The WB network continues its quest for relevance this month with the premiere of a new teen drama, “Dawson’s Creek.”
The show centers around naive Dawson Leery (played by James Van Der Beek), a 15-year-old aspiring filmmaker and his group of friends as they navigate the waters of their teen years.
It’s not an entirely original concept for sure, but it feels more relevant than other teen dramas on air today.
For starters, the characters tackle issues that face real teenagers, like first kisses, sex – even religion. And deviating from typical teen fare, the show’s central character is a virgin who apparently doesn’t think about sex very often.
This seems odd at first, because most people assume sex is really the only thing on teenagers’ minds, but eventually it starts to feel refreshing, because this is not a show about characters who are already sexually active, but about kids who have yet to blossom into sexual beings.
Factor in the balance of male and female characters, and there’s plenty of potential for sexual tension and inter-friendship dating. The tension between Dawson and his childhood friend Joey (played by Katie Holmes) is especially compelling. The two obviously have feelings for each other, but neither wants to admit it.
Like any TV show, “Dawson’s Creek” does have its weak points. The show strays slightly from reality from time to time; Joshua Jackson’s character, Pacey, first lusts after and then has an affair with his middle-aged teacher. She tries resisting him, but of course she can’t deny his youthful charm. Yeah, because that happens all the time. Nonetheless, it’s sure to make for some interesting storylines down the road, and asking a fictional program to stick entirely to reality is a little too much to ask.
Another stick point is that while the actors certainly pass for 15 (especially Holmes, who doesn’t look a day over 12), their dialogue does not. Dawson seems fond of words like “transcend” and “theoretics,” but really, how many 15-year-olds use words like that in everyday conversation? Hell, how many college students even use those words on a regular basis? To make up for all the big-kid words, though, the writers have made sure the show’s dialogue is sufficiently witty, and Joey in particular always has a quick-tongued response at the ready.
The show’s few flaws are mere details that don’t really affect the program’s dramatic quality. Amidst the witty dialogue, frequent Spielberg references and pretty people is a well crafted drama about the inevitable process of growing up. Every turn brings more drama to deal with, and it’s disgustingly enjoyable.
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