Dear Dartmouth

An Undergraduate Publication

Yes, Netflix, I am Still Watching

Arts | 0 comments

Written by Chelsea-Starr Jones

May 23, 2020
*SPOILER ALERT* All reviews discussed details of the show. Read at your own risk.
Never Have I Ever?

Team Ben? Team Paxton? Or Team “Devi needs to get her act together”?

Watch if you

…are ok with pulling your hair out over trivial yet traumatic high school drama. 

Summary

Never Have I Ever follows high school sophomore Devi Vishwakumar. She’s determined to change her social status and meet those oh-so-important high school milestones like going to parties, being popular, and having a boyfriend. However, nothing comes easy for Devi as she’s still struggling with the recent death of her father and ensuing paralysis, two circumstances that defined her freshman year. Can she change herself for the better or is she only making her life harder?

Favorite Character

Trent is by far the best character in this show. A funny surfer dude who is not afraid to speak his mind even when it may hurt others’ feelings? It simply doesn’t get better than that. Yes, there’s the minor issue of him contaminating the punch at the party (made especially uncomfortable because everyone is hyper aware about germs nowadays), but I see that as a speck of negativity in the overall pleasant character. Trent just shows up in a scene, says what needs to be said and goes about his business. For instance, when Paxton confronts Fabiola and Eleanor in the school hallway, Trent is just a silent observer. Then, just as the tension between Paxton and the girls becomes uncomfortable, he asks Paxton a painfully obvious and stupid question: “Wait, you’re Japanese?” and precedes to apologize for never realizing his best friend is half-Asian. Trent’s a breath of fresh air and much needed comedic relief amidst some very tense scenes. I appreciate the humor he brings to the table. But also, special shout out to our favorite therapist, Dr. Jamie Ryan, for being the only emotionally stable and blatantly honest person in this entire show.

My Personal Questions and Commentary

I personally think the biggest problem at hand wasn’t addressed in the first season: Devi’s serial inability to take responsibility for absolutely anything. Everything that happens to her is someone else’s problem and someone else’s fault. When Fabiola tries to come out to Devi as homosexual, all Devi can do is scream about her problems being bigger. Like, come on man. That’s a horrible way to treat a friend. And then there is the whole Paxton/sexy time lie. Even after she gets caught lying to everyone about her “relationship” with Paxton, Devi still tries to tell her friends her lie is a “future truth.” As a watcher, I felt very aggravated by her actions. To me, it feels like no conflict Devi experiences is actually solved during this first season because she insisted she isn’t the one who needs to change.

Now, for the real question: Team Paxton or Team Ben? The perks of Team Paxton include the fact that he’s hot, “misunderstood,” and can help Devi be popular. But, it seems to me that, at the end of the season, he only pursues Devi because he thinks she’s weird and quirky and because Rebecca gives him crap for being rude to her. I personally don’t think he likes her as more than a friend despite their kiss. Ben is far more compatible with Devi emotionally and intellectually. They both relate to each other’s familial struggles and academic aspirations. But, because they’re so similar, are they going to push each other to be better? I have no clue. Despite having two very good options, I think Devi needs to pull a Trent and mind her own business. As our glorious Dr. Ryan so beautifully states, Devi is not in the emotional place where she should be pursuing any boy. Devi needs to have a good sit down conversation with herself and figure out what’s going on inside her head because she’s a hot mess.
Recommend?

Overall, I really enjoyed this show. I think it touches upon several complex and realistic life issues, such as dealing with grief, the dual identity of many first-generation Americans, and the desire to be wanted by others, in a (for the most part) funny way. There are a few plot points that were exaggerated in my eyes but, then again, not everyone had the same high school experience. The acting is also painful to watch at some points. I think this is because some of the actors are newer to movies (I’m not entirely sure and didn’t research their individual careers so don’t quote me). But, I would recommend this show to someone. The plot as a whole was what really sold it for me, even though the acting could’ve been better.

Outer Banks

In the words of John B, “shut up.”

Watch if you

…want Riverdale, One Tree Hill, and Dawson’s Creek in a single show.

Summary

Outer Banks follows a group of friends living on the North Carolina coastal islands: John B, Kiara, JJ, and Pope. John B’s father has been missing for 9 months and presumed dead after leaving to find the Royal Merchant ship and its lost 400 million dollars of British gold bars. The gang works to finish what John B’s dad started but they’re not the only people looking for the treasure. Can John B and the crew find the gold before their enemies do or will they end up just like John B’ father? 

Favorite Character

JJ is definitely my favorite character to watch in this show. He is impulsive and crazy and hurt but he feels real to me. His character arch is beautiful to watch. In the first half of the season, I was fooled into believing JJ is selfish and reckless just for the heck of it. He starts out as this stupid kid from a broken home who does whatever he wants. All the (non-abusive or absent) parents hate that friend group but it is really JJ they hate. He is the one getting into trouble and not thinking through his decisions, like when he pulls a gun out on another teenager at a party. But it’s when JJ finally stands up to his father that everything changes. His character finally confronts the abuse and trauma that he’s faced for years (yes, violently which I’m still on the fence about) and he breaks down his barriers for his friends. That moment is pretty pivotal for me in terms of JJ’s character. Yes, he has previously taken the fall for Topper’s family’s boat so Pope wouldn’t lose his “merit scholarship”, but it is after his break down that I think JJB really and truly starts relying on his friends for emotional support, not just for a good time. It all comes full circle in the end when you see Pope’s family embrace JJ, the same people who’d previously wanted nothing to do with him. JJ goes from being truly loved by no one, or so he believes, to being loved and accepted by his friends and their families. That’s some good stuff right there.

