Reviews - Freaks, Gleeks, and Dawson's Creek: How Seven Teen Shows Transformed Television

333 reviews for:

Freaks, Gleeks, and Dawson's Creek: How Seven Teen Shows Transformed Television

I adored this book—it brought me immense joy! The author’s passion for pop culture resonated deeply with me, and I felt a strong connection to their writing style. The book explores the narratives behind seven groundbreaking teenage television series: “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “My So-Called Life,” “Dawson’s Creek,” “Freaks and Geeks,” “The O.C.,” “Friday Night Lights,” and “Glee.” These shows transformed television and left a lasting impact on our cultural landscape.

It perfectly balances an enjoyable, light summer read and a thought-provoking analysis of these teen-focused series’ pivotal role in shaping teen and adult television drama. Despite airing on network television, the book emphasizes how these shows significantly influenced today's diverse streaming content. It’s meticulously researched, written engagingly, and offers insightful and respectful perspectives.

Reading this book was a delightful experience. Its engaging and conversational tone provided a welcome escape from my reading slump. Although I haven’t watched "Dawson’s Creek," I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all the other shows mentioned, with "The O.C." holding a particularly special place in my heart. I’ve even revisited all four seasons every few years.

Discovering new behind-the-scenes stories about these shows was indeed a treat! I recommend this book to pop culture and television history fans.

lesseraliterary's review against another edition

3.75

funny fast-paced

while i haven’t watched a couple of the shows, their chapters were still intriguing. i did have issue with the timeline in each chapter. it felt like things skipped around sometimes and i was so confused at first. i had to flip back a couple pages sometimes to figure out when things were happening and what order we were going in.

schlinkles's review

3.5

funny informative lighthearted medium-paced

satherine's review

3.75

informative lighthearted fast-paced

omerd84's review against another edition

4.0

informative lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

jcwlib's review against another edition

3.75

inspiring medium-paced

briannanb's review

4.0

informative lighthearted reflective fast-paced

If you enjoy 90s and early 2000s teen tv shows, this is an informative and fun look at some of the best. These are my comfort shows and I loved the behind the scenes look at how they came to be and shaped each other.