That Teowonna!

BET’s The Game: An Unlikely Lesson in Love

Last night, I managed to stave off the sleep monster long enough to watch the return of The Game… perhaps one of the most-watched black sitcoms in recent television history. Since there are few shows that I have the fortitude to actually watch every week, I often missed The Game during its three-year run with CW.  But through to wonderment of marathons, I haven’t missed a single episode. And I must say, this is one of those shows that I just never got tired of watching over and over again.

So when I got the word that BET was picking up The Game, I, along with every black woman (and a lot of black men who aren’t too afraid to admit it) jumped for joy. We did it… our fight for to save great black television was successful!

Well, after nonstop promotion and guest appearances on every possible BET show, The Game finally made its 4^th season debut to a captivated audience. I know this because #TheGame was ablaze on my twitter timeline and facebook feed.

And now that I’ve seen it, let me be the first to say… it was less that impressive. The 2-year layoff has done nothing… absolutely nothing for The Game. It was borderline horrible! Boring; disjointed; fake; unimaginative (or over imaginative); just plain old not good. I’m not a sitcom buff by no means, but in my not-so-humble opinion, I found it to be seriously lacking its original vigor and vibe; the realness of the show has deteriorated. It seems to be over-the-top for no reason… like a woman who is trying too hard to get noticed.

So this morning when I woke to pen this blog in the usual 4am clarity, The Game actually reminded me of something else… a past relationship that I was desperate to save.

I can recall after multiple infractions, I still had a desire to save the relationship. So I went back time and time again…. only to find the trust, original luster and desire simply were no longer there. And no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t bring it back. The problems that ruined the relationship the first place were still there. And if I couldn’t tolerate them then, I certainly couldn’t tolerate them later… no matter how much time had passed. Even though my mother had counseled me as to such, I guess I just had to see for myself.

So, here is how the attempted resurrection of The Game is reminiscent of a lesson.

1. Like The Game went off the air for a reason, your failed relationship ended for a reason. Don’t ever forget that. The relationship can’t be made better if the original problems are not addressed and rectified. Let’s say the relationship ended because of cheating. Do you think the relationship will ever be successful if the cheater continues to cheat? Not likely.
2. As viewers, we have to adjust to the new reality/look/feel of The Game, just like you have to adjust to the new reality of your love after it has been broken. It is not the same and never really will be. But the question is, can you adjust? Do you even want to adjust? Is it worth it? Sometimes it is, depending on what you have invested in it. Sometimes, it isn’t.
3. Much like with The Game, if you can’t adjust, you just have to accept that fact that your fight to return was for nothing. Or was it? If we don’t adjust to the new The Game, that’s a valuable lesson for BET of what not to do; what we like and don’t like. And if you can’t adjust to the new reality of your relationship, then that’s a lesson for you. You now know what you will accept and won’t. What you can tolerate and what you can’t. That almost makes the break-up worth it… a valuable lesson to learn about yourself. So, perhaps your fight wasn’t for naught after all… it helped you understand when it is time to move on.

So… back to The Game. What are we as loyal viewers to do? Well, we can either accept the new reality of The Game (even though it is jacked up and vaguely reminiscent of the old show), or we can just move on. That’s my advice in love also.