I know that this is a subject that comes up quite often, and as someone who often immerses himself into the pop culture of my childhood and teens just to chase the high of being young, carefree, and innocent just one more time, I had a revelation towards the last few episodes of this particular binge that I feel is worth sharing :
For context, the show aired between 1988 and 1993, and takes place between the years 1968 and 1973, and depicts a boy who goes through the trials and tribulations of teen growth, narrated by him now all grown up. The focus of this show is his on and off again relationship with a crush and other girls to boot, as well as his buddies and family and how they impacted his life growing up.
Over the span of six seasons, the main character literally becomes the poster child for how teenage romance is a needed catalyst in growth, self discovery, maturity, and wisdom. The more experience he gains with both his crush and other girls, the more profound and wiser his view on life becomes. The impact these girls left on him are often emphasized in the form of this characters grown self narrations. All in all, at the end of the show, he's shown to have a happy and successful life, and credits it all to his experiences depicted in the show.
The main character got to go through everything we probably didn't. A best friend, a close circle of pals, an on again off again oneitis, a dating life that involved said oneitis AND other girls throughout the show to boot. His parents were trads by both todays standards as well as 60s and 70s standards. Mom was stay at home and dad worked for a living. Mom was feminine and lady like, dad was a man's man. I don't want to put spoilers in here but I will say that by the end of the series, you find out that his having a dating life between 6th grade and 11th grade made all the difference to him some twenty years later.
That being said, I highly recommend you all binge the show, at the least, if kind of gives you some semblance of what teen romance is like, as you almost feel like you're in his shoes throughout the series, and it's pretty much the closest you come to knowing what it was like to feel innocence and school boy crushes all over again, without feeling bitter or resentful about never experiencing it. The main character is an oofy doofy manlet who pretty much slays it with a variety of girls and even women, all throughout the series, and that's not including his main love interest, who is in essence his oneitis, and I suppose it does give me a slight degree of satisfaction that in a different time and place, maybe we'd be in a very different boat than the one we're in now, though I can't say with certainty if others in this community would feel the same. It's also a double dose of nostalgia because the show itself aired between 88 and 93, and does a relatively decent job of depicting the years 68 through 73.
At the most, members of our community can further analyze this show and articulate my point. Just as movies like "Falling Down", "Taxi Driver" and "Joker" are often analyzed and hailed by us as warnings to normies on how someone who is lonely should not be trifled with, I feel this show can be used as a reasonable and articulate argument that teen romance truly does make all the difference. The fact that the show is considered a classic and is focused on innocence also makes anyone who wants to argue this point think twice and choose their words very carefully as to not upset people who know and love the show. I actually see a fun and insightful community project in this but I know that opinions on that could vary, but still, fucked up as it sounds, you guys have the distinction of probably being the only people I can freely talk about this stuff with and get some what decent feedback on. That is all.
For context, the show aired between 1988 and 1993, and takes place between the years 1968 and 1973, and depicts a boy who goes through the trials and tribulations of teen growth, narrated by him now all grown up. The focus of this show is his on and off again relationship with a crush and other girls to boot, as well as his buddies and family and how they impacted his life growing up.
Over the span of six seasons, the main character literally becomes the poster child for how teenage romance is a needed catalyst in growth, self discovery, maturity, and wisdom. The more experience he gains with both his crush and other girls, the more profound and wiser his view on life becomes. The impact these girls left on him are often emphasized in the form of this characters grown self narrations. All in all, at the end of the show, he's shown to have a happy and successful life, and credits it all to his experiences depicted in the show.
The main character got to go through everything we probably didn't. A best friend, a close circle of pals, an on again off again oneitis, a dating life that involved said oneitis AND other girls throughout the show to boot. His parents were trads by both todays standards as well as 60s and 70s standards. Mom was stay at home and dad worked for a living. Mom was feminine and lady like, dad was a man's man. I don't want to put spoilers in here but I will say that by the end of the series, you find out that his having a dating life between 6th grade and 11th grade made all the difference to him some twenty years later.
That being said, I highly recommend you all binge the show, at the least, if kind of gives you some semblance of what teen romance is like, as you almost feel like you're in his shoes throughout the series, and it's pretty much the closest you come to knowing what it was like to feel innocence and school boy crushes all over again, without feeling bitter or resentful about never experiencing it. The main character is an oofy doofy manlet who pretty much slays it with a variety of girls and even women, all throughout the series, and that's not including his main love interest, who is in essence his oneitis, and I suppose it does give me a slight degree of satisfaction that in a different time and place, maybe we'd be in a very different boat than the one we're in now, though I can't say with certainty if others in this community would feel the same. It's also a double dose of nostalgia because the show itself aired between 88 and 93, and does a relatively decent job of depicting the years 68 through 73.
At the most, members of our community can further analyze this show and articulate my point. Just as movies like "Falling Down", "Taxi Driver" and "Joker" are often analyzed and hailed by us as warnings to normies on how someone who is lonely should not be trifled with, I feel this show can be used as a reasonable and articulate argument that teen romance truly does make all the difference. The fact that the show is considered a classic and is focused on innocence also makes anyone who wants to argue this point think twice and choose their words very carefully as to not upset people who know and love the show. I actually see a fun and insightful community project in this but I know that opinions on that could vary, but still, fucked up as it sounds, you guys have the distinction of probably being the only people I can freely talk about this stuff with and get some what decent feedback on. That is all.
