History Series / GoodTimes

Temporary lay-offs!\\
GOOD TIMES!\\
Easy Credit rip-offs!\\
GOOD TIMES!\\
Scratchin' and survivin'\\
GOOD TIMES!\\
Hangin' in and jivin'!!\\
GOOD TIMES!\\

* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Carl Dixon. Florida got married to Carl at the end of the 1976-1977 season and planned to move to Arizona to tend to Carl's chronic health issues; the storyline was planned to explain Esther Rolle's coming departure from the show. At the beginning of the 1978-1979 season, Florida had returned ... without Carl, and with no explanation for his absence. The reason for this was that Rolle agreed to return to the show, but only if changes were made, one of them being that there would [[{{Unperson}} be no record of Carl having ever existed]]. (Rolle thought it was implausible for the devoutly Christian Florida to marry someone who was an avowed atheist, and also felt that Florida moved on much too quickly after James' death.) According to Wiki/TheOtherWiki, a deleted scene shows Willona asking Florida about Carl. Florida shakes her head, implying that Carl passed away from cancer during her absence. The reason for the move to Arizona was a spot on Carl's lung.

* Michael Evans (Ralph Carter): "[[AngryBlackMan The Militant Midget]]", male SoapBoxSadie, TheSmartGuy

* AngryBlackMan: James and Michael. Though Michael was a much straighter example, with James being [[HairTriggerTemper angry in the more traditional sense]]. [[ExecutiveMeddling For Michael, this pretty much vanished in later seasons.]]

* SpecialThanks: The note "Ralph Carter courtesy the Broadway Musical ''[[Theatre/ARaisinInTheSun Raisin]]''" was included in the season 1 closing credits.

* AndStarring: The show saw [[BreakoutCharacter breakout star]] Creator/JimmieWalker graduate from a gang "with" combining the three children (with Tony-nominated Ralph Carter listed first) in season 1 to a triple-barreled and/also starring/as by season 5.

* BaldBlackLeaderGuy: Alderman Davis plays with this trope. He's mostly just a politician, but is also a skilled (if ''very'' self-serving) civil rights leader.

* James "J.J." Evans, Jr. (Jimmie Walker): CatchPhrase machine, JiveTurkey, [[SitcomCharacterArchetypes The Wisecracker]], KavorkaMan (cleaned up in later seasons)

* {{Mondegreen}}: As noted by ''Series/ChappellesShow'', the indistinguishable lyric of the theme song "Hangin' in and jivin'", is often mistakenly deciphered as "Hangin' in a chow line".

* SuddenNameChange: James was called 'Henry' for John Amos's appearences on ''Series/{{Maude}}''.

* Florida Evans (Esther Rolle): Matriarch, occasional MamaBear

Keeping your head above water!\\
Making a wave when you can't!\\

Any time you need a friend!\\

Not gettin' hassled, not getting hustled!\\

* IHaveNoSon: When a young gang leader, Mad Dog, shoots J.J. and is put on trial for it, he is let off, but his mother coldly disowns him, going as far as to slap him and wish he had never been born. [[EverybodyHasStandards James, who was prepared to get back at Mad Dog, is almost brought to tears to witness this, and can't bring himself to do anything further.]].

* LethalChef : Everyone makes fun of Thelma's cooking.

* [[NeighbourhoodFriendlyGangsters Neighborhood Friendly Gangster]]: "Sweet Daddy" Williams was generally portrayed as one of these, despite being a racketeer, [[AllDevouringBlackHoleLoanSharks loan shark]], and [[PimpDuds pimp]]. Although sometimes only in comparison to others who might take over the turf if he wasn't there. Sure, he's a crook and a con, but at least he's never killed anybody.

* IHaveNoSon: When a young gang leader, Mad Dog, shoots J.J. and is put on trial for it, he is let off, but his mother coldly disowns him, going as far as to slap him and wish he had never been born. [[EverybodyHasStandards James, who was prepared to get Mad Dog back for shooting J.J. is almost brought to tears to witness this.]]. When he questions his sympathy

* IHaveNoSon: When a young gang leader, Mad Dog, shoots J.J. and is put on trial for it, he is let off, but his mother coldly disowns him. [[EverybodyHasStandards James, who wanted to pay Mad Dog back for shooting J.J. is shocked to witness this]].

* ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules: As much as they struggled to make ends meet, James and Florida would readily turn down an opportunity if it went against moral principles. Such as when James is offered a job from a televangelist friend, which he’d initially accepted. But when he saw the impact his doing so would have on his children (he would have been feigning ailments so that he could be “healed“), he changed his mind. Likewise, Florida turning down a TV commercial spot upon learning she’d be selling a product made mostly of alcohol; as soon as Michael gets drunk from drinking the tonic, Florida wants no further part of it

* EarnYourHappyEnding: A great example of this; [[spoiler:after spending the entire series struggling to make ends meet, the Evans family finally gets a break, with J.J. getting a job, Keith getting a new football contract after knee is healed, him and Thelma having a baby, and moving in to a bigger apartment.]]

* ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules: As much as they struggled to make ends meet, James and Florida would readily turn down an opportunity if it went against moral principles. Such as when James is offered a job from a televangelist friend, which he’d initially accepted. But when he saw the impact his doing so would have on his children (he would have been feigning ailments so that he could be “healed“), he changed his mind. Likewise, Florida turning down a TV commercial spot upon learning she’d be selling a product made mostly of alcohol.

[[caption-width-right:350:Clockwise from left: Michael, Thelma, Willona, Florida, JJ, James.]]

* James "JJ" Evans, Jr. (Jimmie Walker): CatchPhrase machine, JiveTurkey, [[SitcomCharacterArchetypes The Wisecracker]], KavorkaMan (cleaned up in later seasons)

Both Esther Rolle and John Amos grew dissatisfied with J.J's character. Rolle felt that J.J. was not a good role model for blacks, and Amos felt the show was becoming more about his antics, than about its original intent to be about family values. The show's [[JumpTheShark most controversial move]] was [[DroppedABridgeOnHim killing off patriarch James]] at the beginning of the fourth season. Esther Rolle hoped this would bring a shift in JJ's character from the clownish KavorkaMan he had been, to a more responsible Man Of The House. The writers didn't see it that way, seemingly ramping up JJ's [[UncleTomfoolery foolishness]] (though it's worth noting that Jimmie Walker, who played JJ, was a stand-up comedian and not much of an actor). This led to Rolle quitting the show for the entire fifth season, her character having [[PutOnABus relocated to Arizona]] to be with her second husband. She was brought back in the sixth and final season with promises to clean up JJ's act (and [[BrotherChuck never reference her second marriage]], which Rolle thought went against Florida's character in multiple ways).

When the fifth season started, an 11-year old Music/JanetJackson joined the cast as Millicent "Penny" Gordon Woods; after Penny's abusive mother Lynnetta reveals that she was abused as a child after a fight with Thelma and Willona, Lynnetta tells Penny that she deserves better. In the sixth season, Lynnetta has remarried and starts sending Penny anonymous gifts while attempting to frame Willona as an unfit adoptive parent who throws wild parties with undesirable guests. After her scheme is exposed, she leaves and Penny regards Willona as her real mother.

* BadJobWorseUniform: JJ's uniform while working at a fried chicken restaurant.

* BigBrotherInstinct: JJ to Thelma and Michael. For all his goofiness and constant teasing of them, he makes it abundantly clear that the best way to press his BerserkButton is to harm either of them.

* BreakoutCharacter: Jimmie "JJ" Walker. One of the biggest examples of the 70s.

* CatchPhrase: JJ's "DYN-O-MITE!" and less frequently, "Well, you know, what can I say?"

* CreatorCameo: Ernie Barnes, the artist behind JJ's paintings, appeared in a few episodes as one of Sweet Daddy's goons.

** Whenever JJ gets the opportunity to make some money off of his art, something inevitably happens to make him turn down the deal or get the whole thing called off.

* EarnYourHappyEnding: A great example of this; [[spoiler:after spending the entire series struggling to make ends meet, the Evans family finally gets a break, with JJ getting a job, Keith getting a new football contract after knee is healed, him and Thelma having a baby, and moving in to a bigger apartment.]]

* HeadTurningBeauty: In one episode JJ is hired to paint a portrait of a curvaceous neighbor nicknamed "The Wiggler." All the men react whenever she's brought up.

** A couple of seasons prior, JJ also fell victim to their "Health and Accident Insurance Program," as in "If I didn't join, they were gonna ensure that I had an accident to my health."
* KavorkaMan: JJ, who was somehow able to compete with the school quarterback despite being skinny and funny looking.

* PromotionToParent: JJ in season 5 due to the absence of both parents.

* TheRashomon: The episode "Where's There's Smoke"; the couch catches fire and burns a hole in one of the pillows. JJ, Thelma, and Michael each tells Willona their version of what happened. [[spoiler: Penny's]] version of the story is the truth.

* ThereIsOnlyOneBed: JJ and Michael have to share a bed. And by "bed", we mean "pull-out sofa"; they don't even have their own bedroom.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: JJ's "Kool-Aid Sour".

* UncleTomfoolery: JJ fell increasingly into this in later seasons. However, he did improve by the show's final season.

* James "JJ" Evans, Jr. (Jimmie Walker): CatchPhrase machine, [[SitcomCharacterArchetypes The Wisecracker]], KavorkaMan (cleaned up in later seasons)

* AbusiveParents: Penny's mom. One of the show's most infamous scenes is of her burning Penny with a ''hot iron''. And that actually happens off-screen, we just see the iron about to be used and the bandaged wound afterwards. Also, although FairForItsDay, James' heavy-handed disciplining of his kids. He uses his belt on them, which is relatively uncommon today.

Most episodes featured the efforts of the Evans to get by in the ghetto and make a better life for themselves. Despite the fact that those efforts usually [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption ended in bitter disappointment]], the show remained surprisingly positive and uplifting. And like most Lear shows of the time, ''Good Times'' wasn't afraid to [[{{Anvilicious}} moralize]] or [[SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped bring up controversial topics]].

%%* MsFanservice: Thelma, and on occasion Willona.

The show's [[JumpTheShark most controversial move]] was [[DroppedABridgeOnHim killing off patriarch James]] at the beginning of the fourth season. Esther Rolle hoped this would bring a shift in JJ's character from the clownish KavorkaMan he had been, to a more responsible Man Of The House. The writers didn't see it that way, seemingly ramping up JJ's [[UncleTomfoolery foolishness]] (though it's worth noting that Jimmie Walker, who played JJ, was a stand-up comedian and not much of an actor). This led to Rolle quitting the show for the entire fifth season, her character having [[PutOnABus relocated to Arizona]] to be with her second husband. She was brought back in the sixth and final season with promises to clean up JJ's act (and [[BrotherChuck never reference her second marriage]], which Rolle thought went against Florida's character in multiple ways).

* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler: James,]] whose offscreen death at the beginning of Season 4 is probably the most infamous example of this trope in a comedy show outside of [[Series/{{MASH}} Henry Blake's]].

* BackToSchool: Bookman, Florida, and James.

* BreakTheCutie: Poor Penny qualifies for this in spades.

* BusCrash: James's off-screen death.

* ChewToy: James could never catch a break.

* DontMakeMeTakeMyBeltOff: James, James, James.

* EarnYourHappyEnding: A great example of this.

* MamaBear: Florida

* MsFanservice: Thelma, and on occasion Willona.

* SassyBlackWoman: Willona, the TropeCodifier.

* WhamEpisode: "The Big Move."

* YankTheDogsChain: A number of episodes revolved around the characters trying to improve their situation and absolutely failing by the time the credits rolled. The most [[TearJerker heartwrenching]] example, though, has to be in the fourth-season premiere: James has gotten a promising new job in Mississippi and the family plans on moving to join him, leaving the ghetto behind forever! Then James dies in a car wreck and they're stuck.