Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi Junior High 3.1 “Can’t Live With ‘Em: Part One”

Posted on April 21, 2024 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 Junior High, which aired on CBC and PBS from 1987 to 1989! The series can be streamed on YouTube!

This week, the third season of Degrassi Junior High beings with tragedy!

Episode 3.1 “Can’t Live With ‘Em: Part One”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on November 28th, 1988)

This is one of the most important episodes in the history of the Degrassi franchise. Along with starting the show’s third season, this is the episode that sees the beginning on the long and tragic decline of Derek “Wheels” Wheeler. If you’re a fan of Degrassi: The Next Generation and you’ve always wondered how Wheels eventually ended up becoming a suicidal ex-con who is treated like a pariah by his former friend Snake, this episode is where it all began.

There’s actually a lot going on in this episode, though it’s the Wheels storyline that dominates. With the start of a new school year, everyone at Degrassi is eager to catch up after the summer break. Among the new developments:

Stephanie is no longer a Degrassi student and is instead going to private school. Her brother Arthur and his best friend Yick Yu both apparently hit a growth spurt over the summer. (Yick, in particular, is suddenly surprisingly tall for his age.) Yick notices that Arthur seems to be dressing better and that he’s also taken to reading the business section of the newspaper. Arthur insists that he’s not secretly rich, which is not something you say unless you actually are secretly rich.

Yick and Arthur also play a prank on new 7th grader, Bartholomew Bond (Trevor Cummings), first locking him in the janitor’s closet and then, after letting him out, directing the poor kid to the wrong homeroom. It’s the same joke that Joey played on Arthur, way back in the first episode. The only difference is that Yick and Arthur feel bad about it afterwards.

Having been held back, Joey is repeating the 8th Grade. “Hey,” he asks Snake, “what do you think about Caitlin?” Snake replies that Caitlin is not Joey’s type. Of course, fans of Degrassi: The Next Generation know that Joey and Caitlin are destined to spend the next 20 years falling in and out and back in love with each other.

Spike is back at school. This episode features the first appearance — albeit in polaroid form — of baby Emma. Shane tries to approach Spike, saying that he wants to meet his daughter. Spike tells him to stay away. (Apparently, Shane’s parents sent him to summer camp to keep him away from Spike and Emma.)

With Stephanie gone, both Kathleen Mead and Nancy Kramer (Arlene Lott) are running for president of the student council.

The 9th Graders are spending half the day at Degrassi Junior High and half at Borden High. Lucy notices a cute high school guy and smiles at him, even though the guy’s friend dismisses her as being a “minor niner.”

Ultimately, though, this episode is dominated by Wheels and his family. Wheels wants to hang out with Joey. His parents tells him that they think Joey is a bad influence. His parents don’t care that Joey, Wheels, and Snake have their own band and are working on a demo tape of their only song.

“Parents,” Snake says, “can’t live with ’em, can’t live without ’em.”

Wheels replies that he would be happy to live without them.

Well, Wheels is going to get his wish. When his parents go to the movies, Wheels sneaks out and goes to Joey’s house. He, Joey, and Snake record their demo tape. Wheels then heads home and is stunned to see a police car sitting outside of his house.

They called the cops? Wheels wonders.

No, they’re dead. The police have accompanied Wheels’s grandmother so that she can tell him that his parents were killed by a drunk driver who ran a red light. The end credits roll over a freeze frame of a stunned Wheels being hugged by his grandmother.

OH MY GOD! I mean, seriously, who would have guessed that Wheels’s parents would die right at the same time that Wheels was saying he was sick of dealing with them? As tragic as all that is, it’s even worse if you know what waits for Wheels in the future.

This episode of Degrassi Junior High did everything that a season premiere should. It reintroduced us to the characters and set up the season’s main storyline, the downfall of Wheels. This was classic Degrassi. Next week, things get even worse for Wheels. Poor Wheels.

Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi Junior High 2.13 “Pass Tense”

Posted on April 14, 2024 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The second season of Degrassi Junior High comes to a close with a historic episode!

Episode 2.13 “Pass Tense”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on March 28th, 1988)

The school year is nearly over and it’s time for the 8th Grade to graduate. Next year, they will all be going to high school except …. well, they won’t. Even while Stephanie and the Farrell Twins are making fun of the 7th Graders for having to do all the work to prepare for the big graduation dance, word comes down from the district that, starting next year, Degrassi Junior High will have a Grade 9. Even though most of the show’s characters are set to graduate and go to High School, they’ll still be attending classes at Degrassi Junior High next ~~season~~ school year.

(The official story is that the high school was overcrowded so adding a Grade 9 to Degrassi was the only option. The truth, of course, is that the show got popular and was renewed for a third season and the show’s producers didn’t want to lose 75% of their cast.)

However, one eighth grader will not be “graduating.” Joey Jeremiah has flunked! Oddly, Joey passed his final exams but, as Raditch puts it, he only scraped by and Raditch feels that Joey is too smart to only be scraping by. Mr. Raditch called Joey’s parents and told them that Joey could either go into the 9th Grade and be put in a low-academic program or he could repeat the 8th Grade and hopefully mature a little. Joey’s parents agreed that Joey should be held back. “Flunk our son!” they apparently said.

(To be honest, this seems like kind of an unfair move on the part of Mr. Raditch and I’m not really sure how Joey can be held back after passing all of his exams. It seems rather arbitrary.)

At first, Joey declares that he’s not going to go to the graduation dance, even though the Zit Remedy is scheduled to make their public debut. Wheels confronts Joey and tells him that he’s smart and that he owes it to his friends to show up. Wheels gets a bit judgmental, all thing considered. Joey is being held back on the whims of Mr. Raditch so Joey really has every right to be mad. Aren’t there any lawyers in Canada who can sue the school on Joey’s behalf?

(Add to that, I always smile a bit whenever Wheels gets judgmental of anyone. Hey, Wheels, Joey’s not the one who is destined to go to prison for killing someone while driving drunk.)

Joey eventually does show up at the dance, apparently having been convinced that his friends won’t be laughing at him behind his back. (From what we see, everyone is supportive. I guess they’re just nicer in Canada.) Greeting Snake and Wheels, Joey takes a moment to flirt, for the first time, with Caitlin, who is destined to become the love of his life. He then says that he’s ready to perform. This leads to a historic moment as the Zit Remedy takes the stage for the very first time. They perform their one and only song, the deathless Everybody Wants Something.

Everybody wants something

They’ll never give up

Everybody wants something

They’ll take your money

And never give up

Finally, