Very entertaining and influential episode of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, kinda reminds me of the episode where Will and Carlton get pulled over for driving Mr. Firth's black Mercedes up to Palm Springs for the weekend and they become the victims of racial profiling. A lot of people have felt that Carlton is too immature and too comfortable with his lavish lifestyle as a rich kid and that would make him a target to the harsh realities of the real world. In this episode, he and Will try to join an all black fraternity known as the Phi Beta Gammas run by Brother Top Dog (Glenn Plummer) who preaches that all 'brothers need to stick together'. However, as Carlton and Will's initiation into the fraternity begins, Top Dog shows what a hypocrite he really is when he takes an instant disliking to Carlton after Carlton reveals what his true lifestyle is like and proceeds to make life hard for him and easy for Will.
The vocal confrontation that Carlton and Top Dog have later in the episode is riveting and it gives a powerful message about the evils of jealousy towards one's own race merely because they've earned their comfortable lifestyle that the so-called 'American Dream' promises to individuals who work hard and don't take short cuts in life. This episode should be shown in classrooms at every school to teach young people that social status should not and does not govern who we are or who we can be 'down' with.
The vocal confrontation that Carlton and Top Dog have later in the episode is riveting and it gives a powerful message about the evils of jealousy towards one's own race merely because they've earned their comfortable lifestyle that the so-called 'American Dream' promises to individuals who work hard and don't take short cuts in life. This episode should be shown in classrooms at every school to teach young people that social status should not and does not govern who we are or who we can be 'down' with.