Smart Guy
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Smart Guy
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this TV show.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Smart Guy is a sitcom from the late 1990s featuring a Black family led by a caring single father and includes a 10-year-old-boy attending high school with his older siblings. There are lots of jokes about teen hormones as well as storylines about dating. The siblings tease each other about their looks, intelligence, etc. The brother figuratively threatens to "kill" his little brother. There's mention of grandpa "cussing out the other drivers" and about a kid getting "a whoopin" when report cards come out. In one episode, a likable character smokes a cigarette in the bathroom because "ladies like bad boys." At the end of each episode a conflict is resolved using communication and, often, apologizing.
What's the Story?
SMART GUY is a sitcom from the late 1990s featuring a Black family led by a single father who sometimes stumbles through the challenges of parenting. His youngest child (TJ) is an academic prodigy who's recently left the 4th grader to join his older siblings in high school.
Is It Any Good?
Parents of a certain age will recognize a lot of familiar faces in this 90s sitcom. Smart Guy is centered on a caring, if sometimes overwhelmed, father (played by John Marshall Jones) who's faced with raising a child prodigy on top of being a single parent -- something not seen in a Black family sitcom before this. As was the case with most shows of the era, there's a heavy reliance on one-line zingers, cheesy studio audience "oohs" and "aahs," and romantic melodrama between both kids and adults. There are also things that wouldn't fly on a family show today, e.g. kids shown smoking in the school bathroom and boys of all ages relentlessly hitting on just about every girl they come across. Nevertheless, the family is a loving and supportive one and TJ (Tahj Mowry) does a great job keeping the laughs coming, despite being the victim of one too many short jokes. Like most shows from the 90s, you may enjoy watching it together with your kids but it's probably not one you want to turn on and leave them on their own with.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how TJ is treated at school. Do most of the kids accept him? How does he demonstrate resilience?
Talk about how the boys talk to the girls in this show, specifically when they're romantically interested. Is it respectful? How do the girls respond? How do you think these scenes would be portrayed differently if the show was made today?
Many of the jokes in this show rely on insults. Talk about if insulting people is ok in the name of humor. What if the jokes are about friends and they say they're ok with it? What might the people being teased be really feeling?
TV Details
- Premiere date: March 27, 1997
- Cast: Tahj Mowry, Omar Gooding, Essence Atkins
- Network: Disney+
- Genre: Comedy
- Topics: Brothers and Sisters
- TV rating: TV-G
- Last updated: October 28, 2022
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