Timing is everything. Timing is both why Freaks and Geeks was one of the best, most realistic shows of all time and also why it was cancelled after just one season. It's appropriate that the show is set in 1980, thus allowing it to escape being dated. With the exception of a few actors (one in particular really), it has completely stood the test of time.
By this point - and it's still being perpetuated - high school shows or movies follow a stereotypical pattern that seemingly applies to no one. (And when it doesn't, it's usually because that high school is really unique - Texas HS in Friday Night Lights; need I explain for Buffy?) Freaks and Geeks seemed like a real high school experience - because it mostly was. It is based off Paul Feig's time in high school. And several of the ideas are from real-life experiences from the writers.
The show gave each character, no matter how minor, enough shading to make them seem believable and not like a plot device. This is a show where there really aren't major cliques. Sure you have your jocks and you have your geeks, but they still interact with each other. There's a scene where a girl tries to get a jock and a geek to fight, but neither will because they like each other. And there's another scene where a bully looks approvingly on when a girl dances with a mentally challenged kid at a school dance. It defies high school cliches.
This cast is ridiculously talented. It's insane. Oscar nominated actor James Franco, box office behemoth Seth Rogen, and the always hilarious Jason Segel are only the tip of the iceberg. Ironically, those three guys give perhaps the weakest performances of the cast. Well Rogen certainly does. He's pretty awful, but thankfully he's given the least to do and by the time he does have a storyline, he's improved enough to make it good.
Stealing the show is Linda Cardellini, playing Lindsday Weir. I almost want to watch ER just for her. Almost. Filling out the freaks is Busy Phillips, who I wish I had more to say about. Among the kids, Martin Starr is the standout actor though "should have been a child star" Sam Levinne and "ridiculously good at playing shy and awkward" John Francis Daley certainly are close by. Honestly, if I had no knowledge of their future careers, I would have guessed this trio would have made it big and the older guys would have had successful, if somewhat underwhelming careers. Go figure.
The supporting cast includes a wonderful performance by Joe Flaherty as the father to Linsday and a sweet-natured performance by Becky Ann Baker as the mother. The list of guest stars to appear on this show include: Shia LaBeouf, Jason Schwartzman, Rashida Jones, David Krumholz, Leslie Mann, Ben Foster, Lizzy Caplan, and Joanna Garcia Swisher. It's mind boggling how successful the majority of the people who were on this show became.
It's only appropriate then that the people behind the camera have also been ridiculously successful. Judd Apatow, whom the person reading surely knows, wrote six episodes and directed three. It's created by Paul Feig (who's directed several episodes of Arrested Development and The Office, and Bridesmaids). Feig had a writing credit for all 18 episodes, surely because this is essentially based on his experience.
In 1999-2000, the show regularly got 8 million viewers, which was low enough to be obviously cancelled by just about every network. Nowadays, a show like Freaks and Geeks gets put on the air and gets low ratings, it mostly likely survives on the backs of critics. Of course, if that were the case, we wouldn't have the wonderful cast and brilliant writers that we do. So it's both a blessing and a curse that it came at the time that it did.
As far as the show is concerned, I watched it with somebody who did not receive the pilot episode well. By that same token, I've read someone say that the pilot is one of the best pilots in introducing the characters. And I kind of agree with both. The pilot is clearly the weakest episode of the ones I watched and Seth Rogen's bad acting is way too prominent to be ignored. But I recently re-watched it and it's amazing how much it improves after you've seen the series. So if you feel underwhelmed by the pilot, give it one or two more episodes (at least until "Kim Kelly is My Friend.")
Freaks and Geeks was masterful in building sympathetic characters. Daniel (Franco), Nick (Segel), Ken (Rogen), and Kim (Phillips) are all people I can see myself distancing from when I was in high school. And yet, the show slowly unfolds backstories that help explain the situation they are in. It explains their actions, which don't look too kindly upon the character if you have no knowledge of what they've been through. The geeks - Bill (Starr) and Neal (Levinne) - also have somewhat complicated home lives, although the geeks are probably easy to relate to from the get-go. The only exceptions to having problems at home are Lindsay and Sam Weir, because their parents are extremely understanding and happy.
The show also makes good use out of its premise, for the most part separating the freaks and geeks. But when a geek and a freak come into contact for some reason, it's usually one of the best parts of the episode. It's also made more plausible since Lindsay and Sam and brother and sister, therefore the freaks are aware of the geeks more than they probably would have been.
It is hard to argue for another season - as much as I want one - because the first season was so perfect. It'd be difficult to imagine the second season being better. In fact, the last few episodes - when the creators knew it would be cancelled - had a plots meant for the second season, but truncated into a few episodes. It doesn't make the plots feel as rushed as you would imagine however and the episodes hardly suffer for it.
So, come watch Freaks and Geeks to watch your favorite stars before they were stars, and stay for an excellent piece of television. It's a show that rings truer to life than most shows on television, which means there aren't usually big victories at the end, but minor ones. It looks at high school as it was and not as it's portrayed on screen usually. Most importantly, it's a show that is immensely enjoyable and entertaining.
Grade - A
Playlist
1. "The Chain" - Fleetwood Mac
2. "Burning" - The Whitest Boy Alive
3. "Be Good (RAC Remix)" - Tokyo Police Club
4. "Don't Wanna Dance" - MØ
5. "Runaway" - Mr Little Jeans
No comments:
Post a Comment