MARTIN (THE 3RD SEASON) DISC 3 (8  SIDESPLITTING  EPISODES)

Martin is an American sitcom produced by HBO Independent Productions (a subsidiary of HBO) that aired for five seasons, from August 27, 1992 to May 1, 1997 on Fox. The show stars actor-comedian Martin Lawrence, Thomas Mikal Ford, Tichina Arnold, Carl Anthony Payne II, and Tisha Campbell.

Reflecting the rising popularity of the Fox network throughout the 1990s, Martin was one of the network's highest-rated shows during the sitcom's five-season run. In contrast to the popularity of NBC's "Must See TV" on Thursday nights in the 1990s, many African American viewers flocked to Fox's Thursday night line-up of Martin, Living Single, and New York Undercover. In fact, these were the three highest-rated series among Black households for the 1996–1997 season. (In order of popularity, Living Single, New York Undercover, and Martin.).

Set in Detroit, Michigan, the series stars Martin Lawrence in the role of Martin Payne, a disc jockey with a girlfriend named Gina played by Tisha Campbell-Martin. Martin works for the fictional radio station WZUP and later for local public-access TV station Channel 51. A common theme of the series is Martin's derisive and brash nature; episodes often center on Martin's inconsiderate attitude towards his friends, neighbors, and whoever else might find themselves in his presence. When all is said and done, though, Martin loves his family and friends—it just takes dire situations to bring it to light.

As the series progressed, plotlines saw Martin lose his job with WZUP and eventually move on to become the host of the talk show "Word on the Street," which aired on the small Detroit public-access TV station Channel 51. He retained this position until the series' final episode, in which he and Gina prepared to move to Los Angeles, from where his show would be syndicated nationally. The move coincided fortuitously with Gina's promotion by her boss Mr. Whitaker to head up his company's new Los Angeles headquarters, after having shut down the Detroit office. Pam, whom Whitaker let go two episodes earlier due to this consolidation and downsizing, went on to pursue a career in the music industry as an artists & repertoire (A&R) executive at Keep It Real Records. (This plotline is the subject of a pilot episode that was included in the Martin series for a planned sitcom on Fox starring Tichina Arnold to be called Goin' for Mine [Episode 129, "Goin' for Mine"]. This sitcom never materialized, though.) And at series' end, Cole proposed to his even more dimwitted but attractive and devoted girlfriend Shanise (portrayed by Maura McDade), and they made plans to move into their own place.

In early episodes, Lawrence began with a monologue of him speaking to the camera and audience from the darkened radio studio.