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Surprisingly, the show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise. It also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie).
to:
Surprisingly, the show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise. It also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie).FranchiseZombie), [[TheNineties from 1990 to 1996]].
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* TheNineties: the feel of the decade is especially notable in the opening sequence for the show.
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** It also turned out he was a hilariously failed Olympic competitor, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txv0hUPW1_k the "Shame of a Nation", as the documentary on him was titled]].
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** It also turned out he was a hilariously failed Olympic competitor, runner, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txv0hUPW1_k the "Shame of a Nation", as the documentary on him was titled]]. [[http://runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=6417 The taxi story actually happened, to Rosie Ruiz at the 1980 Boston Marathon]], and led to much more race security since.
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* TheDanza: Subverted, Will Smith plays Will Smith. However, in real life, Will's actual name is Willard, while in-show, Will's name is William. On an episode of DavidLetterman, Smith said that Alfonso Ribero advised him to do this, because people would be calling him by his character's name for the rest of his life.
to:
* TheDanza: Subverted, Will Smith plays Will Smith. However, in real life, Will's actual name is Willard, while in-show, Will's name is William. On an episode of DavidLetterman, DavidLetterman and again [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFjwbKMlmF4&feature=relmfu on Graham Norton]], Smith said that Alfonso Ribero advised him to do this, because people would be calling him by his character's name for the rest of his life.life, as demonstrated by the fact they went out and were called "Will!" and "Carlton!"
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* DroppedABridgeOnHim: Trevor, Hillary's vacuous co-host and later finacee, got killed during a botched bungee wedding proposal.
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* DroppedABridgeOnHim: Trevor, Hillary's vacuous co-host and later finacee, got killed during a botched bungee wedding proposal. On live television. [[CrossesTheLineTwice With the entire family watching]].
-->''Hilary! Will you marry--''
-->''Hilary! Will you marry--''
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** It also turned out he was a hilariously failed Olympic competitor, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txv0hUPW1_k the "Shame of a Nation", as the documentary on him was titled]].
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'''''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''''' is a SitCom that was created as a vehicle for the popular rapper "The Fresh Prince" (WillSmith) to get a break as a bankable actor. A young, street-savvy hip-hopper from Philadelphia is forced to move to Bel-Air, California with his rich relatives after he pisses off some gangsters. The RealitySubtext is just as grim: A Grammy-winning rapper is forced to [[RatedGForGangsta take the lead role in a family sitcom]] after [[IntimidatingRevenueService he pisses off the IRS]]. In ''both'' cases, HilarityEnsues.
to:
'''''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''''' is a SitCom that was created as a vehicle for the popular rapper "The Fresh Prince" (WillSmith) to get a break as a bankable actor. A young, street-savvy hip-hopper from Philadelphia is forced to move to Bel-Air, California with his rich relatives after he pisses off some gangsters. The RealitySubtext is just as grim: A Grammy-winning rapper is forced to [[RatedGForGangsta take the lead role in a family sitcom]] after [[IntimidatingRevenueService he pisses off the IRS]]. In ''both'' both cases, HilarityEnsues.
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The show was unique on how it presented a major clash between what was a stereotypical black personality and a black family that was upper class. Unlike ''TheCosbyShow'' or ''FamilyMatters'', Will would suggest that Carlton was not as black as he was, but was phased out through CharacterDevelopment when Will [[StopBeingStereotypical saw Carlton be discriminated that way]].
to:
The show was unique on how it presented a major clash between what was a stereotypical black personality and a black family that was upper class. Unlike ''TheCosbyShow'' or ''FamilyMatters'', Will would suggest that Carlton was not as black as he was, but was; this was phased out through CharacterDevelopment when Will [[StopBeingStereotypical saw Carlton be discriminated that way]].
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* CastingGag: "Hey! Your Isaac Hayes impression '''[[YourCostumeNeedsWork SUCKS!!]]'''"
-->'''Isaac Hayes''': Really? I thought it was pretty good.
-->'''Isaac Hayes''': Really? I thought it was pretty good.
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Changed line(s) 7,10 (click to see context) from:
'''''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''''' is a SitCom that was created as a vehicle for the popular rapper "The Fresh Prince" (WillSmith) to get a break as a bankable actor. A young, street-savvy hip-hopper from Philadelphia is forced to move to Bel-Air, California with his rich relatives after he pisses off some gangsters. The counter-culture clash makes sure that HilarityEnsues.
The RealitySubtext is just as grim: A Grammy-winning rapper is forced to take the lead role in a family sitcom after [[IntimidatingRevenueService he pisses off the IRS]]. Surprisingly, the show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise. It also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie).
The RealitySubtext is just as grim: A Grammy-winning rapper is forced to take the lead role in a family sitcom after [[IntimidatingRevenueService he pisses off the IRS]]. Surprisingly, the show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise. It also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie).
to:
'''''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''''' is a SitCom that was created as a vehicle for the popular rapper "The Fresh Prince" (WillSmith) to get a break as a bankable actor. A young, street-savvy hip-hopper from Philadelphia is forced to move to Bel-Air, California with his rich relatives after he pisses off some gangsters. The counter-culture clash makes sure that RealitySubtext is just as grim: A Grammy-winning rapper is forced to [[RatedGForGangsta take the lead role in a family sitcom]] after [[IntimidatingRevenueService he pisses off the IRS]]. In ''both'' cases, HilarityEnsues.
The RealitySubtext is just as grim: A Grammy-winning rapper is forced to take the lead role in a family sitcom after [[IntimidatingRevenueService he pisses off the IRS]]. Surprisingly, the show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise. It also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie).
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Changed line(s) 7,8 (click to see context) from:
'''''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''''' is a SitCom that was created as a vehicle for the popular rapper "The Fresh Prince" (WillSmith) to get a break as a bankable actor. While the show certainly did launch his acting career, it also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie). The comedy came in the premise: a young, street-savvy hip-hopper from Philadelphia is forced to move to Bel-Air, California with his rich relatives after he pisses off some gangsters. The counter-culture clash makes sure HilarityEnsues.
to:
'''''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''''' is a SitCom that was created as a vehicle for the popular rapper "The Fresh Prince" (WillSmith) to get a break as a bankable actor. While the show certainly did launch his acting career, it also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie). The comedy came in the premise: a A young, street-savvy hip-hopper from Philadelphia is forced to move to Bel-Air, California with his rich relatives after he pisses off some gangsters. gangsters. The counter-culture clash makes sure HilarityEnsues.
that HilarityEnsues.
The RealitySubtext is just as grim: A Grammy-winning rapper is forced to take the lead role in a family sitcom after [[IntimidatingRevenueService he pisses off the IRS]]. Surprisingly, the show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise. It also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie).
The RealitySubtext is just as grim: A Grammy-winning rapper is forced to take the lead role in a family sitcom after [[IntimidatingRevenueService he pisses off the IRS]]. Surprisingly, the show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise. It also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie).
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The show was unique on how it presented a major clash between what was a stereotypical black personality and a black family that was upper class. Unlike ''TheCosbyShow'' or ''FamilyMatters'', Will would suggest that Carlton was not as black as he was, but was phased out through CharacterDevelopment when Will [[StopBeingStereotypical saw Carlton be discriminated that way]]. The show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a surprisingly well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise.
to:
The show was unique on how it presented a major clash between what was a stereotypical black personality and a black family that was upper class. Unlike ''TheCosbyShow'' or ''FamilyMatters'', Will would suggest that Carlton was not as black as he was, but was phased out through CharacterDevelopment when Will [[StopBeingStereotypical saw Carlton be discriminated that way]]. The show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a surprisingly well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise.\n
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* DroppedABridgeOnHim: Trevor, Hillary's vacuous co-host and later finacee, got killed during a botched bungee wedding proposal.
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The show was unique on how it presented a major clash between what was a stereotypical black personality and a black family that was upper class. Unlike ''TheCosbyShow'' or ''FamilyMatters'', Will would suggest that Carlton was not as black as he was, but was phased out through CharacterDevelopment when Will saw Carlton be discriminated that way. The show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a surprisingly well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise.
to:
The show was unique on how it presented a major clash between what was a stereotypical black personality and a black family that was upper class. Unlike ''TheCosbyShow'' or ''FamilyMatters'', Will would suggest that Carlton was not as black as he was, but was phased out through CharacterDevelopment when Will [[StopBeingStereotypical saw Carlton be discriminated that way.way]]. The show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a surprisingly well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise.
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!The show used many standard Tropes, including:
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** "Oh, please, like they're gonna take someone who's never acted before and give him his own TV show!" (another AsideGlance)
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** "Oh, please, like they're gonna take [[SelfDeprecation someone who's never acted before before]] and give him his own TV show!" (another AsideGlance)
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** Played much more seriously during heavy moments, usually with Carlton. One particularly dark moment occurred when Will was shot.
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*** It wouldn't be [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/ThePursuitOfHappyness?from=Main.ThePursuitOfHappyness the last time either.]]
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Changed line(s) 207 (click to see context) from:
* TitleSequenceReplacement: TBS shortened the opening credits and switched the soundtrack, so it seems more like the end credits. To a long time fan of the show, it can be very jarring.
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* TitleSequenceReplacement: Recently, TBS shortened the opening credits and switched the soundtrack, so it seems more like the end credits. To a long time fan of the show, it can be very jarring.
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* TitleSequenceReplacement: TBS shortened the opening credits and switched the soundtrack, so it seems more like the end credits. To a long time fan of the show, it can be very jarring.
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* TheDanza: Subverted, Will Smith plays Will Smith. However, in real life, Will's actual name is Willard, while in-show, Will's name is William.
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* TheDanza: Subverted, Will Smith plays Will Smith. However, in real life, Will's actual name is Willard, while in-show, Will's name is William. On an episode of DavidLetterman, Smith said that Alfonso Ribero advised him to do this, because people would be calling him by his character's name for the rest of his life.
