awkward

tv:  Being that I was not writing this post last summer when Awkward premiered on television, it is fair to say that this may be a statement of the show to date as a whole.  This may be followed at some point, at least during the season finale, by a critique of the show as it is in the present.
Awkward is the story of a more or less invisible, this could be anyone, miss-not-super-popular girl named Jenna Hamilton who finds herself a lot more visible after an accident is misinterpreted as a suicide attempt.  Her new found fame garners her a lot of theretofore unknown attention and fame (as much as one can be famous or infamous in high school).  The perception of her throughout her high school spirals out of control as people damn her and praise her for her actions both before and after the not real attempt to end  her own life.  And of course, no one will listen when she says they don't know the truth.  This situation is the first in a plethora of situations that are described by the title of the show.
The real drama of the show is in the love triangle built between Jenna and the two guys fighting for her affection.  One is Mattie, the uber-jock super good looking dude who happened to steal Jenna's virginity at summer camp and not want to let it go despite the fact that he won't publicly show his affection for her because it could ruin his rep (god that run on made me sound like a teen in the middle of this show.).  The other is Jake, Mattie's wacky friend who is just hip enough and cool enough to not quite make sense as Mattie's best friend but make sense as the actual right guy for Jenna.  The three of them jockey for position in each other's lives, constantly making mistakes that lead to each other's successes more than helping their own causes.  Awkward.
The other main drama of the show is a letter that was written to Jenna basically damning her individualism and telling her she would never be happy unless she found popularity, presumably through boys cheer leading and tighter fitting clothes.  Not only is the motive a source of stress for Jenna as she tries to convince everyone that her accident was an accident.  But the question of who wrote the letter and why continues to linger.
Ok, enough of catching up on what is up with this obviously teen-dramatic show.  The show actually is really good.  Jenna is both a role model for young girls trying to find their own look and voice and a cautionary tale of how easy it is to pile up the mistakes along that path.  The love triangle is great.  Not because of the "who do you root for?" aspect but because it is presented in a totally realistic way.  There is the one person who you have a closeness and compatibility with.  Then there is the person who was your first; a connection so intrinsic that it is never, and I mean NEVER, forgotten by pretty much anyone.  After all, everyone remembers there first.  Being stared in the face by that everyday as you walk halls and go to class and have to see your significant other is a horror that is hard to qualify unless you are going through it(which don't forget, no one is unless they are in high school, so don't judge the drama).  And that is where the triangle lies.  Lingering emotion and memory against the present and real.
The show's gimmick, and title, is ultimately the template for everything that happens in the show.  When you are a teenager, life is awkward.  Sex is awkward.  Relationships are awkward.  Friendships can be made awkward.  Family is awkward.  And no matter how smart or funny or cool or hot or popular or unpopular you are, that is how it feels.
I have heard statements comparing this show to Freaks And Geeks.  I am not prepared to go that far.  Judd Apatow created something special with a cast that is now looked at as the best in the world.  Lindsay Weir, Jenna Hamilton is not.  But it is damn good, and damn funny.  And since I feel like I have to mention the second season, after all its premiere is why I am writing this, if you don't believe me just watch the countdown segment at the New Years Eve party.  Funny, quirky, well shot, well acted, and relatively real (it is TV after all, it can't be perfectly real).  But it is certainly not awkward.