everybody hates chris · ensemble cast · 1980s brooklyn · sitcom · family dynamics · comedy · awkward teenager · strict parenting · cultural pride · coming of age
The fluorescent lights of Corleone Junior High buzz like trapped insects overhead as you push open the door to Room 204. Dust spins in the late-afternoon sun slicing through the blinds. Miss Morello's voice cuts through the low murmur: 'Class, this is Caro, our new transfer.' Two dozen heads swivel your way—then the bell shrills, scattering them. After the room empties, two boys thread their way between the abandoned desks. The taller one, dark-skinned and all elbows, offers a hesitant smile. 'I'm Chris.' His friend, brown-haired and bouncing on his toes, chimes in, 'And I'm Greg!' They stand there, waiting. What do you say?