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Moving to /Trvia/
Deleted line(s) 117 (click to see context) :
* IAmNotSpock: Averted: Will Smith chose to call his character "Will Smith" because he knew he would be refered to as his character's name for the rest of his life.
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* IAmNotSpock: Averted: Will Smith chose to call his character "Will Smith" because he knew he would be refered to as his character's name for the rest of his life.
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Changing the sentence to be more accurate
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* NeverSpeakIllOfTheDead: Subverted with the death of Judge Carl Robertson. Will and Phil (who agreed to do his eulogy despite humiliating him in an election) did this trope, but everyone else at the funeral openly commented about what a lousy guy Robertson was. Will eventually chastises everyone for speaking ill of the dead. One of them asks who he is and Will responds that he's the one who killed him (Robertson died from a heart attack immediately after Will told him to "drop dead"). Everybody claps. Will eventually gives up, saying "tough crowd."
to:
* NeverSpeakIllOfTheDead: Subverted with the death of Judge Carl Robertson. Will and Phil (who agreed to do his eulogy despite humiliating being humiliated by him in an election) did this trope, but everyone else at the funeral openly commented about what a lousy guy Robertson was. Will eventually chastises everyone for speaking ill of the dead. One of them asks who he is and Will responds that he's the one who killed him (Robertson died from a heart attack immediately after Will told him to "drop dead"). Everybody claps. Will eventually gives up, saying "tough crowd."
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--> '''Will''': [[TearJerker Why don't he want me, man?]]
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--> '''Will''': [[TearJerker Why How come he don't he want me, man?]]
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The primary relationship was between Will and his uptight cousin Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro), who was about the same age. Will also got on his Uncle Phil's (James Avery) nerves more then anyone else, balanced only by Phil's wife, Vivian (Janet Hubert-Whitten for the first two seasons, [[TheOtherDarrin Darrined]] by Daphne Maxwell Reid later). The youngest daughter, Ashley (Tatyana M. Ali), thought Will was cool and the older daughter, Hilary (Karyn Parsons), was usually [[TheDitz too airheaded]] to really notice him.
to:
The primary relationship was between Will and his uptight cousin Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro), who was about the same age. Will also got on his Uncle Phil's (James Avery) nerves more then anyone else, balanced only by Phil's wife, Vivian (Janet Hubert-Whitten for the first two three seasons, [[TheOtherDarrin Darrined]] by Daphne Maxwell Reid later). The youngest daughter, Ashley (Tatyana M. Ali), thought Will was cool and the older daughter, Hilary (Karyn Parsons), was usually [[TheDitz too airheaded]] to really notice him.
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Changed line(s) 166,167 (click to see context) from:
* {{Profiling}}: Carlton and Will get arrested for Driving While Black in Phil's car. To clarify: Phil's car is a BMW. Carlton thinks the police were doing their job (they ''were'' goofing around and arguing in the car and generally being suspicious), Will thinks it's profiling.
** It ends on a DownerEnding. Carlton keeps insisting they were doing their job, even after Phil comes and threatens to sue the place and everyone in there if they don't release Will and Carlton. Carlton asks Phil "They were just doing their job, right?" Phil responds "I thought so too... the first time I got pulled over."
** It ends on a DownerEnding. Carlton keeps insisting they were doing their job, even after Phil comes and threatens to sue the place and everyone in there if they don't release Will and Carlton. Carlton asks Phil "They were just doing their job, right?" Phil responds "I thought so too... the first time I got pulled over."
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* {{Profiling}}: Carlton and Will get arrested for Driving While Black in Phil's car. To clarify: Phil's car is a BMW. while on their way to Palm Springs, as Carlton thinks was assigned with driving the car of Mr. Firth, a work associate of Phil's. Carlton was convinced that the police were only doing their job (they ''were'' goofing around and arguing in the car and job, as their behavior was generally being suspicious), suspicious (mainly how slow they were driving), but Will thinks it's believed it was racial profiling.
** It ends on aDownerEnding. DownerEnding, as Carlton strongly keeps insisting they were doing their job, his stance on the matter, even after Phil comes came to save them and threatens threatened to sue the place and everyone in there down if they don't release Will and Carlton. Carlton. Carlton asks Phil, "Dad, if you were a cop and you saw someone driving a car at two miles an hour, would you stop them?" To which Phil "They were just doing their job, right?" Phil responds "I thought so too... responds, "That's what I asked myself the first time I got was pulled over."" He then goes to bed, leaving a conflicted Carlton to ponder the events, seemingly incapable to realize, through his sheer naivety, that he was a victim to racism.
** It ends on a
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*** In that last case, it turns out Will actually ''did'' vaguely know the BoyzIIMen guys from Philly...he stole one of the singer's girlfriends. Of course Will doesn't realize this, as BoyzIIMen weren't famous yet when this happened, causing him to brag about how he stole a girl named Neezy from some glasses-wearing guy who was always singing SillyLoveSongs with three other guys...before stopping midsentence and realizing with horror that those were the members of BoyzIIMen before they were famous. As a result, they throw Will out of the studio, though they eventually forgive him and sing for Nicky's sake (and because it ''is'' Christmas time).
to:
*** In that last case, it turns out Will actually ''did'' vaguely know the BoyzIIMen Boyz II Men guys from Philly...he stole one of the singer's girlfriends. Of course Will doesn't realize this, as BoyzIIMen Boyz II Men weren't famous yet when this happened, causing him to brag about how he stole a girl named Neezy from some glasses-wearing guy who was always singing SillyLoveSongs with three other guys...before stopping midsentence and realizing with horror as it dawns on him that those were the members of BoyzIIMen Boyz II Men before they were famous. As a result, they throw Will out of the studio, though they eventually forgive him and sing for Nicky's sake (and because it ''is'' Christmas time).
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Changed line(s) 59 (click to see context) from:
** In another episde, Will claims to be friends with Boyz II Men and promises to get them for Nicky's christening. After he fails and prepares to admit the truth, the group actually does show up, singing "Silent Night" and telling Will "Merry Christmas".
to:
** In another episde, episode, Will claims to be friends with Boyz II Men and promises to get them for Nicky's christening. After he fails and prepares to admit the truth, the group actually does show up, singing "Silent Night" and telling Will "Merry Christmas".Christmas".
*** In that last case, it turns out Will actually ''did'' vaguely know the BoyzIIMen guys from Philly...he stole one of the singer's girlfriends. Of course Will doesn't realize this, as BoyzIIMen weren't famous yet when this happened, causing him to brag about how he stole a girl named Neezy from some glasses-wearing guy who was always singing SillyLoveSongs with three other guys...before stopping midsentence and realizing with horror that those were the members of BoyzIIMen before they were famous. As a result, they throw Will out of the studio, though they eventually forgive him and sing for Nicky's sake (and because it ''is'' Christmas time).
*** In that last case, it turns out Will actually ''did'' vaguely know the BoyzIIMen guys from Philly...he stole one of the singer's girlfriends. Of course Will doesn't realize this, as BoyzIIMen weren't famous yet when this happened, causing him to brag about how he stole a girl named Neezy from some glasses-wearing guy who was always singing SillyLoveSongs with three other guys...before stopping midsentence and realizing with horror that those were the members of BoyzIIMen before they were famous. As a result, they throw Will out of the studio, though they eventually forgive him and sing for Nicky's sake (and because it ''is'' Christmas time).
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* LastNameBasis: This is how the staff at Bel-Air Prep address their pupils, with the exception of a third grade class of OneEpisodeWonder{{s}}.
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* LastNameBasis: This is how the staff at Bel-Air Prep address their pupils, with the exception of a third grade class of OneEpisodeWonder{{s}}.{{One Episode Wonder}}s.
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** In another episde, Will claims to be friends with Boyz II Men and promises to get them for Nicky's christening. After he fails and prepares to admit the truth, the group actually does show up, singing "Silent Night" and telling Will "Merry Christmas".
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* DoubleEntendre: In "Be My Baby Tonight", Will is on the phone with his girlfriend, when Ashley and her friend Kevin walk in. He then changes his the subject to his "book report on Alaska". "And the United States said, you know, I'm thinking of laying a pipeline, are you interested?"
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* BlackGalOnWhiteGuyDrama: Will's aunt marries a white man in a VerySpecialEpisode.
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** The Carlton Dance has remained a very popular gag, and Alfonso Ribeira is frequently asked to perform it.
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** The Carlton Dance has remained a very popular gag, and Alfonso Ribeira Ribeiro is frequently asked to perform it.
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* ColonelBogeyMarch: "The Peacock Strut", the fight song for [[CaliforniaUniversity ULA]].
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* [=~Life Isn't Fair~=]: PlayedForLaughs.
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* [=~Life Isn't Fair~=]: LifeIsntFair: PlayedForLaughs.
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[[quoteright:340:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fresh_prince_of_bel_air_1013.jpg]]
-> ''Now, this is a story all about how''
-> ''My life got flipped, turned upside down''
-> ''And I'd like to take a minute, just sit right there''
-> ''I'll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel Air!''
'''''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''''' is a SitCom that was created as a vehicle for the popular rapper "The Fresh Prince" (WillSmith) to get a break as a bankable actor. While the show certainly did launch his acting career, it also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie). The comedy came in the premise: a young, street-savvy hip-hopper from Philadelphia is forced to move to Bel-Air, California with his rich relatives after he pisses off some gangsters. The counter-culture clash makes sure HilarityEnsues.
The primary relationship was between Will and his uptight cousin Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro), who was about the same age. Will also got on his Uncle Phil's (James Avery) nerves more then anyone else, balanced only by Phil's wife, Vivian (Janet Hubert-Whitten for the first two seasons, [[TheOtherDarrin Darrined]] by Daphne Maxwell Reid later). The youngest daughter, Ashley (Tatyana M. Ali), thought Will was cool and the older daughter, Hilary (Karyn Parsons), was usually [[TheDitz too airheaded]] to really notice him.
