I finally finished Freaks and Geeks. Add me to the group of people sad about it being only one season long. It’s produced by Judd Apatow, the same guy behind 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and Superbad. And every actor in Freaks and Geeks seems to have appeared in one of those movies. A question that comes up is whether or not Freaks and Geeks would be a hit today, considering Apatow’s popularity. Probably not. He’s popular, but Walk Hard proved that he’s not exactly King Midas.
As the title suggests, it’s centered around two groups. The freaks, juniors, are a bunch of stoners that Lindsay Weir (previously, a teacher’s pet) is starting to hang out with. The geeks, freshman, are the kids that Sam Weir hangs out with. I’d be happy with the show just being called Geeks. The biggest laughs in each episode come from these guys and the awkward situations involved in going through puberty. There’s a good amount of drama (a little too much for my tastes), and, just like the DVD cover says, it seems a lot more real than the rest of TV. Plus, they actually used kids who look like high-schoolers. The freshman look like freshmen. Unlike some shows.
If you’ve got some free time on your hands, watch the first few episodes to see if it’s for you. But only if you’re already done with Arrested Development. If I could give out only one piece of advice for the rest of my life, it’d be to watch Arrested Development before starting any other series.