Appreciating the Wonders of "The Wonder Years"

ABCamp8217s The Wonder Years created by Saladin K Patterson whoamp8217s been some form of producer on everything from The Bernie Mac Show to The Big Bang Theory to The Last OG to Dave stars Elisha Williams pictured at top as Dean a young Black boy growing up in Montgomery Alabama in the 1960s The show is narrated by the voice of his presentday self played by none other than the Mr Don Cheadle and is directed by Fred Savage who played the lead with the name Kevin in the original versionNow of course there are plenty of similarities between this version and the original stuff like the voiceover the main characteramp8217s wild imagination and even the time period but my focus here is going to be on whatamp8217s different I mean letamp8217s face it these kids by whom Iamp8217m referring to Dean from the current version and Kevin Savage from the original amp8211 could theoretically have been nextdoor neighbors and Iamp8217d still put big money on their individual experiences being fundamentally different Kevin is white and Dean is Black and unfortunately for them and us America is a place what that kind of shit matters way more than it shouldThe first obvious difference to me is the age of the narrator Dean and Kevin are both twelve in 1968 which would make them both 65 today Except amp8220presentdayamp8221 for Kevin was when the original aired in 1988 making him 32 at the time So narrationwise one has to consider the difference in perspective that our respective storytellers have Our current narrator is much more seasoned and traveled than Kevin ever was But I digress The second thing that stands out to me is the treatment of current events of the time and how they are depicted and honestly this is where the real divide lies between these experiences You see in the original the focus of the time was primarily on the Vietnam War Obviously the war was happening at the same time for Dean as it was for Kevin and thus affected them both but in definite different ways The final act of the originalamp8217s first episode made it clear that Brian Kevinamp8217s neighbor and the older brother of his love interest was killed in action in Vietnam However the opening act of the current version of TWY depicts Deanamp8217s very own older brother as being alive and stationed in Vietnam The connection to the war is decidedly less personal for Kevin but for Dean itamp8217s so in their familyamp8217s face that his mother played by Respectamp8217s Saycon Sengbloh wonamp8217t describe it any other way than to say that his brother is well amp8220awayamp8221Furthermore when Deanamp8217s first episode ends we donamp8217t find out that his brother is dead We find out that Dr Martin Luther King isIamp8217ve seen a lot of Black moments depicted on television but I still experience life through the lens of how things work today Back then there was no streaming There werenamp8217t a thousand channels to watch There were no DVRs My editor tells me thatamp160many people had VCRs but few knew how to work them beyond playing tapes If you werenamp8217t home or at a friendamp8217s when the news or an episode of your favorite show was on then you just missed itSo when the news story came out about Dr Kingamp8217s death apparently everyone was home This show is set in a 1960s Alabama neighborhood and this scene took place after dark so it was quiet Intimate even To hear the neighborsamp8217 sorrowful wailing from next door to see everyone locked on that tiny screen to see the huge blow that the King family and the Black community and the world had just taken it just amp8230 hit differentEach version of this show has its own defining moment and in those moments they each showed me their potential for comedy relativity and commentary all at once along with a clear sense of depth For the original it was the fourth episode in which Kevinamp8217s older sisteramp8217s hippie boyfriend came over for dinner and argued with their father about the necessity of amp8216Nam For the new The Wonder Years so far itamp8217s the third and most recent episode amp8220The Clubamp8221 in which Dean is caught with some nudie magazines he finds in his house and eventually finds out that they belong to his mother during what ends up being a surprisingly progressive sex talk for the 3960s anywayThe aforementioned episodes are defining moments because while in Kevinamp8217s situation we hear the recognizable echoes of social justice and equality sentiments that are still heard today from the hippie boyfriend who said things like Brian died for amp8220a country that systematically represses its citizensamp8221 and amp8220is responsible for the oppression of Blacks women and freespeechamp8221 we also see a level of maturity and a forwardthinking mentality from Deanamp8217s mother that shapes the idea of the man we are to assume Dean is today This man is looking back at his life not only as a Black man in America but as one who was raised by a woman who understood the importance of openmindedness and mental and emotional health even when people in her own community did not This is all while still also being affected by Vietnam as well as everything else that came with and continues to come with being BlackAnd those are my favorite parts of the new The Wonder Years everything that comes with being Black I mean as soon as the show starts we hear about amp8220the police talkamp8221 a version of amp8220The Talkamp8221 that I covered before which refers to the difference in treatment one could receive from police because of oneamp8217s nonwhiteness Thereamp8217s also a reference in that episode to the political incorrectness of calling white people amp8220Whiteyamp8221 even though team names like the Redskins Savages and Chiefs exist Then of course there are the classic aspects of the culture like the mantras amp8220Stay out of grown folks39 businessamp8221 and amp8220Donamp8217t show out in front of white folkamp8221The best aspect of all though is how cool Deanamp8217s dad is I love a good Black TV dad and Psychamp8217s Dulamp233 Hill plays one of the best of them Bill amp8220Be Coolamp8221 WilliamsIamp8217m glad this show exists and I look forward to seeing how much of this collective experience called Blackness has and hasnamp8217t changed over the years through Deanamp8217s eyes at least There39s a lot I39m going to learn about hereThe Wonder Years is telecast Wednesdays at 830 pm on ABCClick the social buttons to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Appreciating the Wonders of "The Wonder Years"

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Ainsley Andrade

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