The show was unique on how it presented a major clash between what was a stereotypical black personality and a black family that was upper class. Unlike ''TheCosbyShow'' or ''FamilyMatters'', Will would suggest that Carlton was not as black as he was, but was phased out through CharacterDevelopment when Will saw Carlton be discriminated that way. The show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a surprisingly well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise.
----
!The show used many standard Tropes, including:
* {{Aborted Arc}}: The small storyline involving Will's friend, Jackie.
* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: During the two-part episode late in the series where Ashley becomes a pop star, the fame quickly goes to her head and she suddenly starts being mean to the entire family, even though she'd never done this before. The entire family naturally gets upset at her suddenly-snobbish behavior (except for Carlton, who tries to be her sycophant). [[StatusQuoIsGod At the end of the episode, when her short-lived pop career crashes and burns, Ashley realizes how the fame had gone to her head, and goes back to normal]].
* ActorAllusion: "You don't get it, Will. Parents just don't understand". (cue AsideGlance)
** "Oh, please, like they're gonna take someone who's never acted before and give him his own TV show!" (another AsideGlance)
** "Vivian, you are so naive. You'd believe that boy if he told you he was a rap star whose latest album just went platinum!" (cue AsideGlance from Janet Hubert Whitten rather than Will)
** In response to a character's truthful claim, Will sarcastically snaps, "Yeah, and I just won a Grammy".
** In the pilot, Hilary and Carlton's establishing moment is a fight in which they argue over the correct pronunciation of "Porsche". Alfonso Ribiero was in ''Silver Spoons'', wherein his character's father and Ricky Schroeder's character's father had a very similar argument.
** Any time Carlton dances, it's hilariously dorky... unless it's to MichaelJackson, in which case he busts out moves worthy of Michael himself; Ribiero was a backup dancer for Jackson before he was cast on ''The Fresh Prince''.
* AdultChild: Carlton, holy crap, Carlton. Quite a few of the episodes revolve around Will trying to break him out of this.
** Will has his moments, too - such as when he gets a hold of some ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars: {{Transformers}}'' action figures.
** Will academically ([[SmartBall sometimes]]) and Carlton socially, in general, so they both see each other, but not themselves, this way.
* AllJustADream: A Halloween episode where Will inadvertently gets the family hexed when he mocks the fortune teller doing a seance to communicate with Hilary's dead fiancee, Trevor. Ends with a OrWasItADream when the end of the episode plays out exactly like the beginning much to Will's horror.
* AnAesop
* AnnoyingPatient: Vivian, near the end of her pregnancy.
* AsideGlance: Often, courtesy of Will. [[RuleOfFunny Always intentional.]]
* BadGuysPlayPool
* BerserkButton: Uncle Phil doesn't hide the fact he is ''not'' a fan of Lou, Will's dead-beat father.
* BlackAndNerdy: Mostly Carlton, although apparently Will collects ''{{Transformers}}'' figures and reads comic books.
** Carlton comes off far more nerdy than Will, but it shouldn't be forgotten that Will was bullied and ostracized at school in Philly for actually studying.
** Also, those WesternAnimation/BeastWars figures were [[ShownTheirWork toy-only characters, properly named]], from the first line of WesternAnimation/BeastWars toys, before the show had even aired. Historically, the ''Transformers'' franchise was ''nearly dead'' at this time, and it was the WesternAnimation/BeastWars show that revived it. Someone working on the show (Will) had to be a fan to get that specific.
* BlackComedy: [[IThoughtItMeant No, not literally.]] Well, yes, but it applies both literally and figuratively, and, um... oh, forget it. Just have some examples.
** The entire episode in which Hillary's fiance is killed during his "EXTREME" proposal (bungee-diving).
** The episode in which Phillip Banks' election opponent dies, and everyone who shows up to the funeral celebrates his death.
* BowtiesAreCool: Carlton and Geoffrey, more often than not.
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Hilary.
** Ashley became one during the last 2 or 3 seasons.
** Lady Penelope.
* BreakTheHaughty: Done to Carlton a few times, mostly in the first season when he continues to look down his nose at Will's rough background. Ironically also happens to Will when he looks down on Carlton for not being "black" or "street" enough.
* BreakingTheFourthWall: One of the best TV shows as far as incorporating this trope from time to time.
-->'''Will''': If we're so rich...how come we can't afford no ceiling? *camera pans up to studio lights*
-->'''Jazz''': So, who's playing [[TheOtherDarrin the wife]] this year?
** In one instance during TheTag, Will counter-pranked Carlton by claiming to have killed Lisa (a woman who would later become his girlfriend, was initially sent to embarass him due to how he treated women). Carlton ran off the house shrieking. The camera followed him for a several minutes as he ran around the various sets, passed through the studio audience and eventually exited the studio where he hugged Will.
* BrickJoke: The Whodunit game in "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum"
** [[RuleOfThree three times...]]
* BrilliantButLazy: Arguably Will. In one episode, he scores higher than Carlton, someone who usually gets very good grades, on a standardized test. Will scores in the 91st percentile while Carlton scores in the 90th. The thing is, Will didn't even study for the test while Carlton studied his ass off. Naturally, Carlton is ''pissed''.
** Will won over a Princeton recruiter by solving a rubik's cube in only a few seconds.
** Will has also shown an adeptness for poetry and the piano.
* BrokenAesop: In the drug episode "Just Say Yo", the moral should obviously be "Don't do drugs". But as Will never wanted Carlton to do any drugs, but was just tired and confused, it was actually Carlton's own fault, if he takes pills from an unlabelled container. The unbelievably stupid way Carlton acted on his own account marks even more important messages: "Don't just take pills when you aren't even exactly sure what it is!" and "Don't take pills from an unlabelled container!" and "Don't just assume the dose of pills you need to take!" The Aesop is not really about the wilful use of illegal drugs at all.
* ButtMonkey: Carlton falls into this at times, though Jazz gets into the act.
* {{Casanova}}: Will and Jazz.
* CastAsAMask: The "Fresh Prince: The Movie" episode had John "Fingers" O'Neill (Brad Garrett) appear twice. The first time was in a story about Will and the Banks family going into the Witness Protection Program, the second time in person (when Fingers comes to hassle Will in Bel Air, Will runs off in terror). [[spoiler: The second time, "Fingers" unmasks and reveals himself to be Jazz, out for payback after Will and Carlton used the story to hustle Jazz out of his cash at poker.]]
* TheCastShowoff: Alfonso Ribiero [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDyfKIKYmcA getting to show off his dancing chops.]]
* CelebrityLie: Early on, Hilary often claimed to be friends with a lot of celebrities as part of her activism and such. By [[ChristmasEpisode "Deck the Halls"]], Will gets so sick of it that he tells her to stop lying about it - only to later be surprised to find the trope inverted. Both Evander Holyfield and later Ronald Reagan stop by the house due to the episode's events and personally greet her.
* CelebrityParadox: Will not only repeatedly references ''TheCosbyShow'', not only references Malcolm Jamal-Warner specifically, but in one episode tells a detailed story claiming that Jamal-Warner is a close, personal friend who calls him for advice on women. A later episode has Jamal-Warner playing Hilary's boyfriend Eric.
** Similarly, Ashley is shown to be a fan of both Tevin Campbell and in-universe teen heart-throb Little T (who was played by Campbell).
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: The first season had Carlton as a pompous SmugSnake rival to Will. Starting in season 2, after being a ButtMonkey and having emotional breakdowns, he became the lovable nerdy goofball we all know today. Likewise, in the first season, Hillary is portrayed as a shallow, spoiled, socialite and environmental activist. Since season two she became just shallow and spoiled.
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Well, Nicky anyway. [[SpoiledBrat Those cousins that only occasionally show up, however...]]
* ChronicVillainy: Geoffrey switches back and forward between plotting against and hating the family and feeling genuine affection for them throughout the series.
* ClarkKentOutfit: Carlton.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Carlton, at times. Geoffrey, if drunk. Jazz, most of the time. Hilary too. Even Will has his moments.
* CockFight: The midpoint of a two parter has Carlton and Will vying for the attention of the same woman.
* ColdTurkeysAreEverywhere: A variant in "Be My Baby Tonight", when Ashley asks Will about sex, he suddenly hears double entendres everywhere. When Ashley's boyfriend comes in for their date, he asks if she's ready. Then, on the TV, the game announcer asks "[[ShoutOut Where is the most unusual place]] [[TheNewlywedGame you've made whoopee?]]" Then, when Will turns on the radio, all that comes on is the song "I Wanna Sex You Up". Carlton comes in and says he's late for his date with his girlfriend who can "tie a knot with her tongue". You get the picture.
* ComedicSociopathy: Geoffrey has his moments.
** Vivian is horrified when Will walks in the door with his long-lost father:
-->'''Vivian:''' Will, honey, you should have called. You ''really should have called''.
-->'''Will:''' But I called and told Geoffrey to tell you...
-->'''Geoffrey:''' Mm, I thought it would be more fun this way. ''And I was right!''
* CrossingTheBurntBridge: Will and Carlton trick Geoffrey into thinking he's won the lottery, causing him to cheerfully dance around and call everyone out before the truth is revealed. In a variation, while everyone forgives him (the boys take most of the blame) he's too embarrassed to return, and is the one that needs to be coaxed back.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: While there's the MemeticMutation of the Carlton Dance, he's shown to be a very able dancer in Season 5 episode "Sooooul Train". Counts as an ActorAllusion since Alfonso Ribeiro used to be one of MichaelJackson's backup dancers.
** Now, if anyone can pick Will's jaw up from the floor...
** Not to mention his strip-tease in Season 2's finale, "Strip-Tease For Two", to what sounds very much like the music from "Billie Jean". He even throws in a Michael Jackson yell.
* DaddyDidntShow: [[spoiler: Well, he ''did'', but only to let Phil & Vivian know that he wasn't taking Will with him after all.]]
