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| Scene from Looking for Alaska |
Welcome to a new column called Channel Surfing, in which I sporadically look at current TV shows and talk about them. These are not ones that I care to write weekly recaps for and are instead reflections either on the episode, the series, or particular moments. This will hopefully help to share personal opinions as well as discover entertainment on the outer pantheon that I feel is well worth checking out, or in some cases, shows that are weird enough to talk about, but should never be seen.
There's a lot of room to argue that John Green is one of the modern prophets of teen angst. Ever since The Fault in Our Stars adapted his novel to the big screen, there has been a beckon for his work to make it to the big screen. Following Paper Towns, Hulu has gotten on board by adapted his most beloved novel "Looking for Alaska." The reports have suggested that this is a long time coming, with various scripts in various forms being written with the desire of getting it right. After all that time, it's finally here in an eight-episode limited series that will uncover the story in its lengthy detail, bringing to life every last eccentricity of Green's writing in its characters.
To say the least, Green is among one of the more singular writers, getting flack for how meticulous his characters sound. The first episode of the miniseries is called "Famous Last Words" and refers to protagonist Pudge's (Charlie Plummer) love of famous people's famous last words. It's a morbid concept, but a good way to get into the heart of who these characters are. The story opens at a summer camp where Pudge's friend The Colonel (Denny Love) discusses the work of Henrik Ibsen as they go on a hiking trip. Get used to it, because everyone in this inner world of Pudge has some affection for the literary touch, even introducing Alaska (Kristine Froseth) at a gas station speaking with big words. Yes, it's that kind of show that romanticizes the intellectual outcast, afraid to give in to the wild nature outside their door.
What Looking for Alaska does very well in the early run is to establish a reason to care about this world. Pudge, the reluctant hero who must go camping to appease his parents, slowly learns to open up to the eccentric The Colonel. He's an expert of everything great about the camp to the point that he has a strong friendship with the camp cook who makes fried burritos. The world in the early outing is everything great about these types of teen stories. Pudge is at first observant but gives into the joys that this world has. Profound conversations are had on long hikes, and the overall experience of being there begins to hit a lot of great moments. It helps that Plummer is a naturally awkward kid whose charm shines through when he's allowed to smile and participate in the antics.
Where most teen shows are stuck in a twee state of nonstop drama, Green seems more focused on the internal lives of his characters. He wants you to understand that going to a camp isn't just about the memorable antics, but how you grow internally. There's a sense of confidence already forming in Pudge, and his experiences in the first hour have already given him those snapshot moments that you look fondly back on as an adult. It's sweet without resorting to saccharine antics. The characters may seem too smart for their own good, but it shows the arrogance that they must overcome in order to become better people. The first episode is one of those bright sunshiny moments that could only mean that the conflict will hurt a little more. Still, it's validated by its execution giving small moments Creedence.
It also helps that the show doesn't update it to the modern era in very specific ways. The show has a nostalgic vibe in its soundtrack of the early 2000's pop and rock. It helps to offset it from another trendy show where record labels seem to license out songs for the sake of promotion. Here the music feels organic, somehow as reminiscent as the voice-over that Pudge gives in exploring what matters to his life. How much this works will depend on how well this music strikes an emotional chord. For those that do, it's one of those essential mixes, like how John Hughes's movies with The Brat Pack were just as much about the story as it was the soundtrack. Looking for Alaska may be pulling from the past, but it does so in a way that ties in perfectly to the characters' emotional resonance, and one can hope that it only continues to grow as the series continues.
Looking for Alaska starts off on a strong note, managing to create a teen drama that's rich with characters that feel like more than stock figures for melodramatic material. Thanks in large part to Green's gift for observing the small moments that define our youth, he brings a story worthy of adaptation to Hulu and makes something with a lot of promise. Given that the cast is delightful and brings to life a story immediately sweet and nostalgic but not cloying, it manages to feel like something special. The effort is clearly all there, and one can't help but enjoy how it doesn't try to be something it's not. It's got charm to spare, and most of all it uses smart kids in a way that's not just flashy wallpaper. Will it continue to work as the story goes along? If it's this good, then it's hard not to see why not.
To say the least, Green is among one of the more singular writers, getting flack for how meticulous his characters sound. The first episode of the miniseries is called "Famous Last Words" and refers to protagonist Pudge's (Charlie Plummer) love of famous people's famous last words. It's a morbid concept, but a good way to get into the heart of who these characters are. The story opens at a summer camp where Pudge's friend The Colonel (Denny Love) discusses the work of Henrik Ibsen as they go on a hiking trip. Get used to it, because everyone in this inner world of Pudge has some affection for the literary touch, even introducing Alaska (Kristine Froseth) at a gas station speaking with big words. Yes, it's that kind of show that romanticizes the intellectual outcast, afraid to give in to the wild nature outside their door.
What Looking for Alaska does very well in the early run is to establish a reason to care about this world. Pudge, the reluctant hero who must go camping to appease his parents, slowly learns to open up to the eccentric The Colonel. He's an expert of everything great about the camp to the point that he has a strong friendship with the camp cook who makes fried burritos. The world in the early outing is everything great about these types of teen stories. Pudge is at first observant but gives into the joys that this world has. Profound conversations are had on long hikes, and the overall experience of being there begins to hit a lot of great moments. It helps that Plummer is a naturally awkward kid whose charm shines through when he's allowed to smile and participate in the antics.
Where most teen shows are stuck in a twee state of nonstop drama, Green seems more focused on the internal lives of his characters. He wants you to understand that going to a camp isn't just about the memorable antics, but how you grow internally. There's a sense of confidence already forming in Pudge, and his experiences in the first hour have already given him those snapshot moments that you look fondly back on as an adult. It's sweet without resorting to saccharine antics. The characters may seem too smart for their own good, but it shows the arrogance that they must overcome in order to become better people. The first episode is one of those bright sunshiny moments that could only mean that the conflict will hurt a little more. Still, it's validated by its execution giving small moments Creedence.
It also helps that the show doesn't update it to the modern era in very specific ways. The show has a nostalgic vibe in its soundtrack of the early 2000's pop and rock. It helps to offset it from another trendy show where record labels seem to license out songs for the sake of promotion. Here the music feels organic, somehow as reminiscent as the voice-over that Pudge gives in exploring what matters to his life. How much this works will depend on how well this music strikes an emotional chord. For those that do, it's one of those essential mixes, like how John Hughes's movies with The Brat Pack were just as much about the story as it was the soundtrack. Looking for Alaska may be pulling from the past, but it does so in a way that ties in perfectly to the characters' emotional resonance, and one can hope that it only continues to grow as the series continues.
Looking for Alaska starts off on a strong note, managing to create a teen drama that's rich with characters that feel like more than stock figures for melodramatic material. Thanks in large part to Green's gift for observing the small moments that define our youth, he brings a story worthy of adaptation to Hulu and makes something with a lot of promise. Given that the cast is delightful and brings to life a story immediately sweet and nostalgic but not cloying, it manages to feel like something special. The effort is clearly all there, and one can't help but enjoy how it doesn't try to be something it's not. It's got charm to spare, and most of all it uses smart kids in a way that's not just flashy wallpaper. Will it continue to work as the story goes along? If it's this good, then it's hard not to see why not.
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