Do you think Steve Urkel RUINED Family Matters?

[Crusinforabrusin]

Without Steve, you'd have no Family Matters

[king of comedy]

Originally Posted by Family Matters

Without Steve, you'd have no Family Matters

Agree. It wouldn't have been the same.

[Crusinforabrusin]

Originally Posted by Torgo

He ruined it for me. I find him to be one of the most unfunny obnoxious characters in TV history.

Family Matters probably would not have existed without Urkel

[Furienna]

Well, of course it would have existed. There were twelve episodes made before Steve was introduced, after all. We have no idea though how long the show would have survived without him. It might very well have only become a one-season wonder, that most people wouldn't remember today.

[TMC]

Generally though, the first five seasons are pretty funny (albeit cheesy, corny and melodramatic at points) with a likable enough cast. Once they drop the opening credits, it starts to become more focused on Urkel's wacky inventions.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by Spark Of Spirit

What killed Family Matters was Urkel overkill, not Urkel himself. The problem was that Steve changed very little over the years to make him a more well-rounded character that by the end he got stale.

Then there was that awful final season missing about every character that helped make the show fun to watch and focusing on a severely out of character Steve and his out of nowhere relationship with Laura. Really, I think the show would have been better off canceled with the end of season 8.

Urkel was fine as a quirky side character, but he was too cartoonish or broad to work (before his whole "gimmick" gets stale and unless you actually developed him as time went on) as the main focal point of a show.

[RetroGuy2000]

Yes, Urkel ruined Family Matters. By about Season Four it was clear that the Winslow Family didn't matter.

[Furienna]

Originally Posted by TMC

Urkel was fine as a quirky side character, but he was too cartoonish or broad to work (before his whole "gimmick" gets stale and unless you actually developed him as time went on) as the main focal point of a show.

Like I've said so many times before, I'm totally fine with Steve's character and how he didn't change much (until we reached the last season, that is). But I have a problem with that he could never stop drooling over the snooty Laura, even by the time when he had dated Myra for years.

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

Yes, Urkel ruined Family Matters. By about Season Four it was clear that the Winslow Family didn't matter.

That's a common misconception, but it's not fair. Most of the episodes would have two plots going on: one that would be about Steve, and one that would be about other characters. And that is true even in the last season, as far as I can remember.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by Furienna

That's a common misconception, but it's not fair. Most of the episodes would have two plots going on: one that would be about Steve, and one that would be about other characters. And that is true even in the last season, as far as I can remember.

Oh, it's fair, and it's not a misconception. MentalFloss states, "It began as a family show about Chicago cop Carl Winslow and his family, but fairly quickly morphed into “The Steve Urkel Show.”

When core family members are written off a show because they need more time to develop eight different Urkel characters, the Urkel craze had clearly gone too far. The show was no longer really even about the Winslow family. It was about Urkel, or Urkel's girlfriend, or Urkel's clone, or Urkel's wacky relatives, or Urkel's adventures in space. MentalFloss states, "the producers decided to cram as much Urkel into any given episode as was humanly possible."

Entertainment Weekly's recent snub of Jaimee Foxworth caused Ebony Magazine to mention the fact that other actors were getting "less and less screen time" due to the overexposure of Urkel. MentalFloss states that caused tension on the set of Family Matters.

In Mitchell Shapiro's and Tom Jicha's book, they state that the show morphed into The Steve Urkel Show, and that the Winslows simply became "accessories". They state that Jo Marie Payton left the show due to her diminished role. Jo Marie herself disputes that, but she says the show jumped the shark and started running out of ideas around season six. The show had devolved into a vehicle for Jaleel White.

Salon states it outright: "In “Family Matters,” the only one who mattered was Steve Urkel," they write.

Key and Peele hilariously lampooned the bizarre situation of a show called "Family Matters" where the family didn't matter. (Language warning).