* TheDanza: Subverted, Will Smith plays Will Smith. However, in real life, Will's actual name is Willard, while in-show, Will's name is William.
** Will's best friend from Philly, "Jazz" was played by DJ Jazzy Jeff
* DeadpanSnarker: Geoffrey. The rest of the family sometimes snarks back.
* DeadPetSketch
* DepravedHomosexual: Will checks out an apartment and the landlord implies Will is going to have to have relations with him to stay there.
** Also, in the episode where Will is in the witness protection program (coughnotreallycough):
-->'''Random Hillbilly (to Will):''' [[MemeticMutation So I herd]] [[HilariousInHindsight u liek]] dancin'... ''(grins)''
* DropInCharacter: Jazz, though he's more like "Throw Out Character"....
* ElephantInTheLivingRoom: "Am I alone in this, or did y'all know he was white? I mean - tall."
* EmbarrassingMiddleName: Geoffrey's middle name is "Barbara".
--> "It's a ''family'' name!"
* ExpansionPackPast: Geoffrey claims to have been butler to both ChuckNorris and LedZeppelin before his tenure with the Bankses.
* ExpositoryThemeTune: Now a meme; functions much like the [[MemeticMutation Rickroll]].
* ForHalloweenIAmGoingAsMyself: In one episode, it's stated that Uncle Phil always goes to Halloween parties as a judge. In the end, he simply wears street clothes and says he's "someone who doesn't want to be here."
* FranchiseZombie: James Avery (Uncle Phil) even commended Will Smith on wanting to leave the show on a high note instead of keep it dragging on.
* GaussianGirl: Frequently, usually involving Carlton.
* GenderBlenderName: When Will joins the cast of a soap opera and reads the script, he thinks the Jodie that his character is in love with is a woman. Then the character comes on stage and is revealed to be a man.
* GeniusDitz: Carlton.
** Even Will was like this a little bit, a friend mentioned how he would hide his textbooks and study times from people back in Philly, lest he be targeted for fights and mocked. It helps said friend was there to protect him. It was based on the real Will Smith being a surprisingly excellent student.
* GoshDarnItToHeck: Carlton. Actual quote: "Heck, you guys! ''Heck!''"
* HaHaHaNo: Used many times by Uncle Phil, which is always followed by an explosion.
--> '''Vivian:''' Will, honey? Run.
* HappilyMarried: Phil and Vivian.
** There was a two-part estrangement episode, however.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: Will and Jazz are a... mild version. They even had a break-up episode.
** There was also ''this'' exchange:
-->'''Will:''' ''Look at us, arguing like an old married couple!''
-->'''Jazz:''' ''Oh, so now I'm old?''
*** From that same conversation:
-->'''Jazz:''' ''How come you never take me out anymore?!''
-->'''Will:''' ''Well, maybe if you fixed yourself up a little!''
** Although Will was slow to admit this, he was also this with Carlton after a while.
* HighSchoolHustler: Will, although most of his schemes were done at home with Uncle Phil being the DeanBitterman.
* HilariousOuttakes: The episode "I, Whoops, There It Is" was dedicated to this. Many episodes also ended with the credits playing over the flubs.
* HotMom: Both Vivians. Take, for example, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URQTdF1zIvs The Leotard]].
* ICallItVera: One episode featured Phil's custom pool cue, named Lucille. Uncle Phil was hustling a pool hustler, and in the first game asked Geoffrey to hand him "one of those stick thingies." Then in the second game, where the stakes were far higher, he told Geoffrey to "break out Lucille."
* ICommaNoun: The last six episode titles, including "Eye, Tooth," and I, Done.
* InsistentTerminology: "They're ACTION FIGURES!"
* IWasQuiteALooker: Phillip, in an episode flashback taking place from before he became a corporate lawyer & still lived in the old neighborhood, was shown to be svelte, good looking & have a full head of hair.
* IvyLeagueForEveryone
* TheJeeves: Geoffrey.
* JerkJock: One shot character Hank Farley.
* JustSmileAndNod: When Will and Carlton are about to have a meeting with some record company executives:
-->'''Will''': Now remember: agree with everything I say and disagree with everything they say.\\
'''Carlton''': Why don't I just smile and nod?\\
'''Will''': ''[{{beat}}]'' Even better.
* KilledMidSentence: [[spoiler: HILLARY BANKS! WILL...YOU...MARRY M-*THUD*]]
* LampshadeHanging: On Nicky's SoapOperaRapidAgingSyndrome, and some other occasions.
--> '''Jazz:''' So who's playing the mom this season?
** Another occassion:
-->'''Will:''' ''If we so rich...how come we can't afford no ceiling?''* camera pans up to look at the studios lights hanging over the set*
* LastNameBasis: This is how the staff at Bel-Air Prep address their pupils, with the exception of a third grade class of OneEpisodeWonder{{s}}.
* LetsGetDangerous: Threatened by Vivian to a racist cop who [[ItMakesSenseInContext wrongfully locked up Will and Carlton]]:
-->'''Cop''': Could you please sit down? [[BlatantLies We're busy here]].\\
'''Vivian''': ''(taking off her earrings)'' Oh, honey, we're about to get ''very'' busy here!
* [=~Life Isn't Fair~=]: PlayedForLaughs.
-->'''Carlton''': Life isn't fair, Will. I mean, was it fair when Disney/{{Bambi}}'s mother died?
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: Ashley and Hilary.
* LikeASonToMe: Uncle Phil's entire relationship towards Will. In the last episode, he even calls Will ''[[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming his]]'' son.
* LimitedWardrobe: While Jazz did have a variety of outfits, in order to keep {{continuity}} for a certain RunningGag, he only wore one particular set of clothing prior to being thrown out of the house. This is because they almost never refilmed the punchline.
* MamaBear: Vivian. Especially evident when Will's dad comes back.
* MayDecemberRomance: Will with Phil's college sweetheart when she seduces him.
* MediumAwareness: See Reset Button.
* MoneyDearBoy: Had it not been for Will Smith's financial troubles (he overspent, and didn't pay income taxes) during his initial music career, the series would never have happened.
* NearRapeExperience: In a manner of speaking; in one episode, Will's then-girlfriend tells him that she doesn't want to have sex with him because she believes in virginity until marriage. Rather than respect her wishes, he instead tries to trick her into bed by having Jazz set up a fake wedding ceremony for the two of them. He backs down and confesses at the last minute, and she responds by punching him in the face and stealing the car he borrowed from Phil.
* NeverSpeakIllOfTheDead: Subverted with the death of Judge Carl Robertson. Will and Phil (who agreed to do his eulogy despite humiliating him in an election) did this trope, but everyone else at the funeral openly commented about what a lousy guy Robertson was. Will eventually chastises everyone for speaking ill of the dead. One of them asks who he is and Will responds that he's the one who killed him (Robertson died from a heart attack immediately after Will told him to "drop dead"). Everybody claps. Will eventually gives up, saying "tough crowd."
* NewYearsResolution
* NoFourthWall: Will occasionally looks directly at the camera, once asks why the Banks' house has no ceiling and describes someone as "the dude spinning me over his head in the credits", but the pinnacle of this trope is probably the season 5 opener. With the last season ending with Will deciding to move home it seems to be setting up for at least an episode of Will choosing between Philly and Bel-Air. Instead, he's working happily at his Philadelphia job when an NBC executive shows up, tells him his contract clearly states "''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''", and bundles him into the back of a van. [[ResetButton Roll credits.]]
** Thats the pinnacle? What about the episode where Carlton runs through all the different sets and the studio audience screaming (as described above).
* NonActorVehicle: a rare successful example.
* ObliviousToLove: Carlton at times. For example, in the episode where he loses his virginity, he is describing his ideal woman to Will. A woman who fits all of the characteristics walks into the store and says she needs to find something, and he says "Listen lady, we're talking".
* OldShame: Geoffrey's secret was that he was a long distance runner who cheated while representing Britain at the 1976 Olympic. He got ahead of the other racers by '''taking a cab to the stadium'''. He was immediately found out and his gold medal was taken away. In England, he is "The Shame of a Nation".
* OnceAnEpisode: Hilary being a ditz, Will calling Carlton short, Will calling Uncle Phil fat.
* OneSteveLimit: As Geoffrey the butler is a regular character, DJ Jazzy Jeff's character goes by Jazz at all times.
* OverprotectiveDad: Phil, in regards to Ashley and sometimes Hilary. And, [[PapaWolf if in serious trouble]], Will and Carlton.
** The BatmanGambit he pulled in the billiard bar, complete with IAmNotLeftHanded, to save Will's ass comes to mind.
* PaintingTheFourthWall: The first episode had the catchy theme tune in its extended version, and concluding with Will knocking on the front door. The episode then starts inside the house where Geoffery lets Will inside, dressed exactly as how the opening concluded.
* PalmFistTap: Both Will and Carlton do this.
* PapaWolf: Uncle Phil, full stop. Usually either [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW9pklBXqk4 a ]] CrowningMomentOfAwesome / [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming Heatwarming]], or [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANEur7L9dVU a]] CrowningMomentOfFunny.
* PeripheryHatedom: Dougie the Dinosaur, who is totally not Barney. Will, of course, finds the idea of someone loving everyone to be [[LampshadeHanging impossible]]:
-->'''Will:''' Dougie says he loves everything...am I the only one who finds this disturbing? *starts sarcastically singing to the tune of Dougie's theme song* ''I love bugs and I love death, I love oozing flesh wounds!''
* PickUpBabesWithBabes: When Will sees how popular a single father at school is, he lies that his cousin, Nicky, is his son. He then embellishes the story even further which causes people to start giving more and more stuff, culminating in a trip to Hawaii because of his "courage". Will feels bad, comes clean and gives everything to a guy with a baby. When everyone leaves, the guy thanks him... and adds "Just Between You and Me, this isn't my kid. Aloha." OUCH.
