Mama's Family prequel series? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TheLittleFaerie · 03-27-2023, 04:25 AM

I was thinking, how would a Mama's Family prequel series go over? It would be about Carl and Thelma as a young married couple, raising their kids... Ellen, Eunice and Vint would be children of course. It could show how much of the family ended up as they did, how the tension between Eunice and Mama grew, they could recreate scenes that were recalled in Mama's Family, It could show Thelma being 2nd mother to Iola due to her own mother being ill most of the time, etc...

I think a good name would be Mama's Family the Early Years

BestTVever · 03-28-2023, 07:22 AM

It would be interesting but I dont think it would be funny. What made Mama funny was her old sarcastic ways. In movies like Eunice where it showed a younger Mama were interesting but not that funny.

schmave · 05-09-2023, 09:57 AM

If this actually happened, you'd almost have to have Vicki Lawrence play Thelma's mother as, at the very least, a recurring character. Cast would be Thelma, Carl, all three kids and a young Iola. Fran should be in there to some extent for continuity. I don't think a younger Naomi would have to be in the show, as it seemed she and the Harpers had known each other for years but weren't close.
I don't see it happening, nor would I really want it without the original cast. The chance to do any kind of an authentic prequel or sequel had pretty well sailed by the mid-90s IMO.

schmave · 05-09-2023, 09:57 AM

If this actually happened, you'd almost have to have Vicki Lawrence play Thelma's mother as, at the very least, a recurring character. Cast would be Thelma, Carl, all three kids and a young Iola. Fran should be in there to some extent for continuity. I don't think a younger Naomi would have to be in the show, as it seemed she and the Harpers had known each other for years but weren't close.
I don't see it happening, nor would I really want it without the original cast. The chance to do any kind of an authentic prequel or sequel had pretty well sailed by the mid-90s IMO.

rusty spike · 05-09-2023, 05:02 PM

I like the idea. However, I think interest in such a venture is waning. I think 20-25 years ago, it would have been green-lit with the right producers/directors.

BestTVever · 05-12-2023, 06:16 AM

In the movie Eunice, we get lots of prequel stuff. It just was not funny. The thing that made Mama's Family and the Mama sketches work was how they delivered the script. There were no jokes in the script. It was all their character playing their role that made it funny. Trying to go back and make much younger characters funny is really challenging and does not work.

03-27-2023, 04:25 AM	#1
TheLittleFaerie Member Senior Member Join Date: Oct 15, 2017 Posts: 1,945	Mama's Family prequel series? I was thinking, how would a Mama's Family prequel series go over? It would be about Carl and Thelma as a young married couple, raising their kids... Ellen, Eunice and Vint would be children of course. It could show how much of the family ended up as they did, how the tension between Eunice and Mama grew, they could recreate scenes that were recalled in Mama's Family, It could show Thelma being 2nd mother to Iola due to her own mother being ill most of the time, etc... I think a good name would be Mama's Family the Early Years

05-09-2023, 09:57 AM	#3
schmave Member Forum Regular Join Date: Mar 23, 2013 Location: Reynoldsburg, Ohio Posts: 653	If this actually happened, you'd almost have to have Vicki Lawrence play Thelma's mother as, at the very least, a recurring character. Cast would be Thelma, Carl, all three kids and a young Iola. Fran should be in there to some extent for continuity. I don't think a younger Naomi would have to be in the show, as it seemed she and the Harpers had known each other for years but weren't close. I don't see it happening, nor would I really want it without the original cast. The chance to do any kind of an authentic prequel or sequel had pretty well sailed by the mid-90s IMO.
	__________________ "hey when you're in the desert you don't complain that the champagne's not Korbel if you get my drift." - RightOnDude

03-28-2023, 07:22 AM	#2
BestTVever Member Senior Member Join Date: Jan 29, 2021 Location: Miami Posts: 1,878	It would be interesting but I dont think it would be funny. What made Mama funny was her old sarcastic ways. In movies like Eunice where it showed a younger Mama were interesting but not that funny.

05-09-2023, 05:02 PM	#5
rusty spike Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 08, 2015 Location: Southwest Posts: 1,124	I like the idea. However, I think interest in such a venture is waning. I think 20-25 years ago, it would have been green-lit with the right producers/directors.

05-12-2023, 06:16 AM	#6
BestTVever Member Senior Member Join Date: Jan 29, 2021 Location: Miami Posts: 1,878	In the movie Eunice, we get lots of prequel stuff. It just was not funny. The thing that made Mama's Family and the Mama sketches work was how they delivered the script. There were no jokes in the script. It was all their character playing their role that made it funny. Trying to go back and make much younger characters funny is really challenging and does not work.