When a new Black sitcom like The Upshaws (Netflix) or South Side (HBO Max) drops, the immediate critical discourse is: "Is this another Cosby?" The answer is almost always no, because these shows feature blue-collar struggles, unemployment, extramarital children, and criminal records.
For 40 years, the ghost of the Huxtable sweater told Black storytellers: Make us look good. The new era, spanning from Get Out to Abbott Elementary to The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey , tells them: Make us look real. Not The Cosbys XXX 1-2
The old model said Black shows were sitcoms or crime dramas. Now, we have Lovecraft Country (horror/sci-fi), Swarm (psychological thriller), and They Cloned Tyrone (blaxploitation/mystery). These stories refuse to be boxed in. They are weird, surreal, and unapologetically niche. When a new Black sitcom like The Upshaws
The phrase "Not The Cosbys" holds a dual identity in entertainment history, serving both as a foundational concept for groundbreaking television sitcoms and as a title for controversial adult parodies. The "Anti-Sitcom" Working Title The old model said Black shows were sitcoms or crime dramas