* PopularSayingBut: Sticks and stones may break my bones, but a fifty foot fall will kill y'all!
* PostScriptSeason: The third, fourth and fifth season finales were written to be a respectable farewell in case they didn't get another season. The sixth season GrandFinale was written with the full knowledge it would not continue.
* {{Profiling}}: Carlton and Will get arrested for Driving While Black in Phil's car. To clarify: Phil's car is a BMW. Carlton thinks the police were doing their job (they ''were'' goofing around and arguing in the car and generally being suspicious), Will thinks it's profiling.
** It ends on a DownerEnding. Carlton keeps insisting they were doing their job, even after Phil comes and threatens to sue the place and everyone in there if they don't release Will and Carlton. Carlton asks Phil "They were just doing their job, right?" Phil responds "I thought so too... the first time I got pulled over."
* PrimalScene: In a [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFuKgleL63M&feature=related scene]] where Will walks in on his mom having sex, and then attracts the attention of the rest of the house because of his exasperated cries.
* PrisonEpisode: "Mistaken Identity" has both Will and Carton arrested due to racial profiling. In "There's the Rub", Will and Phil are mistakenly jailed for solicitation.
* PutMeInCoach: A failed version; Carlton airballs the final shot in a game, after ''wrestling'' with Will for the ball. It goes wide left of the basket. Granted, it's like he didn't have a reason: ever since Will had joined the school's basketball team, his talent caught the coach's eyes in a way that he practically played alone. This went to Will's head in such a way he became a kind of JerkJock (in-court only, so here's a subversion) and Carlton couldn't take it anymore.
* RagsToRiches: Will can count. Jazz keeps trying to do this.
* RawEggsMakeYouStronger: Will prepares to fight the guy who spun him on his head on the opening credits. He goes through a full TrainingMontage, complete with drinking raw eggs, and by that we mean, trying to swallow them and then instantly spitting them out and fainting.
* ReallyGetsAround: Before settling with Lisa, Will pretty much had a different girlfriend per episode.
* ResetButton: A season ended with Will moving back to Philadelphia. It was reset in two minutes flat in the next year's opener, and heavily, ''heavily'' lampshaded: he's kidnapped by NBC Executives to get tossed back into Bel-Air.
* RiskyBusinessDance: Geoffrey does this, dancing through the Banks' living room.
* RunningGag: Jazz (wearing a white and gold dashiki) being thrown out the front door of the house. Notably, the Jazz-being-thrown-out gag is StockFootage (complete with tape-rolling noise). The first time it's used, it is used again for the typical cases (i.e. not described here). The only time the sequence is reshot is when he gets thrown out along with a Bill Cosby cardboard cutout (the episode in which it happens shows him doing the take over and over again in the credits bloopers).
** Jazz [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] this in one episode, when after an annoyed Phil glares at him, he simply grabs the back of his own collar and, deadpan, throws himself out.
*** Defied in one episode where Will gets so mad at Jazz that when Jazz asks Will if he isn't going to throw him out, Will says that Jazz isn't worth it.
*** When the two make up, Jazz asks Will to do something for him "for old times sake". Will smiles and says "Sure." Next shot is of Jazz being thrown out of the house.
*** Also brilliantly subverted in a dream episode where Jazz and Hillary announce that they're getting married. Phil goes to throw Jazz out -- but it's Phil who gets kicked out the house.
*** And then there's the time that they're already outside, and Jazz comments that Phil can't throw him out. Phil throws him *into* the house.
*** The situation was also reversed once with Will, after Will showed some last minute edits to Philip's campaign commercial, Phil throws Will out of the house.
** The Carlton Dance has remained a very popular gag, and Alfonso Ribeira is frequently asked to perform it.
* SadClown: Will. When his father walks out on him, his veener of indifference completely cracks.
--> '''Will''': [[TearJerker Why don't he want me, man?]]
* SawStarWarsTwentySevenTimes: When Carlton's ex-girlfriend comes back with a baby she claims is his, Will explains to Phil and Vivian that the baby belongs to "a young man who has seen ''TheLittleMermaid'' eight times."
* SchoolBullyingIsHarmless: When Ashley is bullied by another girl, it turns out [[spoiler: to have just been a misunderstanding, and they talk and reconcile.]]
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Carlton and Will.
* ServileSnarker: Geoffrey. Sometimes it went to a ridiculous level where we really ended up wondering why Uncle Phil didn't fire him. Not that he didn't have his kindly moments however.
* SheIsAllGrownUp: Ashley in the later seasons.
* SoapOperaRapidAgingSyndrome: Nicky Banks goes from a baby to six over a season break.
-->[[LampshadeHanging "I'm going back to the street, where things make sense!"]]
* SoProudOfYou: In the GrandFinale, Philip tells Will that he considers him to be his son.
* ShoutOut: Though Will Smith's birth name is "Willard", his character's official name is "William". Occasionally people will call him "Willard", under the guise of giving him a hard time.
** In one episode, Will relates a story that [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/IHaveThisFriend happened to a friend]] of his. Being Will, he begins to say his own name before changing it to "Willard".
** OpeningShoutOut
** The opening ''itself'' is a ShoutOut to the video for "Parents Just Don't Understand"; they have the exact same visual style (this is especially noticeable in the "extended" versions of the ThemeTune).
* StayingWithFriends
* StopBeingStereotypical: A recurring theme of some episodes.
* StylisticSuck: A funny variation, as the "Carlton Dance" is meant to look ridiculous and Carlton is generally made fun of for dancing that way. The truth is you can see there is actually a great deal of coordination required and the few times Will performs the same dance, you can tell he isn't quite as smooth at it.
* TakeThat: Will criticizes Dougie--talking dinosaur, kids' show host--of always being happy and loving everything. [[Series/BarneyAndFriends Hmmm...]]
* TheTalk: Happens in one entire episode involving Ashley's curiousness about sex.
* TemptingFate: After Will overdecorates the house in the ChristmasEpisode, he yells at the neighbour who calls them to complain, demanding they meet face to face so he can confront them. When the guy shows up, it's Evander Holyfield, the heavyweight Champion of the world.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Will gives one to Juggles the Clown after he holds up a courthouse to display his "comedy" routine.
* ThemeTuneRap: Now this is a story...
* ThrowItIn
* TokenWhite: Occasionally Will would have a white friend at school. Most didn't last long as characters. However, one of Will's aunts got involved with a [[DiscriminateAndSwitch tall]] man, who would eventually become so accepted by the family that he and Will would make jokes about ''Carlton'' being the token white member of the group.
** Lampshaded in one episode at a ski resort when one of Vivian's sisters complains that they (the family) are the only black people they see there. Her white husband remarks, "Don't be silly. Everywhere I turn, I see another black person", after which she almost falls down laughing.
* TrainingMontage: Parodied in the Season 4 finale, when Will returns to Philadelphia (which is appropriate, since that's Rocky Balboa's hometown): after he finishes climbing up the staircase of the Museum of Art, he starts celebrating, but he's so tired that he faints - and then some guy comes by and steals his wallet and his hat.
* UglyGuyHotWife: Uncle Phil isn't ugly, but he's definitely overweight. But in true DomCom style, in Vivian, he has a gorgeous, svelte wife. In fact, given the recasting of Janet Hubert-Whitten with Daphne Maxwell Reid, he technically gets TWO. Unlike most cases, the difference is acknowledged (thanks to Will's constant teasing and Vivian's occasional gentle ribbing), and Vivian makes a point of telling Will that Phil's weight does not bother her "one bit".
** And underneath that gut James Avery is built like a friggin' tank. The man was also in the Navy and fought in Vietnam.
** Also in some flashback episodes, it shows Phil as thin with a full head of hair, so he wasn't always a CHUD.
* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The show is laden with contemporary pop culture references, especially in the earlier seasons, which had frequent references to early 1990s politics-related things such as Desert Storm and Dan Quayle, and celebrity scandals such as Zsa Zsa Gabor's slapping of a police and evangelist Jimmy Swaggart's arrest for solicitation.
* UpperClassTwit: The entire Banks family, Hilary in particular. They all get moments that subvert it, though.
* VerySpecialEpisode: A few, including two on racial profiling (one where the head of a fraternity chooses Will over Carlton because Carlton doesn't act stereotypically black, and another where Carlton and Will are arrested by a racist cop), one on drug abuse (where Will buys amphetamines and Carlton takes them, thinking it's medication he needs to get rid of a pimple), an arc on Will getting shot and Carlton buying a gun for [[strike:protection]] revenge, and the episode where Will reunites with his deadbeat father (played by Ben Vereen), only to see him leave again.
* WhyDoYouKeepChangingJobs: A character played by Darryl Sivad has appeared various times as a park ranger, emergency medic and fireman, always with a laid back attitude and making inappropriate jokes, much to the consternation of the main characters.
* WhyWasteAWedding: Will and Lisa decide not to get married during their wedding ceremony, so Will's mother and Lisa's father get married instead.
* YourCostumeNeedsWork: In one episode, Will and Lisa almost get a quickie Vegas ''{{Shaft}}''-themed wedding, but come to their senses at the last minute. As they're leaving, Will tells the priest that his Issac Hayes impression sucks; the priest (played, of course, by Issac Hayes) says he didn't think it was ''that'' bad.
* ZettaiRyouiki: In the later seasons, Ashley, her friends and some extras often wear Grade B socks.
----
-> ''Now, this is a story all about how''
-> ''My life got flipped, turned upside down''
-> ''And I'd like to take a minute, just sit right there''
-> ''I'll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel Air!''
'''''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''''' is a SitCom that was created as a vehicle for the popular rapper "The Fresh Prince" (WillSmith) to get a break as a bankable actor. While the show certainly did launch his acting career, it also aired for a respectable six seasons (an intentional decision as to not make it a FranchiseZombie). The comedy came in the premise: a young, street-savvy hip-hopper from Philadelphia is forced to move to Bel-Air, California with his rich relatives after he pisses off some gangsters. The counter-culture clash makes sure HilarityEnsues.
