Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi High 1.8 “Little White Lies”

Posted on January 19, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Sunday, I will be reviewing the Canadian series, Degrassi High, which aired on CBC and PBS from 1989 to 1991! The series can be streamed on YouTube!

This week, it’s time for another party!

Episode 1.8 “Little White Lies”

(Dir by John Bertram, originally aired on December 19th, 1989)

There’s yet another party being held and Diana (Chrisa Erodotu) desperately wants to attend!

Who?

Diana has been on the show for a while but this is the first episode to feature her at the center of a story. She’s a friend of Kathleen’s and she wears glasses and …. well, that’s pretty much all we’ve learned about her in the past. In this episode, it’s revealed that she’s Greek, her parents are dead, and she lives with her overprotective brother (Nick Stamiris). Her brother doesn’t want Diana to go to a party. In fact, when he catches her smoking, he throws a fit and he ground her. He may seem a bit harsh but I had some sympathy for the character. He’s barely an adult himself but he has to keep an eye on and take care of Diana. I think he’s being too overprotective but I get where his mind is at.

Diana, however, decides to sneak out of the house and go the party on her own. She has a crush on Yick and he might be there! When she arrives, she has a drink and sits on the couch while holding a bottle of alcohol. How could this go wrong …. oh wait, who just walked into the party and spotted Diana sitting there with the alcohol? It’s her brother! Diana gets dragged home and has a big fight with her brother.

Poor Diana! That said, this is something that happened to a lot of Degrassi students over the course of the series, most of whom I felt I knew a lot better than Diana. Diana’s just kind of been a nonentity up until this episode so it’s hard for me to get worked up, one way or another, over her situation. It doesn’t help that Diana continually compares herself and her friends to The Outsiders and yes, I do mean the book about the juvenile delinquents in Oklahoma. Degrassi High deserves some credit for giving the less-cool students just as much attention as Joey, Caitlin, and the main stars but the whole Outsiders is just a bridge too far for me.

Speaking of Joey, he, Snake, and Wheels decide to go a strip club! It doesn’t work out, even with the use of fake IDs. First off, when they arrive at the club, they discover that two of the fake IDs have Joey’s name on them. Joey is sure the bouncer won’t notice. Then, they discover that they’ll only have enough money to pay the cover charge if they pool all their money together. Unfortunately, since they’ll also have to order drinks inside the club, they still only have enough money for two of them to go in. Snake and Wheels head in to the club, deserting their friend Joey. A prostitute approaches Joey and asks if he would like to have a good time but the clueless Joey says that he has to get home. Meanwhile, Snake and Wheels pay $8 for two Cokes and are then kicked out when they say they can’t afford anything else. Who would have guessed life in Canada could be so difficult!

This episode felt a bit too familiar for its own good. Diana’s story is one that we’ve seen dozens of times on Degrassi. And Snake, Joey, and Wheels are always doing something stupid and getting kicked out of places. This episode wasn’t bad but it wasn’t particularly memorable either.

Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi High 4.6 “Nobody’s Perfect”

Posted on January 5, 2025 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Oh Romeo, Romeo….

Episode 4.6 “Nobody’s Perfect”

(Dir by Eleanore Lindo, originally aired on December 5th, 1989)

This week’s episode is all about relationships, good and bad.

Patrick (Vincent Walsh), a student from Ireland, sees that Spike is wearing a Pogues t-shirt and asks her out. Spike replies that she wants to but she can’t because she has to take care of baby Emma at night. Patrick suggests a day date instead. Spike agrees, even if she’s still struggling to deal with her feelings about Shane.

(Shane, having suffered brain damage after a bad LSD trip, is not enrolled at Degrassi High. We won’t see him again until the third season premiere of Degrassi: The Next Generation.)

