"My So-Called Life" (1994) TV series 1994-1995

User Rating:

9.0/10   

Creator:

Winnie Holzman

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

25 August 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

"My So-Called Life" is a realistic mid-nineties teen drama series that takes a look at a 15 year-old girl and her trials and tribulations with being a teenager and dealing with friends, guys, parents and school.

Plot Keywords:

Teenager | Teen | Hidden Character | Drug Abuse | Teen Life

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 5 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Bess Armstrong	...	Patty Chase (19 episodes, 1994-1995)
Wilson Cruz	...	Rickie Vasquez (19 episodes, 1994-1995)
Claire Danes	...	Angela Chase (19 episodes, 1994-1995)
Devon Gummersall	...	Brian Krakow (19 episodes, 1994-1995)
A.J. Langer	...	Rayanne Graff (19 episodes, 1994-1995)
Devon Odessa	...	Sharon Cherski (19 episodes, 1994-1995)
Tom Irwin	...	Graham Chase (19 episodes, 1994-1995)
Jared Leto	...	Jordan Catalano (18 episodes, 1994-1995)
Lisa Wilhoit	...	Danielle Chase (18 episodes, 1994-1995)

Also Known As:

"Someone Like Me" (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

60 min (19 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Burlington Arcade - 380 S. Lake Avenue, Pasadena, California, USA

Company:

ABC Productions

Trivia:

The much referred to character, "Tino" is never seen.

Goofs:

Continuity: Many sudden changes of clothes.

Quotes:

Angela: It had become the focus of everything. It was all I could feel, all I could think about. It blotted out the rest of my face, the rest of my life. Like the zit had become... the truth about me.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Music of 'My So Called Life' (2007) (V)

Soundtrack:

Petty Core

One of the Greats

When seen in order, these 19 episodes form an amazingly rich chronicle of a year in the lives of Angela Chase, her high school friends and the adults in their lives. Writing this great rarely makes it into series television. As disappointing as it was when the show was cancelled after one year, the result was a self-contained almost novelistic tapestry of interwoven stories that stands alone as one of the finest depictions of adolescence and parenthood ever created for the screen.

One of the most distinctive threads that runs through the series is the way both children and adults deceive themselves about what they really want and need out of life. The drama and humor of the series often revolves around the struggle of the different characters to break through to their genuine selves.

Among many fine story lines, one standout is that of Rickie Vasquez, probably the first depiction of a gay teen on series television, and if not the first, certainly the most unapologetic. I could go on way too long about all the other moving, surprising, heartbreaking and ironic story lines, about the way characters are always surprising us with unexpected depths or insights or abilities, about the use of music, about the incredibly honest and unexploitative depiction of teenage sexuality, and about the performances, which are uniformly superb, even in the smallest roles. Best of all the show is so rich and crafted so brilliantly that it rewards repeated viewing.