When the cast of “The Game” made high-profile appearances throughout Atlanta, it only fueled intense rumors that the ultra popular show will soon be picked up by BET. The show’s cancellation by the CW Network last year triggered a volcanic uproar in major pockets of the urban community.
Signing the network would be as much a benefit for BET as it would be for “The Game.” One of the biggest criticisms of BET is that they have so few original quality programs — or cancelled the ones that were — that signing “The Game,” which speaks to so many demographics inside and outside the black community, would be a coup for the network.
“I think the reason so many fans loved ‘The Game’ [is] because we talk about topics that a lot of people don’t want to talk about,” says the principal star, Tia Mowry, who played Melanie Barnett, the estranged medical school girlfriend of Pooch Hall’s Derwin Davis. “We talk about infidelity. We talk about divorce. We have interracial marriages on the show. We talk about steroids. People can really relate to the characters and shows that are real.”
Unlike other shows with a predominantly African American cast, “The Game” did not wallow in a cesspool of buffoonery, debauchery and stereotypes. “The Game,” created by Mara Brock Akil (an African American woman who also created the defunct “Girlfriends”), did not rely on toilet humor and cheap jokes to attract and retain viewers. Most importantly, “The Game’s” very real and mature subject matter inspired a loyal following that no one associated with the show ever expected.
The show became a favorite among women, men, athletes as well as other ethnicities, both domestically and abroad. The average show — particularly the average black sitcom — can’t come close to the impact that “The Game” had. In fact, Hosea Chanchez could not believe “The Game’s” colossal following.
“It’s so funny, ‘cause I always walk through an airport somewhere and there’s an Asian guy or a Hispanic guy or a Caucasian girl coming up to me and they know my character. And that, to me, is a phenomenal thing,” Chanchez marveled. “Recently, … a friend of mine called me and said, ‘I’m watching the show in Italy.’ So it’s phenomenal to break down barriers in that sense. We have a predominantly black cast and people of all races and colors love us.” –terry shropshire