[Furienna]

Again, that is people's opinions and not facts. But what is a fact is that Jaleel White always shared the show with other actors. It is true that he was the unexpected break-out star. But there was still room to evolve plenty of characters like Waldo, Maxine, Lt Murtaugh and Myra (who indeed was mainly Steve's girlfriend, but there was still a lot of depth to her character) and 3J. And it was not his fault that poor Jaimee Foxworth was fired, nor was it his fault that Rosetta LeNoire had to cut down on her working hours for health reasons.

[JO Sweet Heart]

^^^ Amen to this. At the end of the day, the final word rested with whoever was in charge of the show's direction. Blame them, not Jaleel.

God bless you and him always!!!

Holly

[TMC]

Originally Posted by Furienna

Like I've said so many times before, I'm totally fine with Steve's character and how he didn't change much (until we reached the last season, that is). But I have a problem with that he could never stop drooling over the snooty Laura, even by the time when he had dated Myra for years.


That's a common misconception, but it's not fair. Most of the episodes would have two plots going on: one that would be about Steve, and one that would be about other characters. And that is true even in the last season, as far as I can remember.

I think that I said elsewhere before that Family Matters is one of those shows that I often watched growing up, but when watching it with adult eyes/a modern perspective, it's hard not to think that it has aged really terribly. Steve's obsession with Laura even back then, bordered more on the creepy and stalker-ish side.

[JO Sweet Heart]

^^^ I don't think that his obsession was creepy. If anything, he loved her and he showed his love for her in so many ways. When Steve approached Ted and said "Laura wants to go with you and all that I care about is her happiness.", that pretty much sealed the deal in my opinion. I love to watch Laura and Steve dance at the end of that episode. He most definitely did not see it coming, Laura saying, "This dance is for the one guy who has always treated me like a queen: Steve Urkel."

God bless you always!!!

Holly

P.S. Actually, his feelings were shown even earlier in the show. He approached Ted in a season four episode. In a season two episode he approaches the school bully named Willy Fuffner and said, "Not only have you insulted me, but you have sullied the reputation on my lady love!" And then he slapped Willy right in his face.

[Jessica]

Steve Urkel became my favorite character and is what made me interested to watch the show. He did not ruin the show, in my opinion, but the focus on him that grew through the years and his inventions certainly did.

The Winslows was a very likable family and the characters were easy to follow and care about. I think the show definitely got better after Steve Urkel was introduced, but shouldn't have become the main focus. He was great as the annoying neighbor, and could easily have maintained his popularity by being the side character who appears in every episode.

Steve's inventions is what ruined it for me the most. It started early, with the Urkel robot and that jetpack he made to pass a class in school, but it was quite OK and not too much (except that the robot got a mind of his own...)

In season 5, it got too much though, when he makes this potion to become Stefan. Like some previous posts here have said: The addition of Urkel characters was terrible, and Stefan was no exception. It was now that it was confirmed that this wasn't a show about an ordinary family in Chicago anymore, it was a sci-fi show and definitely no longer Harriet's show.

Steve then created the transformation chamber which can turn anyone in to anybody they liked, if done correctly. Carl tried out this machine once and turned into an "Urkel" himself.

Later Steve successfully clones himself, so now he can miraculously make his clone to Stefan so that he can become his own person.

Ïn season 6, Urkel and the Winslows teleports themselves to Disney World! Because, of course, Steve buildt a teleportation machine that can take them wherever they want.

The original world of Family Matters was supposed to be like the way we know it - It was supposed to be the real world. Transformations and teleportation devices are not humanly possible, and this show was not relatable any longer. It remains a favorite and has some terrific episodes inbetween inventions even in later seasons, but it went too far.

[JO Sweet Heart]

^^^ Paris is where the family was transported to. They flew to Disney World in an earlier season. Also that jet pack was created to beat another guy who wanted Laura, not to pass a class.

God bless you always!!!

Holly

P.S. Don't forget about the machine that allowed Steve to have the ability to read other people's minds in the final season although I believe that the real purpose of that machine was to help you remember things better. I believe the final season is also when Steve created the wrist watch looking time machine gadget. He was able to take Carl back to when the Winslow house was first bought.