10 Scenes To Remind Us Why We Love The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air

8. Carlton Goes Gangsta - 72 Hours

Once again Will leads preppy Carlton astray and bets him that he wouldn't last long in a rough part of the neighbourhood. However, Carlton exceeds everyone's expectations when, bizarrely, he provides financial advice to get himself down with the homies. Ok, so the premise sounds ridiculous and of course it's far-fetched but it does what The Fresh Prince' does best €“ it makes us laugh. It's lighthearted and it's fun to see Carlton actually gaining approval from the cool kids for once. It's even more endearing and funny as the nerdy side to Carlton still shines through, beaming goofily at how they've accepted him as one of their own. Carlton's guileless character is the premise for many of the shows gags and his naivety and gullibility follow a long line of similarly attributed and adored characters, such as Father Ted's Father Dougal McGuire and Only Fools And Horses's Rodney Trotter. He is probably one of the more endearing characters in the show, and the one who's appeal transcended the sitcom itself, especially bearing in mind that Will Smith was basically playing himself. It's a fair bet that you could get somebody who isn't overly familiar with the show to do a passable Carlton Dance. Another notable aspect of this show was the willingness to highlight the world of difference between different cultures within the black community. Carlton is being set up for a fall by his streetwise cousin, who thinks he wouldn't survive five minutes in the hood due to his inherent stuffiness and preppyness. It's a good bet that in less enlightened times, this scenario would be played with a black and a white character. The Fresh Prince did a lot of good in depicting a realistic portrayal of black communities in the late 80's and early 90's, where not everyone from the same racial background could be pigeonholed into the same stereotype.