Lordy, we made it to the end of season one relatively unscathed! And now I would like to present my first ‘in a nutshell’ post where I will unpack the entire season in all its glory before we launch headfirst into the second season.

In a Nutshell

I had fairly low expectations for season one. I remember not loving it even when I was younger and infinitely easier to entertain. But then the first three quarters of the season pleasantly surprised me. I got into it. I was excited to watch episodes and write about them for you. Then we got to episode 19 and the wheels fell right off this bus. It was a slog to get through the remainder of the season, and you could probably tell from the lacklustre (and considerably shorter) posts.

What we learned this season is that:

• Jason Seaver is the world’s best television father. Not only is he the glue that holds this family together, but he’s willing to have virtually any conversation with his kids with such compassion and grace. I realize I’m writing about him as if he were real. I know he is fictional and scripted. Still, he is the saving grace of this season.
• Maggie is a bit of a hot head, and I have to assume her Irish blood is partly to blame (I feel justified in saying this because I, too, have Irish blood coursing through my veins)
• Ben is too young to have any interesting storylines whatsoever
• Carol is too much of an archetype at this point to be interesting. We get it, she’s smart. But what else is she? We will have to wait for future seasons to find out.
• Mike is simultaneously the family’s black sheep but also the favourite, which is a tough line to straddle. 
• Season 1 tackled some big topics (suicide, virginity, death, bullying, jealousy, and integrity) and proved in the process that the Seaver family can truly handle anything

Best Episodes

• Episode 10: Dirt Bike–Small-scale lies, pun wielding doctors, and ass abrasions, how can you go wrong with that combination?
• Episode 9: Carol’s Crush–Puppy love takes a turn towards inappropriate when 14 year-old Carol falls for 23 year-old Jeff. Only in the 80s!
• Episode 18: Reputation–Injustice is my hot button topic and this one left me all sorts of fired up. Mike just couldn’t catch a break in this one, but he proved everyone wrong by taking a test in his skivvies. Which also, only in the 80s!

Worst Episodes

• Episodes 19, 20 and 21: Oh good God. I can’t even write about these in any depth because it will only get me all worked up. All you need to know is that they were horrendously, gouge-your-eyes-out boring and are better left in the 80s.

There you have it! Season 1 in a nutshell. Join me tomorrow as we enter into bold new territory, otherwise known as season two.