Season 3 was the start of the pregnancy for Vivian and the beginning of the Nicky journey, so that sort of knocks it down slightly in my book, but it's still a great season, and its ranking is deserved. It was a great emotional episode and one of those episodes that will always stick out in the history of the show. One of my favorite episodes on the show this season is the one where Carlton mistakenly takes drugs that he assumes are Vitamin E pills and the fall out from that. From the story of Hillary and Trevor to the camping trip with Carlton, Will, and Uncle Phil, there was enough greatness during the season to make it stand out over most of the others. Don't get me wrong, this season is a classic, and the final season with the original Aunt Vivian, so it definitely holds a special place for me as an avid viewer of the show. Memory had me willing to put this in the 1st or 2nd spot, but when I went back and reviewed the seasons, there was no way I could put it there. So far, the seasons are in order, if you're paying attention. While this season wasn't the greatest of them all, it's still an amazing season and has the greatest moment in Fresh Prince history.
When his father leaves again, the emotion on that final scene between Will and Uncle Phil is unparalleled to anything on the entire show. The most infamous moment in Fresh Prince history occurs when Will finally gets to be with his father, who has no interest in staying around for the long term. However, with Uncle Phil's heart attack, Will withdrawing from college to work, and the Boyz II Men christening episode, the season was probably the most balanced of them all, but the apex of this season comes right near the end. From Carlton to losing his virginity to an older woman, Will using a baby to get a "Campus Father Of the Year" award, to Will and Carlton attempting to pledge a fraternity (but Carlton wasn't seen as "black enough"), it seems the topics were a bit heavier this season but still maintained the humor we loved. With Will and Carlton heading to college, Ashley getting older, and all the craziness involved in that and beyond, it's no shock that this season has some up and down moments, but for the most part, the laughs and the jokes keep coming. With 26 episodes, it is the longest season in the show's history. There are some great episodes in this season and of course, a few missteps, but mostly the show delivered. This is honestly a very good season, despite the change with Aunt Vivian. No longer was Will the young fresh prince of Bel Air, he was now a grown man on his own. It was a solid way to end the show and close the entire narrative out. The Banks children move to the East Coast, while Uncle Phil and Vivian follow them (with Nicky in tow), Geoffrey goes back home to London (and is no longer a butler I'd assume), and Will stays in California to attend college.
However, the best thing they did was the series finale, where everything came to an understandable ending. The laughs weren't as plentiful and the stories were less and less enjoyable. Much like another great show, Martin, the final season of Fresh Prince felt like they were coasting to the last episode, rather than trying to make extremely engaging and fun television.
There were good moments, as always, but from William Shatner and his pointless appearance on the show, to the changes in the dichotomy for Will and Carlton to the forced story of Uncle Phil and lightskin Vivian separating briefly, nothing about season 6 was fluid. What makes this season the worst of them all is that many cast members are missing and the episodes are essentially all over the place. It was tough choosing between this and the fifth season, to be very honest. In reality, the final season of black sitcoms is usually the worst of them all unfortunately.