My Personal Questions and Commentary

I have soooo many questions with this show. And, to be completely honest, I’m not sure where I can get these answers. This list is not comprehensive but here it goes:

1. The biggest issue these kids have is their volume! They do not seem to know how to be quiet despite John B constantly telling everyone to shut up. Like, seriously. Why oh why do they think it’s a good idea to YELL while they’re breaking into an old ax murderer’s basement? What could they possibly gain from that? Do they not expect to get caught? Do they think their voices won’t carry in the silent house? I would love to understand their logic.

2. Do these kids really and truly believe going to a pawn shop ON THEIR ISLAND is the best idea? Because, as y’all might recall, (a) John B has been shot at and fought from Day 1 over the mere mention of that gold (his dad’s compass), (b) there are half a billion other people on that island looking for that treasure, and (c) they know that can’t trust anyone yet they’re willing to openly lay down their gold while spewing some crappy backstory about earrings and Alzheimer’s ridden mothers. If John B is able to go all the way to Chapel Hill to visit the library, then it would only make sense for them to leave the island to get cash for their 7 pounds of controversial gold. But they don’t. Even though they stay local, why do they believe the pawn shop clerk when she sends them to a “warehouse” to get their money? Why don’t they simply wait for the woman to go get their money and bring it to them? For instance, you go to the store and the clerk says you have to go into the back to find shoes in your size. Do you go? Of course not! So, why do they? I’m still very confused by this.
3. On a more serious note, does Ward have a conscience? When we first find out that he’s the other person trying to find the gold, I thought he was just a crazy person who did things for purely selfish reasons. For example, when Rafe explains to Ward why he shot the Sheriff, I thought Ward’s response of hugging and comforting his son was completely staged. To me, Ward was being loving because it’s what he believed Rafe needed to hear in order to calm down and obey Ward, not because he actually cared about his son. But then, when Ward was talking to Rose, he admits that everything that went wrong is his fault. He shows true emotions? Maybe? I’m just not sure. On one hand, Ward has nothing to gain by admitting his internal conflict to Rose but, on the other hand, he might simply be upset because he thinks he’s going to be caught and not because he feels bad about his wrongdoings. Even so, does he deserve the remorse of watchers? Is he actually just a normal guy who finds himself in complex and compromising positions and keeps making the wrong decisions? Or is he a selfish, manipulative, remorseless murderer who is willing to blame anyone else as long as he and his family gets away? Something to think about.
4. I’m still not entirely sure who those two random thugs are from the beginning of the season. They are mentioned a few more times after their death but we get no other information about them. Like, who sends them to the Outer Banks? How do they learn about the Royal Merchant gold? How do they know to show up exactly as Scooter washes up dead? To me, their only purpose is to make John B work in secret (which he seems completely incapable of doing) and then show watchers that Ward is a bad guy. If that’s truly their only purpose to the plot then mission accomplished. But I think they provide an opportunity to make this treasure hunt bigger than the Outer Banks. What if they are sent by a drug lord looking to get richer? Or are a part of an international political corruption ring? There is so much more that could be done with the plot. Maybe this is a season 2-type of conversation.
5. I understand that this is just a show and that geography doesn’t matter as much. But, as a North Carolinian, it is annoying that people in the show keep calling parts of the Outer Banks Figure 8. For reference, the Outer Banks are a series of islands that run from the top of North Carolina to about the 3/4th mark of the coast heading south. Figure 8 Island is an entirely different island close to the southern point of the state. According to Google Maps, Emerald Island, one of the southernmost islands in the Outer Banks cluster, is about a 68miles/hour and a half drive from Figure 8 Island. The distance between the center of the Outer Banks and Figure 8 is 274 miles. Additionally, there’s absolutely no way John B and Sarah just pop on over to Chapel Hill from the center of the Outer Banks. That’s a 246mile/4 hour drive they did in one afternoon…with no car. I don’t think so.
Recommend?

If I’m being truthful, I absolutely hated this show when I first started it. The characters felt out of touch, overdramatic, and incredibly stupid. Like, why does JJ take a gun from a crime scene and why does John B let him do it? Or why does John B tell the lighthouse man about the compass after he is explicitly told not to? Does he think Lana Grubbs, Scooter’s wife who is literally beaten and robbed in connection to the compass, is lying to him? It was quite frustrating to watch. But, the more I watched, the more I was sucked in. I found myself wanting to know what happened to everyone (literally only JJ because everyone else annoyed me most of the time haha). Despite how much I found John B and Sarah’s characters irritating, I was rooting for them to win. The show might not have brought me to it but it certainly kept me there. So, for those reasons, I would recommend watching this show. 

Thank you so much for reading my reviews. Please remember, these are just my opinions and observations about the shows. If you saw something that I missed or feel the way I do, please leave a comment. Thank you!

Cheerfully,

Chelsea-Starr

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