Degrassi Junior High

Kit Hood and Linda Schuyler produced a decade of critically acclaimed "coming of age" programs based on the characters of DeGrassi Street. Spanning from The Kids of Degrassi Street (1982) to Degrassi Junior High (1986) to Degrassi High (1989) to School's Out: The Degrassi Feature (1991) to Degrassi Talks (1992).

DeGrassi Street is a real street in Toronto Canada but on the series, it is located in an "unnamed North American town" as to represent any kids in any town. However, one who pays close attention to the show will see and hear references to "The Beaches" which is the section of Toronto that the show was filmed around. The Degrassi characters were ethnically and culturally diverse kids from a working class neighborhood. The series captured the every day rituals, pressures, indignities and rites of passages of growing up. Exposing turbulent real world issues such as abortion, AIDS, homosexuality, drug addiction, molestation, and suicide. Yet they also captured humorous and precious moments that make life sweet, such as a slumber parties, squirt gun fights and toilet paper raids. The Degrassi series was consistently intelligent, moralistic, and uplifting.

The Degrassi characters literally grow up on the show. The Playing With Time repertory consisted of a mass group of real kids recruited from local schools. Although many of the characters became famous, there were no "stars" on the show. A rare quality is that the actors are mentioned solely on the end credits as the show was to emphasize the controversial issues as opposed to characters. Costumes consisted of clothing from the actor's own wardrobes and they took turns washing the lunch dishes. Fans affectionately refer to the show as being low budget and full of technical bloopers. The actors describe it as being similar to "a bunch of kids filming a home movie". Then why was it such an international success?

Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High portrayed teenagers AS THEY REALLY ARE. Their problems were consistent, with no one easy answers or one episode resolutions. We all found a character that matched our own personalities and a story plot that (painfully) resembled our own lives. We cried when Heather had an abortion. We laughed when the Zit Remedy filmed a rock video from a garbage dumpster. We shivered when Caitlin had her epileptic seizure. We sighed when Arthur finally got his first kiss. It was the ultimate coming of age series. So universally understood that Director Kevin Smith made references to Degrassi in Clerks, Mallrats and Chasing Amy. We all wished that we could be a "broomhead" or "narbo" on Degrassi Street.

It is truly a shame I wasn't a teenager in the 80's. I was too young when this show was first being aired, and I have to depend on those reruns.

Anyway, this is by far the best television teenage drama series I have ever seen.

The actors portraying the characters were around the same age as the characters, making it realistic, unlike many series for teens.

It dealt with real life situations teenagers face in realistic ways. There are not very many television shows for teenagers I can actually say that about. In fact, I don't think that there was any problems which weren't covered. Drug abuse, sex, sexual orientation, teenage pregnancy, abortion, dating, alcohol abuse, AIDS, stress, depression and suicide, death in the family, racism, sexism. We all felt the tension when Spike found signs of pregnancy, ending in her famous line "Mum, I'm pregnant". We all had sympathy for Wheels, when his (adoptive) parents died and how he dramaticly changed since then, ending in the tragedy in School's Out, in which he kills a small child from drunk driving (his parents having been killed from drunk driving) and is last seen in prison. We all had different reactions and attitude's towards Claude's suicide. We also all had different reactions and attitudes towards Heather's abortion. We all yelled "I knew that would happen eventually!" when Simon and Alexa got married at the end of School's Out. I could go on.

I hope Degrassi continues airing from generation to generation.

I always wished that Degrassi Junior High admitted that they were set in Canada. They always seem to omit the city location. I remember spending my weekends watching Degrassi Junior High on our PBS stations with my friends. We were about the same age as the cast. Let's not forget those awful clothes that the cast of characters wore. The show never ignored away from serious subjects such as teenage pregnancy, homosexuality, poverty, drugs, abortion, alcoholism, etc. It was the kind of show that teens should be shown to show that they are not alone in the world nor are they alone in getting trouble. I have to say that the first season with Arthur and Stephanie was worth watching. I remember the identical twin girls, Spike's pregnancy, Snake's brother who comes out of the closet and gets disowned, etc. The teens were never treated like superstars. They dealt with big topics in ways that I wished adults would deal with. The show was a big hit.

If you went to high school during the 80's then you will undoubtedly feel a strong sense of nostalgia when you see the clothes and hairstyles, and hear the general attitudes of the kids in this classic tv drama. Three seasons take place in Junior high school, grades 7-9, and it continues for two additional seasons in high school, with much of the same cast. In this way it feels like we are actually watching these kids grow up, as they really are, on camera. Growing up watching this show on PBS I almost feel like i literally went to school with these people. I was sad to discover that Stephanie Kaye disappeared for season 3, because she went to private school after her parents won the lottery. She was my favorite character. She would come to school dressed like an innocent little girl, then she would transform herself into an 80's MTV Princess in the school bathroom. Her outfits were so over the top that she looked like a hooker! She believed, like so many teens, that looks were the only thing that mattered. She learned later on, that this isn't always the case. And Joey Jeremiah LOVED her, probably because he was as shallow and as narcissistic as her, with his rock and roll clothes and pimp hats. I think the most interesting, and most well written character though, was Kathleen. She was the ultimate waspy, stuck up blonde bitch, that looked down her nose at EVERYBODY. For three years she tried to persuade the faculty to administer a school "dress code," And during the "Animal rights" episode, she was the only one to show no pity for animals being used for painful experiments by makeup companies. Kathleen would have made a fine "Hitler youth." Her mother was also a raging alcoholic. Another great character was Luke, the boy who was being physically abused by his dad. His was a sad but likable character. And the tall, glamorous Lucy, with her absentee parents who showed their love by giving their daughter the freedom of an adult, was a personal favorite too. The shoplifting episode is one of the best. And I liked how they dealt with Shane's being an unwilling father of Spike's baby. He didn't exactly step up and do the right thing, but he didn't turn his back on his responsibility either; he did what any kid his age could have done; very believable. It annoys me to hear people criticize the acting abilities of the young cast. The whole point was that they WEREN'T actors, but rather real kids. A quality that some find amateurish, I personally find lends a level of realism to the show. Anyway, it is rare to find a tv production where the characters are so vivid that you feel like you know them. Thankfully the entire series is available on dvd, so fans can revisit this amazingly sweet and unique show.

Blessed with a talented cast and crew, and cursed with repeated stabs at "significance" and Big Issues, this was a unique import. Somewhat of a North-of-the-Border Room 222 with it's multi-ethnic cast and issue-driven story lines. While Room 222 is mostly forgotten today, Degrassi is still fondly remembered cult fave around the world. That's in part due to the talent in front of the camera. It's reputation ultimately hinges on the shows handling of the many weighty issues it tackled during its run: abortion! child abuse! suicide! It felt at times that the show's writers were a bit too determined to distance Degrassi from the superficiality of American teen TV. Many had a superficial tv-movie feel to them. Caitlin's epilepsy was never referred to again, for instance. All in all, a quality show that bowed out - or graduated - gracefully, rather than limp along like its fluffy American contemporaries (Saved by the Bell and 90210) did.