The primary relationship was between Will and his uptight cousin Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro), who was about the same age. Will also got on his Uncle Phil's (James Avery) nerves more then anyone else, balanced only by Phil's wife, Vivian (Janet Hubert-Whitten for the first two seasons, [[TheOtherDarrin Darrined]] by Daphne Maxwell Reid later). The youngest daughter, Ashley (Tatyana M. Ali), thought Will was cool and the older daughter, Hilary (Karyn Parsons), was usually [[TheDitz too airheaded]] to really notice him.
The show was unique on how it presented a major clash between what was a stereotypical black personality and a black family that was upper class. Unlike ''TheCosbyShow'' or ''FamilyMatters'', Will would suggest that Carlton was not as black as he was, but was phased out through CharacterDevelopment when Will saw Carlton be discriminated that way. The show is well-regarded today, not just for launching Smith's acting career, but for being a surprisingly well-written ensemble comedy despite the gimmicky premise.
----
!The show used many standard Tropes, including:
* {{Aborted Arc}}: The small storyline involving Will's friend, Jackie.
* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: During the two-part episode late in the series where Ashley becomes a pop star, the fame quickly goes to her head and she suddenly starts being mean to the entire family, even though she'd never done this before. The entire family naturally gets upset at her suddenly-snobbish behavior (except for Carlton, who tries to be her sycophant). [[StatusQuoIsGod At the end of the episode, when her short-lived pop career crashes and burns, Ashley realizes how the fame had gone to her head, and goes back to normal]].
* ActorAllusion: "You don't get it, Will. Parents just don't understand". (cue AsideGlance)
** "Oh, please, like they're gonna take someone who's never acted before and give him his own TV show!" (another AsideGlance)
** "Vivian, you are so naive. You'd believe that boy if he told you he was a rap star whose latest album just went platinum!" (cue AsideGlance from Janet Hubert Whitten rather than Will)
** In response to a character's truthful claim, Will sarcastically snaps, "Yeah, and I just won a Grammy".
** In the pilot, Hilary and Carlton's establishing moment is a fight in which they argue over the correct pronunciation of "Porsche". Alfonso Ribiero was in ''Silver Spoons'', wherein his character's father and Ricky Schroeder's character's father had a very similar argument.
** Any time Carlton dances, it's hilariously dorky... unless it's to MichaelJackson, in which case he busts out moves worthy of Michael himself; Ribiero was a backup dancer for Jackson before he was cast on ''The Fresh Prince''.
* AdultChild: Carlton, holy crap, Carlton. Quite a few of the episodes revolve around Will trying to break him out of this.
** Will has his moments, too - such as when he gets a hold of some ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars: {{Transformers}}'' action figures.
** Will academically ([[SmartBall sometimes]]) and Carlton socially, in general, so they both see each other, but not themselves, this way.
* AllJustADream: A Halloween episode where Will inadvertently gets the family hexed when he mocks the fortune teller doing a seance to communicate with Hilary's dead fiancee, Trevor. Ends with a OrWasItADream when the end of the episode plays out exactly like the beginning much to Will's horror.
* AnAesop
* AnnoyingPatient: Vivian, near the end of her pregnancy.
* AsideGlance: Often, courtesy of Will. [[RuleOfFunny Always intentional.]]
* BadGuysPlayPool
* BerserkButton: Uncle Phil doesn't hide the fact he is ''not'' a fan of Lou, Will's dead-beat father.
* BlackAndNerdy: Mostly Carlton, although apparently Will collects ''{{Transformers}}'' figures and reads comic books.
** Carlton comes off far more nerdy than Will, but it shouldn't be forgotten that Will was bullied and ostracized at school in Philly for actually studying.
** Also, those WesternAnimation/BeastWars figures were [[ShownTheirWork toy-only characters, properly named]], from the first line of WesternAnimation/BeastWars toys, before the show had even aired. Historically, the ''Transformers'' franchise was ''nearly dead'' at this time, and it was the WesternAnimation/BeastWars show that revived it. Someone working on the show (Will) had to be a fan to get that specific.
* BlackComedy: [[IThoughtItMeant No, not literally.]] Well, yes, but it applies both literally and figuratively, and, um... oh, forget it. Just have some examples.
** The entire episode in which Hillary's fiance is killed during his "EXTREME" proposal (bungee-diving).
** The episode in which Phillip Banks' election opponent dies, and everyone who shows up to the funeral celebrates his death.
* BowtiesAreCool: Carlton and Geoffrey, more often than not.
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Hilary.
** Ashley became one during the last 2 or 3 seasons.
** Lady Penelope.
* BreakTheHaughty: Done to Carlton a few times, mostly in the first season when he continues to look down his nose at Will's rough background. Ironically also happens to Will when he looks down on Carlton for not being "black" or "street" enough.
* BreakingTheFourthWall: One of the best TV shows as far as incorporating this trope from time to time.
-->'''Will''': If we're so rich...how come we can't afford no ceiling? *camera pans up to studio lights*
-->'''Jazz''': So, who's playing [[TheOtherDarrin the wife]] this year?
** In one instance during TheTag, Will counter-pranked Carlton by claiming to have killed Lisa (a woman who would later become his girlfriend, was initially sent to embarass him due to how he treated women). Carlton ran off the house shrieking. The camera followed him for a several minutes as he ran around the various sets, passed through the studio audience and eventually exited the studio where he hugged Will.
* BrickJoke: The Whodunit game in "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum"
** [[RuleOfThree three times...]]
* BrilliantButLazy: Arguably Will. In one episode, he scores higher than Carlton, someone who usually gets very good grades, on a standardized test. Will scores in the 91st percentile while Carlton scores in the 90th. The thing is, Will didn't even study for the test while Carlton studied his ass off. Naturally, Carlton is ''pissed''.
** Will won over a Princeton recruiter by solving a rubik's cube in only a few seconds.
** Will has also shown an adeptness for poetry and the piano.
* BrokenAesop: In the drug episode "Just Say Yo", the moral should obviously be "Don't do drugs". But as Will never wanted Carlton to do any drugs, but was just tired and confused, it was actually Carlton's own fault, if he takes pills from an unlabelled container. The unbelievably stupid way Carlton acted on his own account marks even more important messages: "Don't just take pills when you aren't even exactly sure what it is!" and "Don't take pills from an unlabelled container!" and "Don't just assume the dose of pills you need to take!" The Aesop is not really about the wilful use of illegal drugs at all.
* ButtMonkey: Carlton falls into this at times, though Jazz gets into the act.
* {{Casanova}}: Will and Jazz.
* CastAsAMask: The "Fresh Prince: The Movie" episode had John "Fingers" O'Neill (Brad Garrett) appear twice. The first time was in a story about Will and the Banks family going into the Witness Protection Program, the second time in person (when Fingers comes to hassle Will in Bel Air, Will runs off in terror). [[spoiler: The second time, "Fingers" unmasks and reveals himself to be Jazz, out for payback after Will and Carlton used the story to hustle Jazz out of his cash at poker.]]
* TheCastShowoff: Alfonso Ribiero [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDyfKIKYmcA getting to show off his dancing chops.]]
* CelebrityLie: Early on, Hilary often claimed to be friends with a lot of celebrities as part of her activism and such. By [[ChristmasEpisode "Deck the Halls"]], Will gets so sick of it that he tells her to stop lying about it - only to later be surprised to find the trope inverted. Both Evander Holyfield and later Ronald Reagan stop by the house due to the episode's events and personally greet her.
* CelebrityParadox: Will not only repeatedly references ''TheCosbyShow'', not only references Malcolm Jamal-Warner specifically, but in one episode tells a detailed story claiming that Jamal-Warner is a close, personal friend who calls him for advice on women. A later episode has Jamal-Warner playing Hilary's boyfriend Eric.
** Similarly, Ashley is shown to be a fan of both Tevin Campbell and in-universe teen heart-throb Little T (who was played by Campbell).
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: The first season had Carlton as a pompous SmugSnake rival to Will. Starting in season 2, after being a ButtMonkey and having emotional breakdowns, he became the lovable nerdy goofball we all know today. Likewise, in the first season, Hillary is portrayed as a shallow, spoiled, socialite and environmental activist. Since season two she became just shallow and spoiled.
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Well, Nicky anyway. [[SpoiledBrat Those cousins that only occasionally show up, however...]]
* ChronicVillainy: Geoffrey switches back and forward between plotting against and hating the family and feeling genuine affection for them throughout the series.
* ClarkKentOutfit: Carlton.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Carlton, at times. Geoffrey, if drunk. Jazz, most of the time. Hilary too. Even Will has his moments.
* CockFight: The midpoint of a two parter has Carlton and Will vying for the attention of the same woman.
* ColdTurkeysAreEverywhere: A variant in "Be My Baby Tonight", when Ashley asks Will about sex, he suddenly hears double entendres everywhere. When Ashley's boyfriend comes in for their date, he asks if she's ready. Then, on the TV, the game announcer asks "[[ShoutOut Where is the most unusual place]] [[TheNewlywedGame you've made whoopee?]]" Then, when Will turns on the radio, all that comes on is the song "I Wanna Sex You Up". Carlton comes in and says he's late for his date with his girlfriend who can "tie a knot with her tongue". You get the picture.
* ComedicSociopathy: Geoffrey has his moments.
** Vivian is horrified when Will walks in the door with his long-lost father:
-->'''Vivian:''' Will, honey, you should have called. You ''really should have called''.
-->'''Will:''' But I called and told Geoffrey to tell you...
-->'''Geoffrey:''' Mm, I thought it would be more fun this way. ''And I was right!''
* CrossingTheBurntBridge: Will and Carlton trick Geoffrey into thinking he's won the lottery, causing him to cheerfully dance around and call everyone out before the truth is revealed. In a variation, while everyone forgives him (the boys take most of the blame) he's too embarrassed to return, and is the one that needs to be coaxed back.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: While there's the MemeticMutation of the Carlton Dance, he's shown to be a very able dancer in Season 5 episode "Sooooul Train". Counts as an ActorAllusion since Alfonso Ribeiro used to be one of MichaelJackson's backup dancers.
