`MOESHA' CO-STAR MUST KEEP UP WITH COLLEGE, MOM IN SPINOFF : THE FACTS.

Byline: David Kronke TV Critic

UPN continues its jump-start on the new fall season with its premiere of ``The Parkers,'' a sitcom spinning off ``Moesha,'' a relative success for the netlet but hardly a series that's ingrained itself in the pop-culture zeitgeist. Remember when a show had to be an actual hit to merit a spinoff?

Brandy, ``Moesha'' herself, introduces ``The Parkers'' with a game imitation of Rod Serling in a cute but pretty pointless framing device that many in her target audience probably won't even understand. Moesha's lifelong pal Kim (Countess Vaughn) gets spun off to her own show, where she's abruptly upstaged by her even more flamboyant mother, Nikki (comedian Mo'Nique).

The premise behind ``The Parkers'' is a pretty simple and in no small way fairly promising one. Mom and daughter, possessing equal amounts of street smarts and sass, head to college together (they also earn their high-school diplomas at the same time, venturing off to school in matching outfits accented by very loud, fur-lined cuffs and collars).

As Nikki and Kim head off to Santa Monica College, a friend gives Nikki condoms as a back-to-school gift, teasing, ``If you had these back in the day, you'd already have your diploma.''

At registration, mom sizes up her educational choices and a studly professor simultaneously, hopping in line to sign up for a black studies course by declaring, ``I am black, and he is definitely worth studying.'' The allegedly comic manner in which she throws herself at the poor prof is cringe-inducing, audience pandering and certainly not to be confused with how humans other than sitcom characters behave. Which is too bad, given that Mo'Nique shows that she could shine if given some snappier material.

Exploring the generation gap in an academic setting would seem rife with comic potential, but in ``The Parkers''' premiere, the jokes are as overstated as the Parker women's wardrobe, and the generational conflicts are assuaged in insight-free fashion. When Nikki aces a test, Kim declares, as a laugh line, ``My mama smaarrrt - heey

''

Later, Kim's initial fears that her mother will horn in on both her education and her partying are resolved with mind-numbing ease - this is a show for people who think all problems can be erased with a hug and a group boogie.

The show: ``The Parkers.''

What: A spinoff of ``Moesha.''

The stars: Mo'Nique, Countess Vaughn.

Where: UPN.

When: 8:30 tonight.

Rating: two stars

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Photo: Countess Vaughn, left, and Mo'Nique play a daughter and her mother who attend college together in ``The Parkers.''