Okay, don't you be talkin' smack about Degrassi! LOL. I LOVED that show.

Yes, pop cultre in the 80s, including Degrassi showcased the dumb and cool, which was and is a sticking point for me. But, if you remember, Caitlyn was cool and pretty and smart and got Joey (who never impressed me, thank you very much).

Degrassi was ahead of it's time and now I want to write a story about that. It was the one show in the 80s that addressed real concerns that real teens had. It was the one show that didn't wrap everything up in a convenient bow after 22 minutes with wome fucking moral. Spike got knocked up at 13/14, she kept the baby, Erica or Heather, one of them went through the abortion story, Wheel's parents were killed by a drunk driver, Shane ended up disabled, Michele had an abusive father and an interracial relationship with BLT, Alexa struggled with body image issues and her weight.

The Canadian content rules back then gave Degrassi some freedom and I do think you're right. We were watching real kids, acting, of course, but addressing real stuff, while our American coutnerparts were watching cute fairy tales. I mean think about it, as edgy as The Cosby Show got was Theo wanting to be a "regular guy" and nnot go to college and Doc came in with the Monopoly money to do the math. Degrassi was the only show I remember where teenagers, people my age were doing things I did (or wanted to). It was never preachy, it was just good and relatable.

I didn't like the next gen though.. Couldn't get into it