We all went through the awkward, stressful, hormonal years of middle school, right? While I have no desire to ever relive my early teenage years, I’ve been watching a hilarious show on Hulu called Pen15 that makes me cringe and laugh at the same time.
Pen15 stars two actresses in their 30s who play 13-year-olds among actual 13-year-old actors and actresses (it might sound weird, but it works due to a combination of acting, wigs, and prop braces). My impression is that the scripts are based on these actresses’ real friendship and stories that are both relatable and–at times–super weird in a very entertaining way.
I’m only 4 episodes into the series, and my favorite moment so far is Maya’s drum solo. There’s a lot more to come, though (including a new season in the spring), and I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Have you seen Pen15? What’s your favorite comedy on TV or streaming right now?
Literally, your description caused me so much cringe that I couldn’t possibly see myself attempting to view this show, much less enjoy it.
Also, why are we, as adults, still witnessing fellow adults try so hard to recapture/insert/assess/reaffirm/chooseanadverb the moments from childhood? Our lives now are infinitely more interesting, complex and engaging, why is our entertainment hell-bent on reliving events that have been significantly buried by time and knowledge? My high school experience was pretty awesome, but it is not a metric I use to gauge my life since then.
This is also why I have never gotten on well with Manga or Anime. Far too much obsession with teenagers and their amazing transformations into…well, whatever the story calls for. I’m sorry, but I knew I didn’t know $#!t then, and I am unsurprised that modern teens don’t know $#!t now. It seems absurd to revere the period of my life where I was the least cognizant but the most confident.
My two pennies.