The Secret Life of the American Teenager

To be honest, I have only seen a few episodes of this show because it's so unspeakably bad I have to leave the room rather to refrain from speaking my mind while my sister (a fan) watches the show. First, let me comment on the quality of the TV show. To say the acting is bad is a gross understatement. I can't even think of a comparison to how bad the acting is. It's just that bad. To be fair, any actor would have a hard time working with the inconsistent, unrealistic, practically nonsensical drivel that passes for dialog in this show. Watch one episode (without the kids) and ask yourself how many people actually talk like that? The story is contrived, predictable and uninspired. The character development is disgraceful. Just when you get to know a character, he or she says something completely out of character just to drive home some "point" or put someone in their place. Characters who at first were kind turn out to be just as mean and petty as everyone else. The two characters who use people the most both turn out to have unresolved "daddy issues." The writers treat the characters like they're all the same person raised in different circumstances. The writers must have absolutely no knowledge of biology, psychology, or basic human nature. This show is too bad even to laugh at. It's just that awful. Now on to the messages. Many people give this show credit for having dialog about sex. Having an honest, open, and complete dialog about sex is one thing. Filling dialog with people talking about sex is quite another. All anyone ever talks about is sex. Yes, teens will sometimes talk about sex, but not nearly to this extent, and not in this manner. The phony sex "dialog" is not my biggest complaint, however. The cruelty and immaturity of all the characters (including the adults) goes to Desperate Housewives levels. All they ever think about are their immediate needs and wants, unless they're having a conveniently placed worry about the future that's forgotten by the next scene. Worst of all, the show gives mixed messages. At the end of the show the actors say "It might seem like everyone is having sex, but they're not..." but EVERYONE ON THE SHOW IS DOING IT!!! That's as bad as if Michael Vick said "It's bad to hurt dogs" after each bloody dogfight. The hypocrisy is repulsive! The last statistic I read said that half of all teenagers have not had sex by the time they graduate high school. If this steaming pile of a show was an example, 95% of teens would be having sex, and having it in contrived, stupid circumstances. Finally, let me address the issue of teen pregnancy. Even though it's a subject in every episode, it's dealt with so superficially as to be practically useless. Maybe I missed too many episodes, but that girl had one easy pregnancy, and oh, how quickly her body returned to a size 0. How unfortunate that her baby only stops crying when Daddy is near. Could the writers not think of even one REAL health issue that afflicts babies? How unbelievably stupid! The bottom line is this show is absolutely awful in every respect. It's too inconsistent and hypocritical to be a positive influence, and it's too stupid and poorly made to be entertaining. If you want a good show about teen pregnancy, watch Juno. If you have extremely low standards and limit your activities to staring at glowing rectangles with moving images on them, watch Secret Life. No. Don't. Battlefield Earth is better than Secret Life of an American Teenager.

So unrealistic, I was pregnant in highschool and it was nothing like this show made it out to be....happy, happy....cute little babies. On the other hand maybe thats how it is when u have rich parents

I watch this show with my daughter, who is a sophomore in HS. While some of the dialogue is weak, and I don't like the way the counselors (they're on the third one now) and some of the Christians are portayed on the show, it provokes some interesting conversations with my daughter. I remember being her age, all those years ago, and most of what we talked about and thought about was sex. Not much has changed in a lot of ways. I did think the last show about masturbation was over the top, and so did my daughter. But if parents think this show is giving kids ideas that they wouldn't have otherwise, wake up. Kids my daughter knows were having sex, including oral sex, in 8th grade; by their sophomore year many have had multiple partners, and are also drinking and smoking weed. And these are the "good" kids from middle-class intact families. I think this show pretty realistically portrays how teens act and talk, and it's a good conversation starter. We talk about what kids she knows are like which characters, what does she think of the choice a character made, etc.

I watched the first episode with my 13yo daughter. Teen sex is all the show is about. The main character, a young 15yo who gets pregnant after the first time she "thinks she did it" is well acted.You feel sorry for her and feel how scared this young girl is. But other than that the show suffers from a lack of creativity or realism. The creators chose to take an easy way out by stereotyping the Christian girl - a Susie-Sunshine fanatic, "promise ring" and all. They missed the opportunity to show the real aspect of church youth groups which are often a place where teens have their values supported, where they talk about all the issues they are faced with (including sex, drugs, relationships etc..) and are taught about giving back and doing service for others less fortunate. The Guidance Counselor is made out to be someone who is annoyed by these kids rather than as someone they could look up to and really go to for guidance. It's just another show that assaults morality and portrays sex to young teens as no big deal and what it's all about. After the first half of the show my daughter looked at me and said, "This is so stupid...no one at school talks about sex like this all the time. It's not what we talk about in front of our lockers...we talk about what tests we have and what homework we have." The show made her uncomfortable and when I asked if she wanted to watch the next episode (we had them on the DVR) she said no.I personally don't feel this is a show for anyone younger than 16yo, but even for them it's a time waster. If you want your older teen to watch a good show that portrays teens realistically, have them watch Friday Night Lights instead!