TV Show of the Day — January 26
Freaks and Geeks — 1999 — now streaming on Hulu
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26.January.2021
Freaks and Geeks
Hulu
1999–2000
The shadow that Freaks and Geeks has cast is very long. And regardless of your demographic, the show captures the essence and awkwardness of being a teenager. Unless you somehow bypassed that awkwardness …but who among us actually did?
And Freaks and Geeks is finally streaming on Hulu.
The show only ran for 12 episodes on NBC and was canceled due to the usual, low ratings. However, 18 episodes were shot. After it was canceled a fan campaign got NBC to air 3 of the unaired episodes in the summer of 2000. And when NBC licensed the show to Fox Family Channel, it aired all 18 episodes.
Under the watchful eye of Executive Producer Judd Apatow, Freaks and Geeks helped launch the careers of:
- Paul Feig — show creator and director (Bridesmaids, others)
- Linda Cardellini — actress (Brokeback Mountain, Bloodline, others)
- John Francis Daley — actor/writer (actor — Bones, writer — Horrible Bosses, others)
- James Franco — actor
- Samm Levine — actor (Inglourious Basterds, others)
- Seth Rogen — actor/writer/director
- Jason Segel — actor/writer/director
- Martin Starr — actor (Silicon Valley, Roger Harrington in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, others)
- Ben Foster — actor (360, Hell or High Water, others)
Freaks and Geeks takes place in 1980 and focuses on gifted high schooler Lindsay Weir (freak), played by Linda Cardellini, and her younger brother Sam (geek), played by John Francis Daley. In particular, Lindsay spirals into a deep existential dilemma (even for a teen) after her grandmother passes away.
Lindsay turns her back on her bookish friends, ceases being the #1 “mathlete.” She begins associating with the ne’er do wells of the school — Franco, Segal, Rogan, and Busy Phillips. They drive around, smoke pot, skip school and pretty much do dumb teenage things.
Cardellini captures the essence of teen angst with perfect precision and plays Lindsay with incredible empathy. Regardless of gender, you will find yourself identifying with Lindsay at one time or another.
Make no mistake, Freaks and Geeks is about Lindsay’s journey, and it’s one helluva an identifiable one for many.
While it’s never spoken, the show takes place in or around Detroit. The set designs capture the 80s midwest. And in some parts, it’s almost as though those neighborhoods were preserved in amber. In any case, it’s perfect.
Also perfect is the soundtrack. To help add to the show's authenticity, the producers prioritized feature genuine, period-specific music.
By the producer's own admission, clearing songs by Billy Joel, Cheap Trick, the Grateful Dead, Rush, Styx, The Moody Blues, The Who, and Van Halen ate up the lion’s share of the show’s budget.
The interior and exterior settings, the set design, the writing, the performances all converge to make one of the best television shows that has ever aired on television — no shit.
The one very obvious criticism of Freaks and Geeks would be the complete lack of diversity. But, in all fairness, that was midwestern suburbia in the 80s. It was VERY white. Judging by recent political movements, I suspect that is still the case.
We could debate whether or not that criticism is valid as only being seen through a modern lens. Perhaps it was a deliberate decision made by Freaks and Geeks' creative team. That said, there is a subtle, yet brilliant, scene in episode two where Neal Schweiber (Samm Levine), whose character is Jewish, and a black character are talking in a kitchen, seemingly talking about who has it worse. The scene cuts right as the black character says, “Trust me, you do not want to trade places with me.”
Freaks and Geeks owes as much to John Hughes as it does to Douglas Sirk.
We can argue the validity of the portrayal of such a binary teen ecosystem, but you can’t argue it’s authenticity.
The angsty teenage trope found in the early career of John Hughes, and found in Freaks and Geeks will remain relevant for one simple reason — kids will always be in high school.
