227

The first 3 seasons were absolutely amazing!!! Setting the standard for black television in the late 80s. As soon as season 4 started there was absolutely NO life in the show. The addition of irrelevant characters was Terrible. They were trying to add more youth, more diversity and it really brought the show to its knees. Absolutely dreadful. With Mary daydreaming in almost every episode it was just an overall failure the last 2 seasons. I just can't describe the lifelessness behind those last 2 seasons. I feel like they had new writers or producers who made them take the show in different directions.

This show and Amen both aired on NBC. Both show featured the comic genius of two Jeffersons' alums, Sherman Hemsley, and Marla Gibbs. We all watched her play the wisecracking maid, Florence Johnston, on the Jeffersons. Now she shines in her own show but not without a great supporting cast. There is Emmy winning Jackee Harry as Sandra, her upstairs neighbor, or veteran actress Helen Martin as the nosy neighbor on the stoop. The show was named 227 after it's address. No it was set in Washington D.C. of all place, a nice change in location. Hal Williams played the ideal spouse to Marla Gibbs' husband. If you look, you will see Regina King who is on her way to becoming a star with credits like Jerry Maguire and Ray. It was a good show with wholesome family entertainment.

After Marla Gibbs left "The Jeffersons" she walked right into her own show: "227." 227 was the apartment number she lived in and it's where everything happened. It's where Pearl Shay (Helen Martin) sat at the window and clowned folks. It's where Sandra Clark (Jackee Harry) sassed it up. And it's where we got our first look at Regina King (she played the daughter, Brenda Jenkins) whose career is only getting stronger the older she gets.

"227" was another family favorite in our house. My mother tuned into it weekly and I enjoyed it as well. Not a whole lot happened on their stoop, but enough to make us laugh.

After her successful run as Florence on "The Jeffersons",actress Marla Gibbs takes Florence's sassy and intelligent character and applies it to everyday situations that always occurred on an apartment block in the developments of Washington,DC. But here is the catch: Its not Florence mind you. Marla's character is happliy married to a architect and has

a lovely teenage daughter. Her neighbors by the way is one lady and man-hungry woman who would try every scheme to get her one,often ending up with hilarious results. The other is their upstairs neighbor,who is a elderly lady who raises her teenage son,who has the hots for the teenage daughter. The show would become one of NBC's hottest commodities during its run in the 1980's when its was one of the peacock's ruling Saturday night line-up(which consisted of "227","Amen","The Golden Girls","Empty Nest",and the action packed drama "Hunter"),but it wouldn't last very long and they knew when to quit when they were ahead. "227" was that show. It was funny and it consisted of some very hilarious moments here. The show also skyrocketed Regina King to Hollywood status which after "227" went off the air King went on to star in several John Singleton films like "Boyz in the Hood","Higher Learning",and "Poetic Justice",and to star opposite Will Smith(aka,"Fresh Prince")in "Enemy of the State". The series also had regulars on weekly and fellow actors Hal Williams,Jackee Harry,and Helen Martin. Great Show.

Episodes usually begin with the daily gossip on the front stairs of 227. There was one episode featuring Sherman Hemsley; the character thought Mary was a maid and the two spar is if they were still on The Jeffersons together. Jackee Harry is wonderful as Sandra. The episode that caught my attention is on disc 2: "We The People." This story is about Lester's supposedly wealthy friend who becomes the building's maintenance man. He doesn't complete all jobs and wears the same shirt for many days. Pearl senses something fishy when the maintenance man's friends enter but don't leave the building. Pearl and Mary visit the man to figure out what is happening and the door is opened for Mary.