All My Shadows

"The world's longest-running dramatic serial..." Ugh.

I wonder when that's from? The blurb for Krystle obviously hints at Alexis, but the cast list at the bottom has Bo Hopkins and Dale Robertson. Could this be for the first season finale?

"Quite an appetite for Danny" WTF

I remember promos for The Best Years, but I never watched it. Like BF, my heart mainly revolved around Degrassi. I think that's only because I started watching DTNG back when I actually had time to sit on ass and watch TV all day. When all of those other shows came around, I wasn't always able to watch. I made time for DTNG because that was my ish.

Co-sign to both of you. The whole concept of Noggin/The-N was focused on original programming as well as foreign programming (all with an educational slant), so for them both to become dumping grounds for cancelled Nickelodeon shows is just evidence of how directionless they've become.

What a stupid reason to not stream the early episodes. I would bet that most of the current audience is fully aware of the fact that the show's been on for a long, long time and that there was an entirely different cast in the beginning. As much as they've moved on, they still do call-backs, and even in promotional material (for TeenNick, at least), they still use clips from the older episodes. Besides, we're living in a Netflix society. If a kid doesn't want to watch Manny slaying lives in S3 or S4, they know how to go to the season they want to see.

This is interesting! The clip they used is clearly from 1976 or prior as my girl Minnie Caldwell is prominent, so I wonder specifically what episodes were aired.

I guess it's good news that they're continuing. I also hope this means the entire Degrassi franchise will be headed to Netflix, or at least all of DTNG. I might make it a point to watch newer episodes now.

Dylan Everett was one of their best actors later on, and he seems to be getting more and more work. That disastrous SBTB movie helped him out after all.

It caught on pretty quickly in the US, but I'm not sure I'd say it ever became a mainstream hit here. It was HUGE for The-N, obviously, but it didn't enter the public consciousness like other teen dramas have. It's not a show that every 20something in the US can reminisce about. Still, I think you're onto something, though. The bigger it got, there was clearly more of an effort to assimilate with other teen dramas, and that, coupled with the botched departure of the original crew, marked a shift in style and tone that alienated the original audience and didn't resonate with the new audience as well as the earlier seasons had with us. I've already said it, but I'll say it again. For me, just the sheer number of useless characters that they added in was overwhelming and turned me off. I look at some of those opening credits sequences from seasons that I KNOW I somewhat followed (like 9-10), and I have not a single clue who some of those people are.

Yes, I made sure to tune in for Sean's guest appearance. At the time, I didn't think it would be his *last* appearance simply because I didn't foresee them just moving way past the original group of characters, but I thought the military angle was perfect for him. I couldn't agree with you more in regards to the show's sensitivity and the close attention they paid to milking the characters' emotions for all they were worth. It was so old-fashioned in that way, complete with those awesome freeze frame endings. Even when it wasn't fully serialized like it has been in recent seasons, you always knew that a character's big, freeze frame smile at the end of the episode didn't mean that particular story was over. Meanwhile, you always knew whenever we got a tight close-up of someone's distraught face that he or she would be suffering for a while.

Ellie/Craig, I think again, was a result of TPTB trying to rush a happy ending for the older characters. I mean, honestly, odds are if two people were not involved with each other while they were in high school, it's highly unlikely they'd end up together several years afterward. Granted, it happens, but they could have done better. This show always was afraid to let characters ride off into the sunset with "new" people. Better yet, they could have just let a lot of them be content in their newfound adulthood without being tied to someone's hip.

I never did get to see that. I think they were thrown together mainly because they wanted closure for those characters and not a lot of the others were available. Not that high school relationships are expected to last forever, but Sean and Ellie should have been reunited at least in passing mention at some point. Their relationship was the deepest on the show and the most grown-up, and it's just so foolish to think that Sean would go back to Emma after all that went on before he moved to Wasaga. I also wish we would have gotten at least a little something on Terri at some point. Again, just a passing comment would have been good enough. I hate Ashley, but I would have accepted them linking back up together somewhere. AH, just to have that gang together one last time! they should totally do a 10-year class reunion special next year for Paige and crew.

Flare-leg jeans! Damn, bruh. The most iconic outfit in Degrassj history would be Manny's velour tracksuits.

Oh yes! I think that's one of the reasons I felt so close to those characters. They were ALL weird looking in the beginning, and they look even weirder now that it's nearly 15 years later and styles have changed so much. Ashley legitimately had mom hair. As me and my friends grew up and started looking better, so did they. I can't stress enough that I really did grow up with these people. I think of all the early cast, the strongest performers were Cassie Steele, Lauren Collins, Ryan Cooley, and my baby Dan Clark. They need to be on TV again.