** Now, if anyone can pick Will's jaw up from the floor...
** Not to mention his strip-tease in Season 2's finale, "Strip-Tease For Two", to what sounds very much like the music from "Billie Jean". He even throws in a Michael Jackson yell.
* DaddyDidntShow: [[spoiler: Well, he ''did'', but only to let Phil & Vivian know that he wasn't taking Will with him after all.]]
* TheDanza: Subverted, Will Smith plays Will Smith. However, in real life, Will's actual name is Willard, while in-show, Will's name is William.
** Will's best friend from Philly, "Jazz" was played by DJ Jazzy Jeff
* DeadpanSnarker: Geoffrey. The rest of the family sometimes snarks back.
* DeadPetSketch
* DepravedHomosexual: Will checks out an apartment and the landlord implies Will is going to have to have relations with him to stay there.
** Also, in the episode where Will is in the witness protection program (coughnotreallycough):
-->'''Random Hillbilly (to Will):''' [[MemeticMutation So I herd]] [[HilariousInHindsight u liek]] dancin'... ''(grins)''
* DropInCharacter: Jazz, though he's more like "Throw Out Character"....
* ElephantInTheLivingRoom: "Am I alone in this, or did y'all know he was white? I mean - tall."
* EmbarrassingMiddleName: Geoffrey's middle name is "Barbara".
--> "It's a ''family'' name!"
* ExpansionPackPast: Geoffrey claims to have been butler to both ChuckNorris and LedZeppelin before his tenure with the Bankses.
* ExpositoryThemeTune: Now a meme; functions much like the [[MemeticMutation Rickroll]].
* ForHalloweenIAmGoingAsMyself: In one episode, it's stated that Uncle Phil always goes to Halloween parties as a judge. In the end, he simply wears street clothes and says he's "someone who doesn't want to be here."
* FranchiseZombie: James Avery (Uncle Phil) even commended Will Smith on wanting to leave the show on a high note instead of keep it dragging on.
* GaussianGirl: Frequently, usually involving Carlton.
* GenderBlenderName: When Will joins the cast of a soap opera and reads the script, he thinks the Jodie that his character is in love with is a woman. Then the character comes on stage and is revealed to be a man.
* GeniusDitz: Carlton.
** Even Will was like this a little bit, a friend mentioned how he would hide his textbooks and study times from people back in Philly, lest he be targeted for fights and mocked. It helps said friend was there to protect him. It was based on the real Will Smith being a surprisingly excellent student.
* GoshDarnItToHeck: Carlton. Actual quote: "Heck, you guys! ''Heck!''"
* HaHaHaNo: Used many times by Uncle Phil, which is always followed by an explosion.
--> '''Vivian:''' Will, honey? Run.
* HappilyMarried: Phil and Vivian.
** There was a two-part estrangement episode, however.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: Will and Jazz are a... mild version. They even had a break-up episode.
** There was also ''this'' exchange:
-->'''Will:''' ''Look at us, arguing like an old married couple!''
-->'''Jazz:''' ''Oh, so now I'm old?''
*** From that same conversation:
-->'''Jazz:''' ''How come you never take me out anymore?!''
-->'''Will:''' ''Well, maybe if you fixed yourself up a little!''
** Although Will was slow to admit this, he was also this with Carlton after a while.
* HighSchoolHustler: Will, although most of his schemes were done at home with Uncle Phil being the DeanBitterman.
* HilariousOuttakes: The episode "I, Whoops, There It Is" was dedicated to this. Many episodes also ended with the credits playing over the flubs.
* HotMom: Both Vivians. Take, for example, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URQTdF1zIvs The Leotard]].
* ICallItVera: One episode featured Phil's custom pool cue, named Lucille. Uncle Phil was hustling a pool hustler, and in the first game asked Geoffrey to hand him "one of those stick thingies." Then in the second game, where the stakes were far higher, he told Geoffrey to "break out Lucille."
* ICommaNoun: The last six episode titles, including "Eye, Tooth," and I, Done.
* InsistentTerminology: "They're ACTION FIGURES!"
* IWasQuiteALooker: Phillip, in an episode flashback taking place from before he became a corporate lawyer & still lived in the old neighborhood, was shown to be svelte, good looking & have a full head of hair.
* IvyLeagueForEveryone
* TheJeeves: Geoffrey.
* JerkJock: One shot character Hank Farley.
* JustSmileAndNod: When Will and Carlton are about to have a meeting with some record company executives:
-->'''Will''': Now remember: agree with everything I say and disagree with everything they say.\\
'''Carlton''': Why don't I just smile and nod?\\
'''Will''': ''[{{beat}}]'' Even better.
* KilledMidSentence: [[spoiler: HILLARY BANKS! WILL...YOU...MARRY M-*THUD*]]
* LampshadeHanging: On Nicky's SoapOperaRapidAgingSyndrome, and some other occasions.
--> '''Jazz:''' So who's playing the mom this season?
** Another occassion:
-->'''Will:''' ''If we so rich...how come we can't afford no ceiling?''* camera pans up to look at the studios lights hanging over the set*
* LastNameBasis: This is how the staff at Bel-Air Prep address their pupils, with the exception of a third grade class of OneEpisodeWonder{{s}}.
* LetsGetDangerous: Threatened by Vivian to a racist cop who [[ItMakesSenseInContext wrongfully locked up Will and Carlton]]:
-->'''Cop''': Could you please sit down? [[BlatantLies We're busy here]].\\
'''Vivian''': ''(taking off her earrings)'' Oh, honey, we're about to get ''very'' busy here!
* [=~Life Isn't Fair~=]: PlayedForLaughs.
-->'''Carlton''': Life isn't fair, Will. I mean, was it fair when Disney/{{Bambi}}'s mother died?
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: Ashley and Hilary.
* LikeASonToMe: Uncle Phil's entire relationship towards Will. In the last episode, he even calls Will ''[[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming his]]'' son.
* LimitedWardrobe: While Jazz did have a variety of outfits, in order to keep {{continuity}} for a certain RunningGag, he only wore one particular set of clothing prior to being thrown out of the house. This is because they almost never refilmed the punchline.
* MamaBear: Vivian. Especially evident when Will's dad comes back.
* MayDecemberRomance: Will with Phil's college sweetheart when she seduces him.
* MediumAwareness: See Reset Button.
* MoneyDearBoy: Had it not been for Will Smith's financial troubles (he overspent, and didn't pay income taxes) during his initial music career, the series would never have happened.
* NearRapeExperience: In a manner of speaking; in one episode, Will's then-girlfriend tells him that she doesn't want to have sex with him because she believes in virginity until marriage. Rather than respect her wishes, he instead tries to trick her into bed by having Jazz set up a fake wedding ceremony for the two of them. He backs down and confesses at the last minute, and she responds by punching him in the face and stealing the car he borrowed from Phil.
* NeverSpeakIllOfTheDead: Subverted with the death of Judge Carl Robertson. Will and Phil (who agreed to do his eulogy despite humiliating him in an election) did this trope, but everyone else at the funeral openly commented about what a lousy guy Robertson was. Will eventually chastises everyone for speaking ill of the dead. One of them asks who he is and Will responds that he's the one who killed him (Robertson died from a heart attack immediately after Will told him to "drop dead"). Everybody claps. Will eventually gives up, saying "tough crowd."
* NewYearsResolution
* NoFourthWall: Will occasionally looks directly at the camera, once asks why the Banks' house has no ceiling and describes someone as "the dude spinning me over his head in the credits", but the pinnacle of this trope is probably the season 5 opener. With the last season ending with Will deciding to move home it seems to be setting up for at least an episode of Will choosing between Philly and Bel-Air. Instead, he's working happily at his Philadelphia job when an NBC executive shows up, tells him his contract clearly states "''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air''", and bundles him into the back of a van. [[ResetButton Roll credits.]]
** Thats the pinnacle? What about the episode where Carlton runs through all the different sets and the studio audience screaming (as described above).
* NonActorVehicle: a rare successful example.
* ObliviousToLove: Carlton at times. For example, in the episode where he loses his virginity, he is describing his ideal woman to Will. A woman who fits all of the characteristics walks into the store and says she needs to find something, and he says "Listen lady, we're talking".
* OldShame: Geoffrey's secret was that he was a long distance runner who cheated while representing Britain at the 1976 Olympic. He got ahead of the other racers by '''taking a cab to the stadium'''. He was immediately found out and his gold medal was taken away. In England, he is "The Shame of a Nation".
* OnceAnEpisode: Hilary being a ditz, Will calling Carlton short, Will calling Uncle Phil fat.
* OneSteveLimit: As Geoffrey the butler is a regular character, DJ Jazzy Jeff's character goes by Jazz at all times.
* OverprotectiveDad: Phil, in regards to Ashley and sometimes Hilary. And, [[PapaWolf if in serious trouble]], Will and Carlton.
** The BatmanGambit he pulled in the billiard bar, complete with IAmNotLeftHanded, to save Will's ass comes to mind.
* PaintingTheFourthWall: The first episode had the catchy theme tune in its extended version, and concluding with Will knocking on the front door. The episode then starts inside the house where Geoffery lets Will inside, dressed exactly as how the opening concluded.
* PalmFistTap: Both Will and Carlton do this.
* PapaWolf: Uncle Phil, full stop. Usually either [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW9pklBXqk4 a ]] CrowningMomentOfAwesome / [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming Heatwarming]], or [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANEur7L9dVU a]] CrowningMomentOfFunny.
* PeripheryHatedom: Dougie the Dinosaur, who is totally not Barney. Will, of course, finds the idea of someone loving everyone to be [[LampshadeHanging impossible]]:
-->'''Will:''' Dougie says he loves everything...am I the only one who finds this disturbing? *starts sarcastically singing to the tune of Dougie's theme song* ''I love bugs and I love death, I love oozing flesh wounds!''
