"Chris" keeps it real - mad real

If you haven’t checked out “Everybody Hates Chris” (UPN, Thursdays), I wanna know what your goddamn problem is – and don’t tell me it’s because you’re too busy watching “Joey”.

UPN has scored a mainstream winner with “Chris” – in fact, it beat that horrific “Friends” spin-off in the ratings last week. By God, people are watching UPN!

But it’s easy to see why “Chris” is catching on: It has all the makings of a big hit comedy, with enough humanity to make it classic. Sure, it is based on the childhood of- and narrated by – the hugely popular Chris Rock, but this is no “Everybody Loves Raymond” sitcom. Set in period-perfect 1980s Brooklyn, this is not only Rock’s childhood, its also the source of his material. From dealing with typical childhood traumas (bullies, girls, siblings) to poignant observations on poverty and racism, “Chris” is more of an heir to “Wonder Years” than “Bernie Mac”. It’s also the first family-style comedy in years that has appealed to me with its fresh writing and characters.

Yes, it’s hilarious when young Chris (played by a precocious Tyler James Williams) tries to “outblack” a bully at his new all-white school…but it’s also quietly touching when the narrator reflects on something as simple as a father’s unspoken love (reflected in the fact he actually returns home after work every day). Sure Chris’ parents have crazy little tics that likely gave their son endless material, but they are also loving, responsible and appropriately stern.

Most importantly, the characters, settings and plots of “Chris” show a black America Cosby completely ignored during the same era. “The Cosby Show” was beloved by a multiracial audience, but the reason it was accepted into mainstream TV was that the situations made them seem like every other TV character of the time. The Huxtables were educated, well-to-do and lenient parents. Their kids were perfect overachievers. Crime, poverty and racism never seemed to enter their lives. In “Chris”, the world is raw, scary, and fraught with pickpockets, racist schoolchildren and a dad who has to work two jobs just to get by. You get the impression that Rochelle Rock could kick Claire Huxtable’s ass without a thought – but she also seems even more believable because of it.

Are white audiences ready for a “real” black show? Will they stick with it? It’s hard to tell, but I’d like to think that Rock’s popularity and crossover appeal will keep this show thriving on the little network that could.