Common Sense Media Review
By Emily Ashby
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Thoughtful HBCU-set sitcom celebrates Black joy, friendship.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 10+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
A Different World
What's the Story?
Spun off of the family sitcom The Cosby Show, A DIFFERENT WORLD follows Denise Huxtable (Lisa Bonet) to Hillman College, where she meets memorable characters such as often-snooty Southern belle Whitley Gilbert (Jasmine Guy), engineer Dwayne Wayne (Kadeem Hardison), fun-loving Ron Johnson (Darryl Bell), focused pre-med student Kim Reese (Charnele Brown), and everybody's favorite cafeteria cook, Mr. Gaines (Lou Myers). As the years pass, students evolve into teachers and professionals; dating turns into engagements and marriage. Lots of things change, but Hillman College students and alums always have one another's backs.
Is It Any Good?
Denise (and Bonet) might have been this groundbreaking spin-off's calling card, but she left the show after the first season. That might have been a death knell for a lesser series, but A Different World is saved by producer-director Debbie Allen, who drew on her own experiences as a student at Howard University to set a cutting edge—but still easily accessible—tone for social life on an African American campus. Great casting, rich characters, and unique personalities make the show's six-season run enjoyable from start to finish. In particular, Whitley and Dwayne's intense love-hate relationship offers lots of laughs, as well as a meaningful finale.
Tweens and teens might enjoy getting a glimpse of the social workings of college life, and, despite the show's age, the fact that it has nuanced Black women in leading roles still looks progressive today. A Different World also shows a commendable willingness to take on tough subjects like politics, HIV/AIDS, and racial discrimination, though—falling into the sitcom trap—even the biggest problems are solved in the course of a 30-minute episode.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how college is portrayed in A Different World. What challenges do college students face? What kinds of challenges are unique to Black Americans? How does a historically Black school like Hillman College support students and teachers with those unique issues?
Which characters show courage, communication skills, and integrity? How do these character strengths help them to achieve their goals?
How is dating portrayed on the show? How has technology or social progress changed the way people flirt, date, and think about marriage today? What's stayed the same?
TV Details
- Premiere date : September 24, 1987
- Cast : Lisa Bonet , Jasmine Guy , Kadeem Hardison
- Networks : Nickelodeon , Oxygen
- Genre : Comedy
- Topics : Friendship , School ( College & Graduate School )
- Character Strengths : Communication , Courage , Integrity
- TV rating :
- Awards : Emmy - Emmy Award Nominee , NAACP Image Award - NAACP Image Award Winner , NAACP Image Award - NAACP Image Award Nominee
- Last updated : September 23, 2026
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