Meanwhile, despite having broken up with him so that she can date “Clode,” Caitlin still volunteers to be Joey’s scene partner for home room. They’re supposed to perform a scene from Romeo and Juliet and …. yeah, there’s no way that’s going to be awkward, right? Caitlin tells Joey that, even though they’ve broken up, she hopes they can still be friends. Joey awkwardly says, “Yeah.” They talk about why they broke up. Caitlin even says, “It’s not you, it’s me.” Those of us who know our Degrassi history know that this is a scene that’s going to be frequently repeated over the next twenty years or so.

Finally, Kathleen has convinced herself that she’s totally in love with Scott. Afterall, Scott is always telling Kathleen how much he loves her. He gives her jewelry. He sends her flowers. He wants her to spend all of her free time with him. Of course, when Scott isn’t doing all of that, he’s beating on her and telling her that she’s stupid for wanting to have any interests outside of being his girlfriend. When Kathleen is disappointed to discover that she hasn’t been cast in the school play, Scott informs her that she’s just not a very good actress and she shouldn’t worry about it. When Kathleen says that she wants to try out for a play at the community center, Scott tells her that she needs to make time for him. When Kathleen tries to have lunch with her friends, Scott drags her away so that she can have lunch with him. When Kathleen stays after school to practice a scene with her scene partner (who happens to be Luke, the guy who gave Shane the acid), Scott goes absolutely crazy and beats her up in the classroom.

“Kathleen,” Scott insists as Kathleen finally walks away from him, “I love you!”

Kathleen turns to look at him. We get a freeze frame of her bruised face and then the insanely cheerful Degrassi theme music starts playing. It makes for an interesting juxtaposition. (Combining cheerful music with depressing freeze frames was a Degrassi tradition.)

This episode deserves a lot of credit for realistically portraying Kathleen and Scott’s relationship and Scott’s abusive personality. Everything that an abuser does — from the gaslighting to the subtle insults and the sudden accusations to the desperate begging for forgiveness — is present in this episode and Kathleen’s reactions (“I can change him!”) are all too real. Degrassi High was a show that dealt with real issues and it usually managed to do it without resorting to melodrama or false hope. The thing that makes this episode so powerful is that we don’t know if Kathleen had the courage to reject Scott after that freeze frame or, if like so many other girls and women in the same situation, she once again forgave her abuser. Rebecca Haines deserves a lot of credit for her performance here, as does Byrd Dickens, who is terrifying as Scott. This episode was Degrassi High at its best and most important.

Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi High 1.5 “Everybody Wants Something”

Posted on December 15, 2024 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, the Zits finally film their music video! Can super stardom be far behind? Or will Joey just end up a middle-aged man who keeps his keyboard in the attic and who insists on making his stepson Craig listen to his one demo tape over and over again? I guess it could go either way….

Episode 1.5 “Everybody Wants Something”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on November 27th, 1989)

This week’s episode of Degrassi High had a few dramatic moments. Caitlin kissed Claude and then finally got around to breaking up with Joey. Erica caught Liz taping a “Baby Killer” poster on her locker and the two of them got into a fight in the high school hallway.

However, for the most part, this episode was about one band and one music video.

After weeks of haggling, the Zits finally came up with a music video concept that Lucy was willing to film. (Personally, I have to wonder why the band didn’t just offer to pay Lucy to let them borrow her camera, as opposed to giving her creative control over their music video.) Instead of filming the band hanging out with “groupies,” Lucy filmed them lip-synching to their only song while either sitting in Clutch’s car or a dumpster.

As I watched this episode, it occurred to me that this was a story that really wouldn’t make sense today. Apparently, when this episode aired, someone having their own video camera (as Lucy does) was considered to be exotic. Today, the Zits would just film their video on Joey’s phone and post in online. Or, somewhat distressingly, they would just use AI. That said, there’s something actually kind of charming about the Zits pretending to sing in front of a video camera while their song plays on a tape player. The video may look cheap and dorky but everyone involved seems to be having a blast filming it. This episode definitely captured the fun of feeling like anything’s possible. Joey may have gotten dumped by Caitlin in this episode but who knows? Maybe this cheap music video will lead to future rock stardom!

