My So-Called Life

’90s Teen TV Characters: Where Are They Now?

By Judy Berman on Nov 8, 2012 3:00pm

All your friends are getting married. Some of them are having kids. And now, in case you didn’t already feel like an overgrown child whose life is passing him by, Cory Matthews and Topanga Lawrence have a preteen daughter. Yes, for the past week, the internet has been abuzz with the news that a Boy Meets World sequel is in the works. Called Girl Meets World, it will focus on young Riley Matthews and her “edgy friend,” Maya. While we’re not sure that revisiting ABC’s TGIF lineup is the best idea, the update on Cory and Topanga has made us wonder what some of our other favorite ’90s teen TV characters might be up to in 2012. After the jump, we check in on (by which we mean, “we imagine”) what they’ve done since last we saw them. … Read More

Television

’90s TV Teachers: Where Are They Now?

By Judy Berman on Aug 28, 2012 11:30am

Fixated as we are on our own childhoods, we tend to look back on our favorite ’90s TV kids and teenagers fairly frequently. But recently — and perhaps this is just us showing our age — our thoughts have turned to their teachers. While Mr. Feeny, Ms. Jacobs, and Coach Cutlip didn’t get nearly as much screen time as the kids on Boy Meets World, Dawson’s Creek, and The Wonder Years, they made more of an impression than their students might like to admit. Find out what’s become of ’90s TV teachers, from series regulars who shared their wisdom (or just their anger) with the younger generation to the most memorable of guest stars, below. … Read More

Television

TV’s All-Time Greatest Himbos

By Judy Berman on Aug 23, 2012 12:30pm

Damn those short HBO seasons. This year’s True Blood run seems like it just started, yet we’re now only three days away from the finale. We enjoyed this season a great deal, the Vampire Authority’s internal intrigue providing a welcome break from Sookie Stackhouse’s supernatural love triangle — not to mention a surprisingly insightful commentary on what happens when church and state mingle. But one character whose development has remained fairly unexamined this season is Sookie’s brother, Jason. Originally presented as an empty-headed looker with a womanizing streak, he’s recently turned the himbo stereotype on its head. To celebrate his under-the-radar evolution (and the fact that he’s still sometimes a little too stupid for his own good), we’ve collected a selection of TV’s all-time greatest male bimbos — or “himbos” — most of whom aren’t nearly as multi-dimensional. … Read More

Television

Watch Your Favorite TV Characters Talking About Books

By Emily Temple on Aug 18, 2012 11:00am

If you’ve been paying attention to this space over the last couple of months, you already know that we’re fascinated by the reading habits of our favorite fictional characters. But what’s better than a simple reading list? A little informed dialogue, of course. Or even a few well-placed snarky comments. Recently, we spotted this excellent clip of The Wire‘s D’Angelo talking about The Great Gatsby over at Open Culture, and it inspired us to round up a few more clips of some of our favorite TV characters waxing poetic about their favorite (or least favorite) books. From simple proclamations of Dr. Seuss’s brilliance to Boardwalk Empire‘s very physical commentary on David Copperfield, we love seeing books we love figure into the drama. Click through to watch — and hey, you just might learn something. … Read More

Television

TV’s Most Hopeless, Angst-Ridden Romantics

By Caroline Stanley on Jul 13, 2012 11:30am

If you always secretly wished that The West Wing was a lot more soapy, then mark your calendars for Sunday night, when a new show called Political Animals premieres on USA. At the heart of this fun new series is the Hammond family, a political dynasty in the vein of the Kennedys, who are every bit as flawed and riddled by scandal. There’s also a clear homage to the Clintons happening here. Sigourney Weaver’s Elaine Barrish is basically Hillary Clinton with a much better stylist; meanwhile, Ciarán Hinds as two-term president and general good ol’ boy Bud Barrish is cut from the same cloth as Bill. As in real life, the on-screen relationship between this fictionalized version of the couple is hard to comprehend. Like Carla Gugino, who plays the family’s nemesis, journalist Susan Berg, we can’t help but wonder why a woman as strong as Elaine would put up with a cheating husband — but then, she’s far from the first TV character to let her heart rule over her head. Click through for a roundup of some of the most hopeless, angst-ridden romantics in recent television history. … Read More

Television

’90s TV’s Most Memorable Nerds: Where Are They Now?

