TVSquad

When you're young and a grandparent passes away, it can be a surreal experience. You see weird relatives you never see normally, and people bring all kinds of food to your home, as if stuffing your face with tiny ham sandwiches is better than talking about your feelings. What can be especially disconcerting, though, is watching your parent deal with their own parent's death. They're no longer the stalwart pillars of authority they once appeared to be. In a word, they become human.

Last night UPN managed to sneak another new episode of Everybody Hates Chris on the air, and this one dealt with the death of Rochelle's father, played by Jimmie Walker. When the extended family descends on their home, Rochelle becomes more aloof and detached, finding respite and solitude in her box of Turtles chocolates. Chris becomes concerned for his mother, and begins to lash out at family members who give her a hard time.

Given the subject matter, this wasn't going to be the funniest episode of the season, but it managed to delve deeper into the character of Chris' mom, which I appreciated. When the show opens we're treated to a montage of Chris' mom yelling at each of her kids and her husband. It ends with her actually yelling at herself in the mirror. The scene is funny enough, but it's in stark contrast to the mousy person she becomes once her family shows up. If a funeral episode seems trite and cliche, you're right, it is. But at least it gave us a chance to pull back yet another layer of one of the characters.