(Actually, as those of us who were introduced to this show via Degrassi: The Next Generation can tell you, Joey is destined to end up selling used cars. As for the other members of the Zits, Snake is going to become principal of Degrassi and Wheels is going to end up in prison after driving drunk and blinding the director of the band’s music video, Lucy. Even the happier episodes of this show are very depressing when viewed with the benefit of hindsight.)

Due to the approaching holidays, this will be final Degrassi review for 2024! My reviews of this show will return on January 5th! Until then, remember …. in yourself, you must believe!

Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi High 1.1 and 1.2 “A New Start”

Posted on November 17, 2024 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, Degrassi Junior High becomes Degrassi High!

Episode 1.1 and 1.2 “A New Start”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on November 6th, 1989)

It’s a new school year and, due to the Junior High burning down, all of the Degrassi kids are enrolling at Degrassi High! Along with finally getting to go to a new school, they also finally get a new theme song and title sequence.

Just going to a new school isn’t going to stop the drama, of course. Joey is still trying to make the Zit Remedy into something more than a mediocre garage band. Snake and Wheels are still politely listening to Joey’s plans. Caitlin and Joey are now dating but there’s a smarmy junior named Claude Tanner (David Armin-Parcells) who really seems to appreciate the blonde streaks in Caitlin’s hair. (Caitlin, it should be noted, does have the best hair in the school.) Arthur and Yick Yu, who both appear to have had major growth spurts over the summer, are growing apart. Alexa is not happy when Simon’s recent success as a male model makes him popular with all of the other girls at the Degrassi High. For neither the first nor the last time, Alexa dramatically gives Simon back his ring while Simon responds with genuine confusion. We even meet the new homeroom teacher, who assigns the students to read Lord of the Flies. (If you’ve seen the entire series, including the sequels to the original Degrassi High, it’s hard not to smile at the first of many references to Lord of the Flies.)

Dwayne Meyers (Darrin Brown), the bully who beat Joey up during the second season of Degrassi Junior High, is now attending high school and, as soon as he sees the new students, he decides that it’s time to bring back initiations. Soon, students are getting covered in white paste, tied to flag poles, and being otherwise ritually humiliated. Dwayne especially has it out for Joey. Unfortunately, for Joey, Mr. Raditch has found a new job as DHS’s vice principal and he doesn’t have much sympathy for Joey’s predicament.

That said, the main storyline here involves the Farrell Twins. I have to admit that I groaned a bit when I discovered this was going to be a Farrell Twin episode because the twins were always the weakest characters on Degrassi Junior High. However, I have to say that Angela and Maureen Deiseach actually did a pretty good job in this episode. Erica Farrell (Angela Deiseach), having lost her virginity at camp over the summer, discovers that she’s pregnant and considers getting an abortion. Her twin sister, Heather (Maureen Deiseach), is opposed to abortion and, at first, refuses to go with Erica to the clinic. After talking to Spike, who also opposes abortion but who, as a single mother, also understands Erica’s fear, Heather finally shows up at the clinic to support her sister as she walks through a throng of protestors.

Eventually, unwanted pregnancies would occur so frequently on Degrassi that they would become something of a cliche, as would the inevitable decision to get an abortion. A New Start is one of the better pregnancy episodes, handling the storyline with sensitivity but also bringing nuance to its portrayal of the abortion debate. Especially when compared to how heavy-handed the show would get in its final seasons, it’s really interesting to see how intelligently and respectfully both the pro-life and the pro-choice positions are presented in this episode. The episode makes clear that there are no easy answers and there’s also no easy villains, which is something that Degrassi itself would forget during it’s four seasons on Netflix. As Erica and Heather enter the clinic, a protestor holds up a plastic fetus, an image that was considered to be so controversial that PBS actually censored it when this episode aired in America.

(At least this episode actually made it to America, albeit in edited form. The next Degrassi pregnancy episode would sit unaired for three years.)

It’s not a great way for the Farrell twins to start the school year but it’s proof that, even as Degrassi Junior High becomes Degrassi High, it will continue to “go there.”