s still just a nerdy, accident-prone little pipsqueak with a total lack of self-awareness. And, to be honest, he’s not that bad. It’s almost endearing. The really irritating stuff didn’t come until later.
Bottom line? The show is mostly harmless. But ifUrkel still gives you nightmares, you should probably stay away. He’s not so bad in these episodes, but you can’t look at the packaging or the discs without seeing his smiling face. Whether that brings back fond childhood memories or post-traumatic flashbacks is between you and your therapist.
Extras? None.
New this week: Entourage, Season 6; Hung, Season 1; Tom and Jerry, deluxe anniversary collection.
Next week: The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo, series; The Closer, Season 5; Eureka, Season 3.5; Leave It to Beaver, complete series; Mad About You, Season 4.
Style, Pages 50 on 06/20/2010