To sum up my feelings for the whole show, I think they excelled at dramatically portraying mundane teenage issues during the glory days. They didn't rely on a huge events and gimmicks to get you watching -- it was truly a slow-moving, character-driven soap for teenagers with plenty of episodic plots thrown in. Unfortunately, once the original crew was gone, TPTB succumbed to pressure to make the show glossier and less believable. They got a lot of that original flavor back later on, but I think upping the episode counts for each season was a huge mistake that might have ultimately led to cancellation. I'm trying to think of what place a show like this could have in the current TV landscape, and I'm having trouble coming up with a definitive answer. It did so well for so long on a US network that wasn't widely available at the time, but I think that popularity leveled off at some point. Maybe if they'd moved it to Nickelodeon proper or to MTV (which did air day-after encores a few summers ago), it would have kept the momentum up. But whatever, it ran for 14 seasons and nearly 400 episodes. That's an extraordinary run that no one saw coming, and I'm proud to say I'm a fan. Time for someone to start the reruns from episode 1.

Yes, I read your entire post, Eric! It got the juices flowing for me to go through each season and highlight my fave episodes/moments and shade the lowlights. I agree with you on a lot!! And my god, I remember April 1, 2002, like it was YESTERDAY! I wasn't even looking forward to Degrassi! It was all about reruns of Ghostwriter and Clarissa for me! I had kinda heard of the original Degrassi at that point, but I figured I wouldn't be able to follow the new show without having seen the originals. How wrong I was! I remember the other main "original" series at the jump were Being Eve (from New Zealand) and 24Seven (from the UK), but no one was here for them. I never really watched the other, more successful shows like South of Nowhere, Instant Star, or Radio Free Roscoe, but I kinda wish I had. Anyway, back to the mackdaddy! This basically sums up how everyone feels about the first two seasons. As a little middle schooler, I totally felt grown up because of the somewhat racier plots (OMG Ashley and Jimmy might have sex! JT and Toby are surfing a porn site!), but in hindsight, I can appreciate these episodes for setting up the characters and their roles in the grand scheme of Degrassi. My favorite episodes from S1 would be "The Mating Game" (Ashley considers having sex with Jimmy), "Friday Night" (Sean and Emma's infamous first date), "Wannabe" (Manny wants join the Spirit Squad), and "Jagged Little Pill" (Ashley takes E). For S2, it's "When Doves Cry" (Craig and his abusive father), "Shout" (Paige's rape), and "Tears Are Not Enough" (Craig's father dies). YASSSSS. The beginning of DTNG's renaissance. All of the relevant characters were present at some point, and this was the true beginning of the "it goes there" era. When the show was syndicated to local stations in 2006, they started with S3, which was great for me bc it came on immediately after I got home from school and then they did an omnibus on Sunday mornings, so I was able to rewatch these glory years while I was in high school myself. Flawless. One of the best things about this season was how much they developed the older characters from the previous Degrassi series. Snake and Spike were regulars of course, but so were Joey and Caitlin, and some of their friends made guest appearances. My fave episodes: "Father Figure" (Emma and Craig search for Emma's father), "U Got the Look" (Manny werqs), "Pride" (Marco comes out and the aftermath), "Should I Stay or Should I Go?" (Snake is sick, so Joey invites friends of Degrassi days of old to cheer him up), "Holiday" (Manny/Craig/Ashley triangle at its finest!), "Accidents Will Happen" (Manny's abortion), "Take On Me" (Breakfast Club episode, in which Hazel delivers one of my fave lines: "*laughing* I kissed Toby!"), "It's Raining Men" (JT's hilariously awful fast food commercial, also Marco/Dylan's first date), and "The Power of Love" (the dance from hell). Another fabulous season! I wasn't a fan of any of the Kevin Smith or Alanis Morissette stuff, either. The whole "movie premiere" stuff was just too much and it took away from the simplicity of the basic plot of the kids and their problems. I think that storyline might be a reflection of the show's growing popularity in the US, but that's pure conjecture. My faves: "Ghost in the Machine" (Paige goes to court), "Mercy Street" (Emma tries to run Rick out of Degrassi and Craig has a huge penis), "Anywhere I Lay My Head" (YES!! I loved Sean/Ellie, and this episode is why -- loved the maturity of their relationship), "Time Stands Still" (probably the greatest episodes of the series), and "Back in Black" (Sean can't handle his status as a hero). Wow, you're right. The second half of 4 really wasn't that great. There were good things happening, but too much time wasted on the Kevin Smith crap and other things I didn't care about (Craig/Ashley, the MOST boring couple). There was definitely a change here, and for some reason, I've always associated Peter's introduction with that. Maybe it was his intro coupled with Sean's departure in the previous season, plus all of the other huge things that took place then, that kinda ushered in a new era. I agree with everything you said. Faves: "Venus" (And you can SELL this for a MILLION DOLLARS 'cause I'm gonna be FAMOUS!), "Turned Out" (JT slings dope to support his new family), "Tell It to My Heart" (Marco comes out this dad), "The Lexicon of Love" (Paige/Alex), "I Against I" (Spinner begins to reconcile with the gang), and "High Fidelity" (Class of 2006 graduation). As for the rest of the series, of course everything changed forever with "Rock This Town" and JT's death. I never forgave the show for trying to make Johnny, one of the guys who killed him (and YES, I consider him to be just as guilty), a regular. The whole Lakehurst/Degrassi thing was too much. In real life, they wouldn't have crammed all those kids together like that. They would have platooned (Degrassi goes to school in the morning, Lakehurst goes in the afternoon), but whatever. The only other specific thing I have to comment on for that murky S6-S7 period is that Sean's return was so botched. I hate that they put him in the Emma/Peter orbit, especially since he was long over her before he left. I would have much preferred them exploring his relationship with Ellie, perhaps with her in college and him working and showing how they deal with those differences. Her stories were pretty boring and isolating during these seasons, culminating with the ridiculousness of her and Marco. It's well established that they did some missteps once the first group graduated. It really must have been hard for them to decide what to do -- they had an extremely effective cast, and they didn't want to lose that, but at the same time, they had to keep the focus on Degrassi. I've always said they should have just done a spin-off and had characters go back and forth between the two shows as needed, but maybe the logistics of that wouldn't have worked. Unfortunately, the need to keep the 06ers around did the 07ers an injustice because they never really got their chance to shine together as the "elders" of the show, even with the stupid decision to split the school year into two TV seasons. Toby could have been given way more to do, and they could have developed other characters to support the main group of Emma, Manny, Liberty, and Toby. Anything after S7, I watched with the most judgmental ass eyes ever. So many new characters, and I was in college at this point, so I had no time nor desire to watch anymore. They literally switched casts over night it seemed, and it was too much. Off the top of my head, the things I caught and liked from the latter years would be the very beginning of Riley's coming out and pairing with Zane and then, much later, Cam's depression and suicide. Honestly, I just didn't watch enough of the rest to care one way or the other. My head literally spins when I think of the shitton of newer characters and the whopping 40+ episode seasons.

