The Best TV on DVD: Freaks and Geeks
Freaks and Geeks, One of Judd Apatow's Best Underground Sensations
The Beginning of Freaks and Geeks
Freaks and Geeks was created by Paul Feig in 1999 about a group of teenagers in Michigan struggling to get through high school alive. It was a short lived show, only 18 episodes before it was canceled, but blossomed so much talent. Directed, sometimes written, and produced by Judd Apatow, this maybe too honest for it's time dramedy encapsulated what it was really like facing down the challenges teens encounter among their peers.
Among the troubled teenagers there was Lindsay Weir, Linda Cardellini, an incredibly smart lost soul new to the freaks, and her brother Sam, John Francis Daley, an ultimate geek. This creates an interesting dichotomy since freaks and geeks never co-exist naturally. Lindsay and Sam's straight edge parents, Becky Ann Baker and Joe Flaherty, unwilling to accept Lindsay's new change in behavior, distrust her new motives and friends. Whereas Sam, still friends with the same crew of unpopular boys, is coddled by his mother, which only makes his geekiness soar.
Daniel Desario, James Franco, the very troubled yet handsome misfit ringleader, is in a wickedly unhealthy relationship with Kim Kelly, Busy Phillips, a girl that has the epitome of an abusive red neck family. Also included in their band of self-destructive teens are the sarcastic and unfailingly honest Ken Miller, Seth Rogen, and the aspiring drummer in love with Lindsay, Nick Andopolis, Jason Segel. Together Daniel, Kim, Ken, and Nick draw Lindsay into their world of teenage rebellion with all the fixings: drugs, alcohol, parties, and sex.
On the other side, Sam is not alone with his best friends Bill Haverchuck, Martin Starr, the most unfortunate looking with the best sense of humor, and Neil Schweiber, Samm Levine, the geekiest of the geeks who idolizes Steve Martin and loves impersonating Charlie Chaplin.
While Lindsay is going through her identity crisis, she has to walk the thin line between fitting in with her new friends who terrorize her brother and his friends, and still seeing her old smart friends and the geek part of her that she's trying so hard to deny.
The Controversy
Freaks and Geeks was monumental for its time because it showed a closer reality to the way teenagers were in the 1980s. It wasn't a flattering depiction of the perfection that American youth had previously been associated with, it was showcasing the fact that teenagers are a little screwed up and have mountains of peer pressure to deal with. It was so controversial that NBC refused to air an episode called "Kim Kelly is my friend", until after the show had already been canceled. On the DVDs you can see the episode in it's actual placement, as episode number four.
In 1999, no one talked about kids smoking marijuana, having sex, and getting drunk the way that Freaks and Geeks did. They gave truth to the episodes and they didn't all end happily, but they made sure there was always comedy in the situations. Even through all of the shocking realism, it was openly riddled with comedy to make sure the audience knew it wasn't taking itself too seriously. The truth is abrasive and unnerving, and apparently something a lot of viewers couldn't handle. The irony of the whole thing is, after Freaks was canceled, they were nominated for an Emmy for outstanding writing.
Judd Apatow's Signature
Judd Apatow definitely honed his craft on this show, and once seeing Freaks and Geeks, it's not hard to see his brand of comedy deeply rooted inside it. As is apparent in his more recent films, Apatow collected his core group of actors from this show. Jason Segel, Seth Rogen, James Franco, and Martin Starr have followed Apatow into many more films. Many people have a lot to thank Paul Feig for, including the audience that has enjoyed so many films and shows including Apatow's humor and his crew of comedians. It's funny, heartwarming, heartbreaking, comforting, and dramatic...all the things a complex show about adolescence should be.
The Cast of Freaks and Geeks
|
What do you think about this article?
More in Film & TV
Latest Articles