"227" is a comedy about the tenants of an apartment building in Washngton, D.C. It features a group of competent actors but suffers from lackluster writing. Much of the dialogue is tired and clichéd.Comparing it to one of its contemporary shows, "The Golden Girls", can help illustrate. On TGG, the dialogue and the humor is sharper. This might explain the huge discrepancy in award nominations and wins.Jackee helped add zing, but not enough to elevate the show above mediocrity.

Episodes usually begin with the daily gossip on the front stairs of 227. There was one episode featuring Sherman Hemsley; the character thought Mary was a maid and the two spar is if they were still on The Jeffersons together. Jackee Harry is wonderful as Sandra. The episode that caught my attention is on disc 2: "We The People." This story is about Lester's supposedly wealthy friend who becomes the building's maintenance man. He doesn't complete all jobs and wears the same shirt for many days. Pearl senses something fishy when the maintenance man's friends enter but don't leave the building. Pearl and Mary visit the man to figure out what is happening and the door is opened for Mary.

I have to agree with what 'EricTee' posted above. This show was standard. It was just like most other sitcoms: stale jokes, repetitive stories. I completely agree about the woman who played 'Pearl', she was awful ! I gave this show a fair shake when it came on, but my word....simply dreadful ! On any given episode, we'd see: What wacky hijinx will Mary and Sandra get into this week? Will Brendas' date try to go 'too far' with her ? <a 'very special' episode, no doubt> Will Pearl lean out her window and make some bad joke which will prompt guffaws from Mary and Rose ?Will Sandra have a date and emit that irritating 'Ewwwwwww' noise when asked for details of her date ?Silly and unwatchable

227 was a very hilarious show in my opinion. It blended comedy and drama into each episode that was aired. As a child, I used to be glued in front of the television set waiting for 227 to come on every Saturday night at 8 p.m on NBC. In the latter years when it went off the air, weekly reruns of 227 were coming on BET and it only stayed on for a short period of time. I wish TV Land or Nick-at-Nite would air the reruns again because the shows that they air now like "The Andy Griffith Show, Gilligan 's Island, and I Love Lucy do not appeal or amuse me a bit; and besides you guys have been airing those same old tired shows forever. Just bring some black comedy shows back on TV Land like 227. I was displeased when "The Jeffersons" went off TV Land. It only stayed on TV Land for 6 months, what a shame.