Can Will adapt to his new life in L.A or will it be too hard to handle?
The Bel-Air premiere starts off with Will hanging out with his friend, Tray after a basketball game. An old friend named Darnell picks a fight with them. He tells Will to meet him at the basketball court if he really wants to prove who’s the better player. Feeling disrespected, Will heads off with Tray to meet him. Tray shows him that he brought a gun with him to Will’s shock.
Will wants no part of that. Tray insists it’s only for protection because Darnell and his friends are drug dealers. Dangerous types of people. Will tells him to keep that hidden. Reshad who is the leader of the group tells Will if he beats his boy Darnell in basketball he’ll give them 2,000 dollars. If they lose they have to do some drug runs for him. Will agrees and the game is on.
Will and Tray end up winning the basketball game. Darnell gets angry, throwing the basketball that accidentally hits Reshad. Reshad immediately starts accusing Will. He pushes him to the ground. His gang members start jumping Tray. Scared, Will grabs the gun and points it at Reshad. Reshad tells him if he doesn’t shoot him he’s a dead man.
The police show up making everyone scatter. Will throws the gun away but gets caught by the police. He gets out of jail the next day to his amazement. His mom tells him that his uncle pulled some strings to get him out. That he is going away to his aunt and uncle’s place for now. Once Reshad gets out of jail he will be after Will so she is trying to protect him.
When he gets to Bel-Air he meets a cool taxi driver named Jazz. Jazz tells him not to let L.A. change him. They get to his aunt and uncles to find that they live in a mansion. His Aunt Vivian greets him. Welcoming, but hesitant to have him join the party like he wants because it is an important event for her husband, Philip. She has her daughter and his cousin, Hilary dresses him in something more appropriate.
Hilary puts him in her brother, Carlton’s suits and is impressed with herself when he looks good. They head to the party and she leaves him so he can find Uncle Philip. When he finds him he is surrounded by important people. He tries to thank him but his uncle brushes him off to get him away. He runs into a girl named Lisa who he immediately starts flirting with. They have good chemistry together.
When she leaves Carlton comes up to him. He sounds like he’s walking down to him. Making fun of him for borrowing his suit and not putting his cuff links on right. The person Will was flirting with was his ex-girlfriend. You can immediately just feel the tension between these two, A sort of alpha male energy they give off. Will finds out that his uncle is using him as a P.R stunt to become Governor. Phillip says there’s more to it than that. How he wants Will to make an actual effort to his new life in L.A.
The next day Carlton takes Will to his lacrosse practice to see his new school. Will gets angry when he sees his white friends saying the N-word and how Carlton lets him. Carlton doesn’t see a problem with it. Will tells him that his friend Conner is not part of their culture so he can not say that. He thinks Carlton is out of touch with his roots. He ends up going to a party with Carlton to squash the beef. He starts getting close to Lisa again. Carlton sees this and pushes Will into the pool, not knowing he can’t swim. Lisa saves him. Will ends up punching Carlton in the face out of anger.
What can I say about this show besides the fact that the show is really good? Jabari Banks who plays Will Smith is a stand out of this series. You immediately feel for this kid from the first episode. He is super charming and charismatic. Everyone in this show is well cast. Giving this reboot they’re all. You can tell Co-Showrunners / Executive Producers: T.J. Brady and Rasheed Newson have a lot of love for the original series.
I also like the family dynamic. How each family member has certain tension between them but you can tell they still love each other. The tension between Carlton and Will is super interesting. Very different from the original series. I am very interested in what will happen between these two. I recommend this to anyone who loves the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and newcomers alike!
Want to discuss things further? Hit us up on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. For more film, gaming, anime, and TV news, trailers, and updates make sure to keep it locked right here at The Nerdy Basement. While you’re here, please consider supporting us on Patreon! It’s an easy way of supporting us so we can keep proving you with your Nerdy News!