My Brother and Me was my first introduction to “black shows”. And just so you know, I’m not trying to be racist when I use that term. When I’m trying to be racist, you’ll know. In a world of kid’s shows with all white cast members, My Brother and Me enlightened me (or endarkened me) that there were other dynamics in the world.
The first thing that the show taught me is that the Parker family doesn’t have a good grasp on grammar. My Brother and Me? Shouldn’t it be My Brother and I? Strike one.
This show could be described as The Cosby Show’s younger, retarded sibling. I used to think it was hilarious when I was 9, but then again I was 9 and had no taste in anything.
The main characters were Alfie and his younger brother Dee Dee. Alfie was the “cool” older brother type who Dee Dee idolized. Dee Dee was cute and innocent and basically followed Alfie around everywhere. They shared a pretty sweet room, so they were close as brothers even though they fought in every episode. Alfie was always telling Dee Dee how dumb he was so it’s pretty obvious that Dee Dee will grow up with low self esteem.
Alfie’s best friend Milton “Goo” Berry was, in my opinion, the best part of the show. He was a snarky best friend who was mostly interested in girls and having fun. Goo’s interactions with each character differed greatly. Alfie’s mother, Jennifer, would always address Goo as Milton and in turn Goo would always act mannerly and like a gentleman in her presence. Alfie would always roll his eyes to Goo’s Eddie Haskell behavior.
Dee Dee, Alfie, and Goo.
To Alfie’s older sister Melanie, Goo would express his love and desire to be her boyfriend. She was Goo’s number one crush and couldn’t be less interested. Melanie’s best friend, Deonne, would fight a lot with Goo. Deonne’s little brother, Donnell, was Dee Dee’s best friend. What a tangled web. It’s almost Shakespearean. Almost.
Goo would make fun of Dee Dee to no end. More than Alfie ever would. It was a weird dynamic because Alfie and Goo seemed so much older than Dee Dee but they all went to the same school. Melanie went to their school too! I’m assuming Melanie was in 8th grade, which would make Alfie and Goo 7th graders and Dee Dee a 6th grader. So that would mean that their mom had a baby every year for 3 years. Gross. That calculation seems right except for Dee Dee. He’s so small. There’s no way he’s 12. Why am I still thinking about this?!
Melanie, Alfie, and Dee Dee were lucky because they had really nice parents. Their mom Jennifer was pretty cool and easy going and their dad, Roger, was pretty funny and chill. This is how I knew that this was a fake show. The stories that I’ve heard about black parents don’t match up to the ones on My Brother and Me.
I always thought this show had like, five episodes total. Maybe Nickelodeon always played the same ones on repeat. Turns out I wasn’t far off—there are 13 episodes in all. I have to admit that all of the episodes were extremely entertaining. There was one where Dee Dee got bullied by a girl, one where a snake got lost in their house, one where the kids have a practical joke war, and one where the Parker family gets to work the dunking booth at a charity event. Exciting stuff, right?
Kidz Showz 
The only episode of this I remember was something about getting grounded. Strike two Nickelodeon. Black kids don’t get grounded. Their grandmothers ask them to grab a switch.
This was a very funny piece. I also like how their baseball uniforms are so incredibly ghetto.
I heard the original title was “My Brothers and Me’s but Not My Dads, Just My Moms” but they told the creator not every family member title needs to be pluralized when there’s only one. I think we just lost a reader.
Hahah omg we are the worst people. Yeah I remember one about them being grounded for something and thinking about how lucky I was that I never got grounded. Or thinking I would like being grounded because then I wouldn’t have to leave home.
Yeah their baseball uniforms are simply just baseball shirts with numbers on them. Pretty classy stuff.
Maybe the number represents the minimum prison sentence their father is serving?
Oops there goes 4 more.
Haha it would make sense. And then the team could really bond.
I was studying the background of their house and there were a bunch of greek frat letters on the wall and I learned from some research that they were from an all black fraternity. Of course.
Is it any surprise that I really liked this show? The theme music, though? Wow. Just wow. It sounds like Nickelodeon had just acquired a computer and decided to take only 18 seconds to compose to music for this show on it. It was baaaaad.
No surprise at all because it was actually a pretty funny show. The opening credits are SO BAD. Like, I don’t admit being able to do most things, but I could definitely produce a better theme song and graphics. Yikessss.
I remember this show. And yeah, the parents were way too lenient for the culture. Though it did reinforce my desire to have an older brother.
I had a younger brother, so I always pictured myself as an Alfie type. But this show definitely made me want an older sibling as well. And a cool room!
Even though I haven’t heard of this show, you really painted a picture there. “This show could be described as The Cosby Show’s younger, retarded sibling.” [Lily in Canada] Should definitely be on the DVD cover if it ever got a release. 😛
Sorry I didn’t see this comment until now! My bad! Haha you’re so right about this being the Cosby Show’s younger, retarded sibling. That’s a perfect tagline.