After years of watching and enjoying ABC’s hit comedy series, Black-ish, I knew there was no way that I was going to miss the spinoff series, Grown-ish. After watching the first three episodes, I think I can safely say that Grown-ish is currently one of the best comedy shows on TV.
The same way that Black-ish tackles the experiences and realities of living as a black person in America, Grown-ish expertly takes on the college experience. The show follows Zoey Johnson (Yara Shahidi) and her friends as they attempt to navigate the difficulties of being a college student.
Importantly, Grown-ish doesn’t romanticize the college experience; it presents them in a raw, yet comedic form. In the second episode, “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe,” Zoey, like almost all college students, struggles with juggling academic and social pressures, like writing a paper and encountering a “U up?” text. However, the show doesn’t stop there. It also addresses college students’ Adderall usage to manage these often overwhelming pressures.
This show speaks to my soul because it isn’t afraid to be real with its audience. Every other show or movie I’ve watched that has depicted college life has sugarcoated the college experience. But Grown-ish doesn’t do this. It’s the kind of show that college students need—a funny and authentic show that can help us work through our oftentimes overwhelming, sometimes enthralling college experiences.