Everybody hates Chris

I wasn't impressed either. So sad, because I too was looking forward to it. I guess it has to be Chris Rock to make it work....not some kid pretending to be.

I keep meaning to watch this, and have not. It got great reviews. Anyone have a mid-season update?

i think its great, and look forward to each new episode...

I was looking at the TV schedule and I saw "Everybody Hates Chris" and "Everybody Loves Raymond." I watched Everybody Loves Raymond.

how was it.

One thing I noticed last night (I guess it took me a while to notice it), is that Everybody Hates Chris (EHC) is really formulaic. Every episode goes exactly like this:

Chris has to do something, either concerning the family or school. Chris gets in trouble doing that or trying not to do that or trying to do it more easily, but he's a good kid and doesn't mean any harm. The parents argue about it. Mom is nuts. Dad is compassionate but busy and put-upon. His sister is bratty. His brother is semi-sympathetic but more in the background. Chris gets out of the jam somehow. Just when you think all is well, the show ends with Chris unable to enjoy his triumph.

I really saw the seams in last night's episode, where he was arrested because the police thought the cookies he was selling (in order to be able to go on a class trip) were stolen. And, at the same time, his siblings had chicken pox. And, after about 2/3 of the show, I said to RP, "He'll get chicken pox when they go on the trip." And, sure enough, that was the ending.

Now, don't get me wrong. I don't hate the show, in fact, I like it, but it is really formulaic and I'd like to see something different. I have to say, the kid playing Chris is very good and his sister is a very good child actor. The kid playing the brother is wooden, a terrible actor. Fortunately, he doesn't have many lines. It also seems to be a pretty real portrayal of people trying to make it who don't have much and have to work hard in order to have what they have -- and you can also see what keeps them down. Of course there are exaggerations (it's a television comedy, after all), but the kernel of it feels almost authentic.

But I do wish they'd break out of the formula once in a while. I know the show is about Chris and I get that it's his looking-back perspective, but it would be a refreshing change to see more of a focus on, say, Tanya (the sister) at times. There have been some shows focusing more on the parents, but inevitably one part of the story line is, Chris gets in trouble, he gets out of it, but then gets hit with irony at the end. And that's got to change if the show is to have a hope of surviving beyond a few years.

Well, it's the childhood (supposedly) of Chris Rock, who's standup is based on ironic observations and cynicism so I guess "Everybody Hates Chris" (note the title) is a showcase for how he became who he is today.

I like the show, so it was pretty good. Wasn't the best episode though. I think it was the one where Raymond bought a CD player.