Now VS. Then

Recalling those high school days we all know the feeling of when EVERYTHING was so earth-shatteringly important, and yet so fleeting at the same. Whether you despised high school or would die to live those days again we all have a palpable memory from that time.

As a young kid growing into adolescence and preparing to enter high school there was one show that demystified and almost glamourized the growing pains we were about to experience in high school. That show is Degrassi: The Next Generation. The seasons from 2002 - 2009 were particularly impactful. Yes, this is the show that showcases a young Aubrey Graham a.k.a Drake. A teenage Drake before the hip hop stardom and the rest of his fellow castmates deal with what it's like to grow up as Gen Z-ers in the early 2000s. This show dealt with everything under the sun: teenage romance, break-ups, pregnancy, sexual orientation, eating disorders, drug abuse, family issues, you name it the show addressed it in some way shape or form.

Having yet to enter high school at the time it all seemed so "cool" and when you're younger you just can't help but want to be cool and older. It's truly a mystery of the world because once you're there, you just wish to be young again.

The memories of the show and my own high school experiences came rushing back to me after viewing another high school drama that deals with the youth culture today. The similarities between the shows highlight the teenage struggle from childhood to adulthood but are intensely heightened in this drama and it makes me question, "Is this what it's like to go to high school nowadays?" Unlike Degrassi's sitcom style response to these issues Euphoria, the critically acclaimed series on HBO deals with navigating this teenage landscape in a much more in depth and introspective way. It's hard to see outside of the involuted world teenagers create for themselves and this show highlights that in a dark much more realistic manner. In contrast with Degrassi's sugar and spice characters, we have a much deeper understanding of exactly what these characters are going through.

If you're a Degrassi fan, Euphoria will supersize that classic teenage drama and add about twice as many twists and turns, leaving you with that "OMG" face and desire to binge the entire series ASAP. With only 8 episodes in the first season, we get a lot of insight into the teenage underbelly in the era of social media, dating websites, and easy access to any drug on the market. Again, we dive a bit deeper here into those hard topics of gender identity, addiction, mental illness, domestic violence, and of course the classic troublesome issue of teen pregnancy. While Degrassi delivers similar hurdles and drama the issues are typically solved with the most idyllic response in an after school special kind of way. While Euphoria pushes the limits and leans more into a real human response to issues that these characters are just experiencing for the first time or just now learning how to navigate.

I think what makes these shows both painful and powerful to watch are the personal memories they may bring about for some viewers and the compassionate response we feel for these characters because we've all been there before and can relate. We know the feeling of being a young kid, naive, and having to face the world head on for the first time. Euphoria can be graphic at times but it resembles a closer depiction of what life is like now being a young person today. Unfortunately, the kids may not be alright but it does make for some deep, thought provoking drama. For once, I am glad to be "older" the jury is still out on "cool".

Personally, I would choose the Degrassi high school experience but that's because of my undying crush for Jake Epstein. However, for TV watching and entertainment Euphoria wins my vote for new favorite high school drama. Giving us that brief glimpse into the secret life of the teenage world we all once lived, and boy times have changed.