What's Happening!!: Season 02 (1977)

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The second-season opener of What's Happening focuses on the series' most popular character, corpulent high schooler Freddie "Rerun" Tubbs (Fred Berry), who astonishes his pals Raj (Ernest Thomas) and Dwayne (Haywood Nelson) by announcing his plans to marry an illegal alien (played by future Fame star Irene Cara). Later episodes focus on Raj's mother Mabel (Mabel King), who, in "Mama, the School Girl," falls in love with a much-younger man while attending night school; and who, in "Bill Gets Married," fusses and fumes when her no-good former husband, Bill (Thalmus Rasulala), decides to remarry. Raj's sassy sister Dee (Danielle Spencer) is center of attention in such episodes as "It's All in Your Head, wherein she tries to help out a classmate by consulting a psychologist (Itim Reid). And wisecracking waitress Shirley (Shirley Hemphill) is spotlighted in such entries as "Nothing Personal," a study in reverse racism. The season's best episode, and one of the series' most memorable outings, is the two-part "Doobie or Not Doobie," featuring The Doobie Brothers. Season two draws to a close as Raj, Rerun, and Dwayne graduate from high school, whereupon Raj moves out of his house and into his apartment -- not that this prevents Mama from "casually" dropping in on her darling boy from time to time. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi