Parents' Guide to Generation

It's reminiscent of teen shows both recent (Euphoria) and vintage (Freaks and Geeks), but its lean into sincerity and comedy makes this effort unique. Tied to big producing names such as Lena Dunham, one thing Generation gets right immediately is diversity in terms of gender and sexuality, race, and ethnicity. But the show's teens also share one thing in common: Everything they feel is the Hugest Thing Ever. Chester, both a star athlete and a confident gay kid, quietly calls out for emotional support under a facade of bluster. Nathan is willing to accept that he's queer but hates himself for choosing his twin sister's erstwhile boyfriend for his sexual forays. Meanwhile, painfully insecure Greta struggles with fraught family dynamics and her life-threatening crush on Riley.

Generation does make its teens feel immediately specific and real, even if the drama that surrounds them is heightened. The odds are long for the show standing out: After all, as Generation itself tells viewers in one episode, there's hardly a shortage of shows about "this secret life of teenagers hoo-ha" (this choice bit of dialogue is placed in the mouth of Nathan and Naomi's mom, Megan, who's played by the priceless Martha Plimpton). But there's something that feels genuine about the writing and the acting. The teens are fumbling for relevance, ease, and cool while plainly telegraphing anything but. At one point, Chester perches on a distraught Nathan's lap and assures him that it's all going to get better from this point forward. "Will you remind me tomorrow?" Nathan asks, distracted but interested. "It sounds like something I'll want to remember." Generation captures something real and painful about teenhood that viewers will remember, too.