* PickUpBabesWithBabes: When Will sees how popular a single father at school is, he lies that his cousin, Nicky, is his son. He then embellishes the story even further which causes people to start giving more and more stuff, culminating in a trip to Hawaii because of his "courage". Will feels bad, comes clean and gives everything to a guy with a baby. When everyone leaves, the guy thanks him... and adds "Just Between You and Me, this isn't my kid. Aloha." OUCH.
* PopularSayingBut: Sticks and stones may break my bones, but a fifty foot fall will kill y'all!
* PostScriptSeason: The third, fourth and fifth season finales were written to be a respectable farewell in case they didn't get another season. The sixth season GrandFinale was written with the full knowledge it would not continue.
* {{Profiling}}: Carlton and Will get arrested for Driving While Black in Phil's car. To clarify: Phil's car is a BMW. Carlton thinks the police were doing their job (they ''were'' goofing around and arguing in the car and generally being suspicious), Will thinks it's profiling.
** It ends on a DownerEnding. Carlton keeps insisting they were doing their job, even after Phil comes and threatens to sue the place and everyone in there if they don't release Will and Carlton. Carlton asks Phil "They were just doing their job, right?" Phil responds "I thought so too... the first time I got pulled over."
* PrimalScene: In a [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFuKgleL63M&feature=related scene]] where Will walks in on his mom having sex, and then attracts the attention of the rest of the house because of his exasperated cries.
* PrisonEpisode: "Mistaken Identity" has both Will and Carton arrested due to racial profiling. In "There's the Rub", Will and Phil are mistakenly jailed for solicitation.
* PutMeInCoach: A failed version; Carlton airballs the final shot in a game, after ''wrestling'' with Will for the ball. It goes wide left of the basket. Granted, it's like he didn't have a reason: ever since Will had joined the school's basketball team, his talent caught the coach's eyes in a way that he practically played alone. This went to Will's head in such a way he became a kind of JerkJock (in-court only, so here's a subversion) and Carlton couldn't take it anymore.
* RagsToRiches: Will can count. Jazz keeps trying to do this.
* RawEggsMakeYouStronger: Will prepares to fight the guy who spun him on his head on the opening credits. He goes through a full TrainingMontage, complete with drinking raw eggs, and by that we mean, trying to swallow them and then instantly spitting them out and fainting.
* ReallyGetsAround: Before settling with Lisa, Will pretty much had a different girlfriend per episode.
* ResetButton: A season ended with Will moving back to Philadelphia. It was reset in two minutes flat in the next year's opener, and heavily, ''heavily'' lampshaded: he's kidnapped by NBC Executives to get tossed back into Bel-Air.
* RiskyBusinessDance: Geoffrey does this, dancing through the Banks' living room.
* RunningGag: Jazz (wearing a white and gold dashiki) being thrown out the front door of the house. Notably, the Jazz-being-thrown-out gag is StockFootage (complete with tape-rolling noise). The first time it's used, it is used again for the typical cases (i.e. not described here). The only time the sequence is reshot is when he gets thrown out along with a Bill Cosby cardboard cutout (the episode in which it happens shows him doing the take over and over again in the credits bloopers).
** Jazz [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] this in one episode, when after an annoyed Phil glares at him, he simply grabs the back of his own collar and, deadpan, throws himself out.
*** Defied in one episode where Will gets so mad at Jazz that when Jazz asks Will if he isn't going to throw him out, Will says that Jazz isn't worth it.
*** When the two make up, Jazz asks Will to do something for him "for old times sake". Will smiles and says "Sure." Next shot is of Jazz being thrown out of the house.
*** Also brilliantly subverted in a dream episode where Jazz and Hillary announce that they're getting married. Phil goes to throw Jazz out -- but it's Phil who gets kicked out the house.
*** And then there's the time that they're already outside, and Jazz comments that Phil can't throw him out. Phil throws him *into* the house.
*** The situation was also reversed once with Will, after Will showed some last minute edits to Philip's campaign commercial, Phil throws Will out of the house.
** The Carlton Dance has remained a very popular gag, and Alfonso Ribeira is frequently asked to perform it.
* SadClown: Will. When his father walks out on him, his veener of indifference completely cracks.
--> '''Will''': [[TearJerker Why don't he want me, man?]]
* SawStarWarsTwentySevenTimes: When Carlton's ex-girlfriend comes back with a baby she claims is his, Will explains to Phil and Vivian that the baby belongs to "a young man who has seen ''TheLittleMermaid'' eight times."
* SchoolBullyingIsHarmless: When Ashley is bullied by another girl, it turns out [[spoiler: to have just been a misunderstanding, and they talk and reconcile.]]
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Carlton and Will.
* ServileSnarker: Geoffrey. Sometimes it went to a ridiculous level where we really ended up wondering why Uncle Phil didn't fire him. Not that he didn't have his kindly moments however.
* SheIsAllGrownUp: Ashley in the later seasons.
* SoapOperaRapidAgingSyndrome: Nicky Banks goes from a baby to six over a season break.
-->[[LampshadeHanging "I'm going back to the street, where things make sense!"]]
* SoProudOfYou: In the GrandFinale, Philip tells Will that he considers him to be his son.
* ShoutOut: Though Will Smith's birth name is "Willard", his character's official name is "William". Occasionally people will call him "Willard", under the guise of giving him a hard time.
** In one episode, Will relates a story that [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/IHaveThisFriend happened to a friend]] of his. Being Will, he begins to say his own name before changing it to "Willard".
** OpeningShoutOut
** The opening ''itself'' is a ShoutOut to the video for "Parents Just Don't Understand"; they have the exact same visual style (this is especially noticeable in the "extended" versions of the ThemeTune).
* StayingWithFriends
* StopBeingStereotypical: A recurring theme of some episodes.
* StylisticSuck: A funny variation, as the "Carlton Dance" is meant to look ridiculous and Carlton is generally made fun of for dancing that way. The truth is you can see there is actually a great deal of coordination required and the few times Will performs the same dance, you can tell he isn't quite as smooth at it.
* TakeThat: Will criticizes Dougie--talking dinosaur, kids' show host--of always being happy and loving everything. [[Series/BarneyAndFriends Hmmm...]]
* TheTalk: Happens in one entire episode involving Ashley's curiousness about sex.
* TemptingFate: After Will overdecorates the house in the ChristmasEpisode, he yells at the neighbour who calls them to complain, demanding they meet face to face so he can confront them. When the guy shows up, it's Evander Holyfield, the heavyweight Champion of the world.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Will gives one to Juggles the Clown after he holds up a courthouse to display his "comedy" routine.
* ThemeTuneRap: Now this is a story...
* ThrowItIn
* TokenWhite: Occasionally Will would have a white friend at school. Most didn't last long as characters. However, one of Will's aunts got involved with a [[DiscriminateAndSwitch tall]] man, who would eventually become so accepted by the family that he and Will would make jokes about ''Carlton'' being the token white member of the group.
** Lampshaded in one episode at a ski resort when one of Vivian's sisters complains that they (the family) are the only black people they see there. Her white husband remarks, "Don't be silly. Everywhere I turn, I see another black person", after which she almost falls down laughing.
* TrainingMontage: Parodied in the Season 4 finale, when Will returns to Philadelphia (which is appropriate, since that's Rocky Balboa's hometown): after he finishes climbing up the staircase of the Museum of Art, he starts celebrating, but he's so tired that he faints - and then some guy comes by and steals his wallet and his hat.
* UglyGuyHotWife: Uncle Phil isn't ugly, but he's definitely overweight. But in true DomCom style, in Vivian, he has a gorgeous, svelte wife. In fact, given the recasting of Janet Hubert-Whitten with Daphne Maxwell Reid, he technically gets TWO. Unlike most cases, the difference is acknowledged (thanks to Will's constant teasing and Vivian's occasional gentle ribbing), and Vivian makes a point of telling Will that Phil's weight does not bother her "one bit".
** And underneath that gut James Avery is built like a friggin' tank. The man was also in the Navy and fought in Vietnam.
** Also in some flashback episodes, it shows Phil as thin with a full head of hair, so he wasn't always a CHUD.
* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The show is laden with contemporary pop culture references, especially in the earlier seasons, which had frequent references to early 1990s politics-related things such as Desert Storm and Dan Quayle, and celebrity scandals such as Zsa Zsa Gabor's slapping of a police and evangelist Jimmy Swaggart's arrest for solicitation.
* UpperClassTwit: The entire Banks family, Hilary in particular. They all get moments that subvert it, though.
* VerySpecialEpisode: A few, including two on racial profiling (one where the head of a fraternity chooses Will over Carlton because Carlton doesn't act stereotypically black, and another where Carlton and Will are arrested by a racist cop), one on drug abuse (where Will buys amphetamines and Carlton takes them, thinking it's medication he needs to get rid of a pimple), an arc on Will getting shot and Carlton buying a gun for [[strike:protection]] revenge, and the episode where Will reunites with his deadbeat father (played by Ben Vereen), only to see him leave again.
* WhyDoYouKeepChangingJobs: A character played by Darryl Sivad has appeared various times as a park ranger, emergency medic and fireman, always with a laid back attitude and making inappropriate jokes, much to the consternation of the main characters.
* WhyWasteAWedding: Will and Lisa decide not to get married during their wedding ceremony, so Will's mother and Lisa's father get married instead.
* YourCostumeNeedsWork: In one episode, Will and Lisa almost get a quickie Vegas ''{{Shaft}}''-themed wedding, but come to their senses at the last minute. As they're leaving, Will tells the priest that his Issac Hayes impression sucks; the priest (played, of course, by Issac Hayes) says he didn't think it was ''that'' bad.
* ZettaiRyouiki: In the later seasons, Ashley, her friends and some extras often wear Grade B socks.
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