Search results
- “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (1997-2003) “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” creator Joss Whedon has never been subtle about the inspiration for his creation: High school is hell, particularly for the outcasts who don’t quite feel like they belong.
- “The O.C.” (2003-2007) is a brilliant subversion of nighttime soaps wrapped in packaging so luxurious it’s hard not to gasp. Take the central character, Ryan Atwood (Ben McKenzie): Not only does Ryan represent the audience being invited into a wealthy world they never thought possible, but he’s a leading man in a teen drama focusing on romances, heartbreak, and melodrama.
- “Daria” (1997-2002) The droll, deadpan delivery of Daria Morgendorffer made her iconic from the beginning of her MTV debut (prefaced by her initial introduction as a supporting character on “Beavis and Butthead”).
- “Freaks and Geeks” (1999-2000) Even though this series only ran one season — one of the best shows to do so — “Freaks and Geeks” put all the fraught and joyful emotions of high school in a blender and managed to mold the result into something that legions of teens still relate to.
- Boy Meets World. ABC. 974 votes. What happens when you take a wide-eyed adolescent boy and throw him headfirst into the chaotic world of adolescence? You get a charming coming-of-age tale filled with life lessons learned through trial and error.
- Saved by the Bell. NBC. 941 votes. Ah, the quintessential high school experience - lockers slamming, bells ringing, and a ragtag group of friends navigating the ups and downs of teenage life.
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. NBC. 960 votes. In West Philadelphia born and raised - you know the words! When this wisecracking street-smart teenager found himself living with his wealthy family in Bel-Air, hilarity ensued.
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer. WB, UPN. 916 votes. Vampires beware; there's a new slayer in town! This cult classic redefined what it meant to be a teen hero by placing a spunky blonde cheerleader at the helm of saving humanity from supernatural threats.
The 50 Best Teen Movies from the 1990s. Here is a chronological list of the best teen-centered films from the year 1990-1999 (as chosen by me).
May 20, 2024 · 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) Shakespeare’s hold on storytelling has remained evident in modern cinema, as filmmakers find fun ways to retell his famous stories. 1999’s 10 Things I Hate About...
- 8 Degrassi High
- 7 Fifteen
- 6 Beverly Hills, 90210
- 5 My So-Called Life
- 4 Party of Five
- 3 Dawson’s Creek
- 2 Felicity
- 1 Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Technically Degrassi High (a sequel series to Degrassi Junior High) began airing in 1989, but it continued through 1991, making it a 90s show. Degrassi is a long-running franchise out of Canada that told grounded, realistic stories about the experiences of everyday kids coming of age. It, of course, tackled things like underage drinking, drugs use,...
Another drama out of Canada, Fifteen is probably best known these days as the show that gave Ryan Reynolds his start. While that is certainly an interesting factoid, the series is worth remembering for other reasons as well. Like Degrassi, many of these kids feel like actors. There is a rawness and nervousness to their performances that’s a little ...
You can’t talk about teen dramas without mentioning Beverly Hills, 90210. It is, in the mind of anyone who watched it faithfully at the time, the gold standard for this kind of television. Following the turbulent lives of teenagers (later, young adults) in Beverly Hills, it made celebrities out of its stars and helped keep the Fox network on the ma...
For everything, it did right, one glaring issue with 90210 is that the vast majority of the characters are popular. So, if you failed to find yourself in the series, just flip over to My So-Called Life. Although it only ran for one season, Life had an indelible impact on those who watched it. This was accomplished in a similar way to Degrassi — tee...
What if you took the standard big family show, where the home serves as a microcosm for the rest of the world, and removed the parents? Instead of having kids of various ages encounter their unique problems and slowly realizing their parents don't have all the answers, they have to quickly learn how to figure this stuff out on their own. That's wha...
In some ways, Dawson’s Creek is the transition point between the aspirational “cool kid” stories of 90210 and the latter “everyone talks in witticisms” that would come later with shows like Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars. Dawson and his friends are neither cool nor uncool. They ride that line between most people knowing who they are, and nobod...
Young adulthood wasn’t always given the same weight as one’s high school years on television. College was usually depicted as a time when young people simply let loose and get into trouble. It was either played for laughs or as a cautionary tale. With Felicity (created by J.J. Abrams), the decision was made to show how going off to college was abou...
Nobody spent their high school years slaying vampires, killing demons, or trying to close a Hellmouth, the way Buffy Summers Did. However, many of us did stand up to bullies, face social fears, and desperately desire to leave our hometowns, convinced it was holding us back. That’s what Buffy the Vampire Slayer was all about. Writers on the show tal...
- Dustin Pinney
May 10, 2021 · (Netflix, 2018) A motley crew of Black and brown teens is searching for hidden treasure and themselves in Netflix's On My Block, a much-needed series centering on underserved communities whose...
May 19, 2016 · However, when that wave of nostalgia hits and re-watching those movies just won't do, here are a couple shows to remind you just why those '90s shows were THE BEST EVER. 'Jane the Virgin'...
