Karl Puschmann: No joking around in the dark gritty reboot of The Fresh Prince

Jabari Banks as Will and Jordan L Jones as Jazz in Bel-Air, the gritty reboot of 90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

Now, this is a story all about how, 90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air got flipped turned upside down. I'd like to take a minute, just sit right there, I'll tell you how that beloved TV show became a gritty drama called Bel-Air.

Okay, that intro doesn't have quite the easy flow or bouncy charm of rapper-turned-actor Will Smith's original theme tune, but it does tell you most of what you need to know about this improbable reboot.

Back in 2019 an indie film-maker named Morgan Cooper posted a fake trailer he'd made on YouTube which reimagined the sitcom as a serious drama. Clocking in at just under four minutes, it delighted fans of the original and went viral - eventually grabbing the attention of Will Smith himself, who immediately saw potential in the idea. Two years later, and here we are with the show streaming on TVNZ OnDemand.

Jabari Banks as Will Smith in Bel-Air, streaming now on TVNZ OnDemand.

Unlike its inspiration, Bel-Air is no joke. What was once a brightly coloured, easy-going comedy that cushioned its social messages and commentary with gags and comedy dance routines is now a very serious drama that cushions its rare lighter moments with social messages and commentary.

For 90s kids who grew up with The Fresh Prince, watching Bel-Air can feel like stepping into a humourless, bizarro world. The names, places and story beats remain the same, only the effervescent charm of the original series has been bled dry in favour of dark hues and a sombre tone.

Olly Sholotan as Carlton and Jabari Banks as Will in Bel-Air.

For example, it's no longer "one little fight" with bullies that scares Smith's mum into sending him to live with his aunt and uncle in Bel-Air. Now, he's bundled onto the next flight out of West Phildelphia because the neighbourhood gangster wants to straight-up murder him after a misunderstanding on the local basketball court escalates into guns being drawn and the pair being thrown in jail.

It's quite the tonal shift. And that's before you get introduced to the new Uncle Phillip, Aunt Vivian and, most jarring of all for 90s kids, Smith's cousin Carlton who has transformed from a Tom Jones-loving, cardigan-wearing nerd into an arrogant and smarmy, drug-snorting ass.

Adrian Holmes as Uncle Phil in Bel-Air.

But what really heightens the bizarre feel of the series, for older viewers anyway, is that the character of Will Smith remains largely unchanged. He cracks wise, he wears his cap twisted to the side and, as the other characters keep telling us, he has swagger. Drop him into some parachute pants, pull on a fluoro top and plonk him into the original set and he wouldn't be out of place.

Which makes sense, considering Bel-Air is telling the same story. But without Smith would The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air been a success? No. The original sitcom was purely a vehicle for Smith. It was the rapper's effortless charisma and supreme likeability that made the series a hit and propelled him from a Grammy-winning rapper to an A-list movie star in just a few short years.

Uncle Phil dispensing life lessons to Will in Bel-Air.

Charisma and likeability are two qualities that can't be faked or learned, no matter how good of an actor you are. So it's impressive how capably newcomer Jabari Banks has stepped into what has to be the most thankless role since Alden Ehrenreich portrayed a young Han Solo in 2018's Solo: A Star Wars Story.

Banks is undoubtedly a better actor than Smith was at the time. Which is a good thing because he's dealing with much heavier material, like gang violence, racism and racial politics, questions of identity and self along with trying to navigate a completely foreign environment and coping with sudden authority figures. Aside from the odd outburst, emotion-filled speech or tear, all Smith mostly had to do was be cool and crack gags.

Coco Jones as Hilary Banks in Bel-Air.

But there's no getting away from the fact that, good as he is - and he's very good - Banks is no Will Smith. He carries Smith's confidence well but the character's much-vaunted swagger can sometimes get away from him to slip into an unlikeable arrogance. There was always a cheeky smile behind Smith's braggadocio that acknowledged the facade of his boastful behaviour.

But, to be fair, this could just be a result of what is essentially the same character appearing in two completely different shows.

Simone Joy Jones as Lisa, the heart of a love triangle between Will and his cousin Carlton.

If you're unburdened by memories of the original, Bel-Air is a competent and glossy, though at times heavy-handed teen drama. There are violent rivalries, love triangles, great expectations and bitter disappointments to get invested in. The show's realistic spin deals with today's issues in a fresh way and it walks the line between acknowledging its source material without being beholden to it or becoming a brazen nostalgia trip.

And while you could argue that no one was asking for a dark and gritty Fresh Prince reboot, I really don't think anyone was clamouring to watch the character take another shot at sitcom glory either.