They tried that in the 90's

I'm always complaining about how Gossip Girl and 90210 and that crap are completely unrealistic to teenagers' lives. They depict angst...but not the angst we feel - the superficial angst that everybody thinks we feel. The truth is boys, popularity and eating disorders are not all teenage girls stress over (though that is part of it...) but even more so than the topics explored, the characters in these shows don't look like me or really act like me or anybody I know.

I always say that I wish somebody would have the guts to make a T.V. show that more accurately depicts the teenage experience. But as it turns out, they tried that in the 90's with My So Called Life and Freaks and Geeks. And it didn't go so well. 

Both shows tried to break from the stereotypical teen show model and both lasted for only one season. However, they also both still have cult-like followings of kids who like watching something closer to their reality. 

Freaks and Geeks was actually produced by Judd Apatow. It stars Chutney from Legally Blonde (aka Linda Cardellini) and Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, Busy Phillips and my favorite, James Franco (the man who has a perfectly symmetrical face). Basically, it follows a girl as she transitions socially from being a "mathlete" to an underachieving "freak," and her little brother and his friends, who are "geeks." 

My So Called Life stars Claire Danes and Jared Leto, who I used to be in love with but then completely lost interest in after learning that he fronts 30 Seconds to Mars. My So Called Life follows your everyday 15-year-old-girl as she tries to figure out what the hell she's doing. 

The pilots are both below. While I don't think either of these shows necessarily have feminist agendas, I think they're honest. And I always like to give solutions to the problems I complain about so I feel better about 500+ words of whining. 

Freaks and Geeks

My So Called Life Thoughts? Reactions?