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It’s no secret that my taste in music is lacking in the maturity department. I’m not exactly trying to hide the fact that I’m 24 and still listen to emo music. It’s not like I’m rubbing it in people’s face, but it’s out in the open enough for my boss to jokingly get me a Hot Topic gift card for Christmas. We laughed about it for a little bit, trying to decide if I should use it to buy a studded belt or some pot leaf cufflinks, and then I thought to myself, “You know, I do wonder if there’s anything there that I might want.”
One of the first things I saw was a tee shirt that legitimately looked like a high school gym uniform and said “Riverdale High School Football” on it. At the time, I had a vague idea of what Riverdale was. I knew it was a TV show on the CW channel and that it was loosely based on the Archie comics, which I have never read. I didn’t buy the shirt because I didn’t want to be the guy who tries to be in on the joke that he’s clearly not a part of. Plus, CW shows are traditionally whiney and overdramatic with forced romances and poor writing, so I wasn’t too bent out of shape about it.
That was back in December. It’s two weeks into January when I’m writing this, and I’m now the proud owner of a Riverdale High School Football tee shirt.
So what happened between then and now? Well, I told my girlfriend about the tee shirt and she replied with, “Ugh, SUCH a good show.” Naturally, I had to see what it was all about. My girlfriend and I watched the first episode while sipping poorly made Hot Toddies. Then, we watched the second episode. Then, the third. Before I knew it, I was looking past the overacting and grasping-at-straws approach to what high school is like. All I cared about was who killed Jason Blossom and the hope that someone would give Archie Andrews a chance to pursue his music career.
It didn’t stop there. Since I loved Riverdale so much, I decided to give some of the old hits another shot. I’m talking shows like Gossip Girl and The OC, the kind of shows starring baby-faced twenty-somethings as sophomores in high school, getting themselves into way more trouble than seemingly realistic. The hijinks are abundant; they kind of have to be when your main characters are teenagers with no jobs and exploding hormone levels.
Let’s be very clear here, these are by no means good shows. Let’s not get into the habit of putting them on the same level as Game of Thrones or Breaking Bad. They’re loaded with unnecessary drama and love triangles that don’t really make sense. I’m not that far into the show yet, but apparently, Dan dates Blair at some point? Come on.
No, they’re not good shows, but they have the uncanny ability to do something that tons of shows can’t: drive their hooks into you and get you fully invested in outlandish situations that you yourself don’t totally comprehend. I think about the time when Marissa shot Ryan’s brother in Season 2 of The OC and wonder how things even escalated to that in the first place. Like, the event made sense, but how the fuck did a 16-year-old find herself in that situation? It doesn’t make sense, and I think that’s why I love it.
When I was in high school, the most stressful situation that I found myself in was when my parents started asking me whether or not I was smoking pot. Nobody ever got tortured or murdered, and if they did, I certainly would have felt no obligation to figure out who did it. In many ways, I admire these kids’ ambition and curiosity. I wish I felt as passionate about anything as the characters on these shows feel about justice for people that they’re only kind of friends with.
I’m sure this is a phase. As much as I live for the drama that rears its ugly head in these shows, I can tell I’m growing up. I’m rolling my eyes more often. I’m agreeing with the parents who ground their kids for sneaking out and going to parties. Do you know how much a drinking ticket impacts your likelihood of getting into a good college? I don’t, but I’m sure it’s not a good look.
As for what’s next, I don’t really know. Realistically, I’m probably just passing the time until The Walking Dead or Westworld comes back, but I’m in no rush. Bring on the drama. .
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Charlie
Using sarcasm as a defense mechanism since 1993. At any given moment I'm either tired, drunk, or stressed out. Get at me at charliepgp@gmail.com or whatever.
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Rewatching The OC and relating to the parents much more than the children. PGP
I cannot watch Greek anymore without the urge of running into oncoming traffic
I really liked Doug lol
Landry killed a guy, tried to hide the body, and it was never really a big deal
For a minute I thought you meant “Laundry pods killed a guy”
I stopped being able to watch high school dramas once I realized that i’m 5+ years older than the actors who themselves were 5+ years older than the high school kids they were portraying.
One Tree Hill is pretty damn good.
Is it just me or did anyone else realize that the entire GG cast just…drop out of college after their freshman year?
Laguna Beach still tops my list of terrible tv that I absolutely loved in high school. #TeamLC
Totally agree and if anyone tries to say that Newport Harbor was the same, they’re idiots
Scream on MTV was lowkey my obsession over the summer. Teen drama PLUS slasher tropes? Yes please.
loved that show, it got cancelled right?
Ya, and don’t get me started on the Hills. The drama was semi-believable when they were high schoolers.
Wrong comment :/
Rewatching all these old shows and realizing you’re attracted to the parents/teachers now instead of the main characters you used to adore… PGP
True. I can no longer deal with Nate Archibald’s haircut for the first few seasons.
Chuck’s haircuts during those first few seasons were also equally ridiculous