OK, I'm sure we've done this before, but favorite/least favorite characters, couples, storylines, episodes, moments, etc. If I'm reading my sources correctly, it will end with 14 seasons and 372 episodes. Got damn!! My #1 favorite character: SEAN CAMERON Sean was THE resident bad boy during his time on the show. He was troubled and brooding, he was prone to mischief, and he was always involved in some kind of drama, but underneath it all, he usually had the best of intentions. It's just that the absence of love and affection in his life often led to poor choices. In spite of all this angst, Sean could still be a happy, well-adjusted young man with a sense of humor. Daniel Clark was without a doubt one of the show's best actors, displaying so much of Sean's inner hurt with nothing more than a look. Can't y'all tell that this was my boo? If I had to round out my top 5, it'd be Manny, Paige, Spinner, and JT. Me too!! For years, I've wanted to rewatch those glorious seasons, but the episodes come and go on YouTube so quickly, and usually mutilated in some way to prevent them from being found. I'm more than willing to shell out the bucks for Linda's baby now.

I gotta go with the glory days, S4-S5. S3's new music to go along with the original vocals were a drastic improvement, but thank god they got rid of the kiddie choir (the lead singer was fine). But yes, nothing brings me back to JHS and HS like the Jackalope version of the theme. There's this great undercurrent of tension that just builds and builds until the last chord with my boy Marco poppin' that collar. Runners-up would be the last two full versions of the opening theme. I hate the first version of the "rearranged" theme because that girl's voice was SH!T, but the all-male version was awesome and different at the time. The final full version, I think I like just a little bit more. The original closing theme was perfect.

That original gang really did go through a lot and grow with me and my friends. When it premiered in the US, we were in the 6th grade, and somehow, through them screwing with the timeline, I graduated the same year as Emma, Manny, Liberty, etc. It wasn't the same after I grew out of the target audience, but I think it's a huge deal to last 14 seasons and the whole company should be proud. What I wouldn't give to see Sean one more time, though...

I imagine there won't be much fanfare if it's ending next month. The hourlong special seems like a standalone that they may not have produced yet.

Yeah, I see Zarf too. His facial structure is very similar to Jeffrey Carlson's.

Westerns are notoriously high-rated in daytime slots, so they ain't going anywhere. I'd personally love to see Gunsmoke have a go in a post-primetime slot just for fun. Re: Summer of Me. Once again they barely make any differences when they should be shaking things up. The nighttime blocks are all shows that we've had for years now. I'd rather each night be themed with several different shows. Only thing I'm looking forward to is Laverne and Shirley. Low-key looking forward to Happy Days, too. They need to be shot for putting SBTB: The College Years in primetime. The dumbest thing they've ever done.

You can't say that she can't do the oldies circuit then refer to Vegas as the oldies circuit after it's been established that she's a huge hit in Vegas. She's got tons of money and her main priority is raising her sons right now. There's absolutely nothing sad about that. And a song doesn't have to be overplayed to death to qualify as a hit. Three of the four singles from Femme Fatale charted highly enough (top 10) when they were released and were successful. I don't understand what more is needed for a track to be called a hit. Please tell me how Christina has exhibited more staying power, because I'm looking, and I can't see it. She's found a place as a featured artist, but that's a far cry from her heyday.

Hallmark movies and series are generally good, too. Very positive, feel-good stuff, which is perfect in an era where everything else is desperate to be dark and moody. I need to catch up on season 2 of Cedar Cove before it returns this summer.