ICYMI: March's Premium TDW Content
March certainly marched by fast with five news roundups, four in-depth essays, and one very special Zoom chat exclusively for TeenDramaWhore’s premium subscribers.
Missed something? Not a premium TDW subscriber? Get caught up via the rundown below.
FULL VIDEO: Zoom Chat with Gina Fattore
Gina, who was a co-executive producer on “Dawson’s Creek,” was the guest of honor for our quarterly Zoom chat with a key member of the teen drama genre.
Gina not only discussed her time on seasons 3-6 of “Dawson’s Creek,” but also her work on “Gilmore Girls,” “Reunion,” “Parenthood,” “Californication,” “Red Band Society,” and “Dare Me.”
TDW’s premium subscribers were invited to join the private, intimate conversation, and only premium subscribers can watch the full video recording.
The Rise of Social Media Among Teen Drama Stars
A lot can change in 10 or so years: When I was running the original TeenDramaWhore, very few teen drama stars were on social media.
I even maintained a Twitter directory back in the day to keep track of real and fake accounts.
But as this essay detailed, in the decade since then, social media has taken over Hollywood.
The End of Student-Teacher Affairs?
In this essay, I argued it was time to finally retire this gross teen drama trope.
I examined how the teen dramas romanticized illicit student-teacher relationships, perhaps most significantly with Pacey and Tamara in the pilot of “Dawson’s Creek.”
I drew a comparison to the recent Hulu series “A Teacher,” which was praised for depicting “an unethical, illegal, predatory, criminal act” instead of glamorizing such affairs.
The Lack of Racial Diversity in the Teen Dramas
As I stated right at the outset of this essay, the teen dramas are VERY white.
In this piece, I looked at the ways in which the teen dramas incorporated minorities, for better or worse.
With the upcoming “Gossip Girl” spinoff featuring a cast diverse in both race and sexual identity, I am hopeful the tide is turning.
The Significance of Teen Drama Characters Losing Their Virginity
This essay focused on the ways each teen drama handled virginity and first-time sex storylines.
Charles Rosin, executive producer of “Beverly Hills, 90210,” shared with me an exclusive excerpt from his upcoming book about how Brenda’s first time was plotted and the backlash that ensued.
In all, I determined such storylines on the teen dramas were done in hypocritical, consequential, special, realistic, unrealistic, unfortunate, romantic, scandalous, or dramatic ways.
Teen Drama Links for March 2, 2021
I started this news roundup with an off-color maxim to prove a point: Opinions are like assholes. Everyone has one.
The point was that BuzzFeed had churned out a ton of teen drama lists that were, in some cases, contradictory. The inconsistencies, though, were the result of everyone having different and sometimes conflicting opinions about the teen dramas.
There was news on Brian Austin Green, Shailene Woodley, Hilarie Burton, Evan Ross, and many more.
Teen Drama Links for March 9, 2021
In this edition, I noted how a new generation of teen dramas seemed to be upon us, in part due to the new show “Genera+tion.”
I highlighted recent commentary on the teen drama genre and its evolution.
Links also included info on Paramount+, the SAG Awards, Hulu’s “‘90s Week,” and more.
Teen Drama Links for March 16, 2021
This installment began with a short reflection on one year of the COVID-19 pandemic and how this newsletter — specifically, restarting TeenDramaWhore here on Substack — became my pandemic pastime.
I highlighted some other pandemic-related stories involving Gabrielle Carteris, “The O.C.,” and “Dawson’s Creek” executive producer Greg Berlanti.
Other articles discussed co-stars who weren’t close off-screen, celebrity lookalikes, the work of an on-set intimacy coordinator, and how health-related storylines can have real-life impacts.
Teen Drama Links for March 23, 2021
The drama between “Beverly Hills, 90210” cast members Jennie Garth, Tori Spelling, and Vanessa Marcil was the big theme of this roundup, with some Tiffani Thiessen thrown in.
I shared the latest updates on the situation as well as my take on it all. And I sincerely hope that’s the end of it.
In better news, I highlighted recent interviews with Paula Cole, Adam Brody, Chris Carmack, Sophia Bush, James Lafferty, Stephen Colletti, and Shantel VanSanten.
Teen Drama Links for March 30, 2021
The major news was the official announcement that Rachel Bilson and Melinda Clarke are teaming up for an “O.C.” rewatch podcast.
That led me to share my panic as both a fan and a blogger: WHO HAS THE TIME FOR ALL THESE REWATCH PODCASTS?! My conclusion: I guess I’m going to have to make the time.
This week also had a surprising amount of Ryan Seacrest, a lot more on “The O.C.,” and not one but two births.
Other things to note from the past month: I’m looking for fans who are willing to talk about how the teen dramas saved their life, and everyone should definitely check out these FREE posts if they got lost in your inbox: the impact of the “One Tree Hill” school shooting episode 15 years later and remembrances of Jessica Walter, who was a series regular on the first season of “90210” and died last week at the age of 80.
Coming up next month is a joint “Beverly Hills, 90210” trivia night event with 90210 Hunts — you can register here! — and, as always, lots more exclusive content for TDW’s premium subscribers. So what are you waiting for?! Sign up below!