"The Bernie Mac show"

“The Bernie Mac show” is a half hour comedy act on fox channel, inspired by the real life comedian Bernie Mac and his distinctive views and unique outlook on parenting. The show paints a hilarious picture and presents an entertaining image of Bernie’s evolution and his unique take on parenthood. The show is set on number of episodes, slightly related and interconnected to each other, progressing Bernie and the family as a whole in real life related situation. The show intends to present a lesson in parenting, where Bernie Mac is put in a family related crisis, taking you through the process of dealing with it by commenting on it in a comic way.
DISCREPTION
The show is in somehow based on his stand up comedy act. Similar to the standup act, Mac’s character on the show starts with him being married to Wanda with no children of his own. In the first episode, in a clear, bold and straight up approach, Mac and his wife mention their intentions of never having to raise kids. Since he is a busy, successful standup comedian and a movie star and Wanda is a vice president of a major advertising corporation, they never had the time to raise a family of their own. But as fate interferes, Mac and his wife are left with the responsibility of his sister’s kids. The first episode sets the basis of the show; Bernie Mac takes in his sister three children after she enters rehab. Three kids create the supporting cast in the show. Vanessa being the old one, a young typical teenager, rebellious at times, finds it hard to adapt to the new rules and systems that her uncle Bernie enforces. As the show goes on, Vanessa starts to accept her new family and grown-up to be the older sister that her uncle wants her to be. Jordan, the second child ten years old, takes on the fun brother part that doesn’t care for the situation his family in. he is portrayed as the girly kid that act below his age, often, annoying his sisters and pissing off his uncle. As for the third child Bryana the youngest kid, the show goes over her growing stage from an innocent child, Uncle Bernie’s favorite, to mature young “evil” teenager.
The show is laid out in format, in which emotional scenes and analysis processes are set in segments called “America”. In these segments Mac, while still in character, breaks the TV barrier and talks to his audience addressing them as a whole nation, America. The lighting in these segments appears to be yellowish in color. Mac uses this segment to impose his opinion regarding the situation of the episode. He often describes in these shots his old school ideas of discipline and child rearing, which collide with society’s correct philosophy of how children should be raised. His famous quote “bust the children heads until the white meat shows” reflects the values and ideology that Mac tries to preach to parents of his generation. Referring to kids today as too sassy and talk back too much, Mac believes that children should learn to respect their elders. Therefore he insists in these acts that the right school to follow in raising kids is the school of tough love.
Since the show is based on real life characters, the setting is set in lavish house suitable for such successful celebrity as Bernie Mac. The Scenes are mostly shot inside or around the house, with exception in couple episodes where the story needs to be moved to a certain location.
ANALYSIS
There are two main things that stand out in this show. The first is the hilarious and comic theme that the show addresses and plays upon. The show presents us with a common social problem that faces parents in modern era. It demonstrates the conflict between following the old pilgrims and the new system of raising a child. Bernie’s Mac solution by going back to the old days, where children were discipline by force and touch love, sounds appealing to parents fed up with their children rebellious manner. On the other hand, the show touches on the flaws that children nowadays sustain from been to free and responsible at a young age.
Second is the idea of using the concept of standup comedy and applied in a sitcom. Mac uses the address America scenes to present to the audience an actual act to relate to his views and thoughts. Unlike standup comedy were words are used to set a descriptive picture of what is happening, Mac takes advantage of having other actors to accurately paint a situation in which he preaches his thoughts on parenthood.