By Judy Berman on Jun 19, 2012 12:30pm

Hollywood can be notoriously hard on child actors; one day they’re America’s pint-size sweetheart, and the next they’re heroin-addicted has-beens knocking on Dr. Drew’s office door. But the kids who play TV’s most recognizable geeks may have even more trouble finding their place in the industry as adults, because outside of a few sitcoms like Community and The Big Bang Theory, their archetype is far rarer in shows about adults — and unlike the jocks and cheerleaders who are their teenage cast mates, they don’t generally have the superhuman good looks that will translate to leading roles. So, as a recent article about Freaks and Geeks‘ head geek Stephen Lea Sheppard got us wondering, what has become of all those memorable ’90s TV brains that we grew up with? We check in on everyone who isn’t Alyson Hannigan (because we’re sure you know what she’s up to) after the jump. … Read More

Television

Ranking ’90s TV Boyfriends from Worst to Best

By Jennifer Lewis on Jun 11, 2012 2:00pm

There ain’t no boyfriend like a ’90s TV boyfriend, are we right or are we right? For some reason or another, they don’t make ‘em like they used to. Is Puck our new A.C. Slater? Is Tim Riggins our new Jordan Catalano? It’s safe to say that while their 21st-century equivalents are attractive enough, the original guys are irreplaceable, so we’ve ranked some one-of-a-kind ’90s TV boyfriends from worst to best, because — well, why not? Don’t be alarmed when you don’t see any adults on this list — recounting the many lost loves of Jerry Seinfeld sounds exhausting, so we’re sticking to teenagers. Check ‘em out after the jump, and hit the comments to let us know which Savage brother you prefer. … Read More

Television

10 Teen Dramas That Adults Will Also Love

By Judy Berman on Jun 4, 2012 2:30pm

Tomorrow brings the season premiere of Pretty Little Liars, and we couldn’t be more excited. (OK, we could be more excited, but a Mad Men premiere only comes once every 18 months or so.) But wait, you might say, isn’t Pretty Little Liars a show for teenage girls? Well, as far as we’re concerned, while it may be about teenage girls it isn’t for them alone. We thoroughly enjoyed this murder mystery’s first two seasons and have come to count it among the many teen dramas that are smart, fun, and absorbing enough to interest adults as well. We’ll tell you why, and list a handful of similar shows you might want to marathon during the summer TV lull, after the jump. … Read More

Television

Adult TV Characters and Their Kid Counterparts

By Judy Berman on Jan 24, 2012 3:00pm

Well, TV fans, the die is cast. Last week, The CW green-lighted The Carrie Diaries, that Sex and the City prequel network television has been threatening to inflict on us for years. Set in the ’80s, the show will follow Carrie Bradshaw’s high-school years in Connecticut, where we’re sure she’ll be asking a whole new, teen-focused slew of pseudo-profound questions (“What does ‘going steady’ really mean?”) and lusting over shoes at Contempo Casuals. But forgive us if we don’t intend to watch the show for long enough to find out. Like Mary Elizabeth Williams at Salon, we’ve had our fill of Carrie. In fact, the only good thing we can imagine coming from the prequel is that it inspired us brainstorm some adult TV characters who already have kid equivalents on other shows. Find out who Zack Morris grew up to be, and which kid reminds us of Downton Abbey’s Dowager Countess, after the jump. … Read More

Television

TV’s Best ’90s Teen Power Couples

By Jennifer Lewis on Jan 3, 2012 11:30am

Ah, to be young and in love on a ’90s television series. So much tension, so much betrayal, so many make-ups and too many break-ups. Remember that time Jordan Catalano enlisted Brian Krakow to secretly write his love letter for Angela Chase? Or when D.J. Tanner accused Steve Hale of canoodling with an ex-girlfriend at the school dance? What about when Steve Urkel transformed into Stefan Urquelle in order to win Laura’s heart? Most ’90s teenage relationships were trivial, others lasted seasons upon seasons, but we’re recalling the ones that still make us giddy — the ones that we thought, at one point or another, were meant to be. Take a trip down TV’s memory lane with some ’90s teenage power couples after the jump, and let us know in the comments whose relationship made you the most envious. … Read More