Lincoln Heights 1.8.07

So, did anyone else catch this new series on ABC Family last night? Unfortunately, this time slot is going to be a problem. 7pm? I'm barely dragging myself through the door from work at the time, but lucky for me, the premiere re-aired at 10pm.

First of all, it was so refreshing to see a regular Black family on TV. And the premise of the show is timely, as a lot of middle-class African-Americans are choosing to buy fixer-upers and move back to the 'hood, so to speak, as we've particularly seen in some areas of Washington, D.C., Chicago, Harlem, Cincinnati and Oakland.

I loved that these were not the stereotypical characters we often see in family dramas - the "rebellious and promiscuous" teenage daughter, the "confused" middle child or the "strung out on rap music and on-the-brink of gang life" son. Here, we have well-developed characters that are not far from the norm. Cassie, the teenage daughter who doing her best to set an example for her siblings, Lizzie, the middle daughter who just wants some playing time on the basketball court, and Taylor, a diabetic son (nice touch) who doesn't talk Ebonically and loves his sister. That was the overwhelming sense I got from this show - love. How rare on TV to find a cast of family members who actually love each other (I haven't seen ABC's Brothers and Sisters, so I don't know what goes on there).

The relationship between mom and dad (Jen and Eddie) reminds me of Claire and Cliff on The Cosby Show. They talk to each other nicely; care for one another; and wants nothing more than for the other to be happy.

But, I guess you can tell with all this "love" floating around, the show would be sappy. And yes, it does have its cheesy moments - like when Edie takes Lizze and Taylor for a ride "around the old neighborhood" - but its never corny. You're rooting for this family to win - or at least I was.

There were many touches of realism to ground the story - Eddie is a cop moving into a neighborhood where cops are disliked and not trusted; neighbors who are not welcoming with open arms (but do eventually come around) and mainstream/White friends who can't understand why'd you ever want to move back to the 'hood. I wish they hadn't killed off Darnell. I was looking forward to him and Eddie learning to like one another and teaming up to patrol the neighborhood, but I sense that the repercussions of Darnell's death will reverberate and have lasting repercussions for Eddie and his family.

This show is very genuine and honest - it can be a bit earnest at times, but hey, it's ABC Family. The acting was fine, though Jen was so sullen in the beginning. She didn't crack a smile until near the end of the episode and we didn't really get a glimpse of her personality until she helped Taylor out of his money troubles, which was very clever. Charles, Cassie's love interest, seems like a nice guy, and I can appreciate his backstory of going to the "brig" for protecting his mom from an abusive husband.

Overall, I liked it. I wonder how it's going to fare on ABC Family. I hope it gets a fair shot. This is actaully the type of show I'd like to see on CW. But on the other hand...I've seen more promotion of Lincoln Heights, including a humongous billboard right outside of New York City's Penn Station, than I've seen of any show on the CW.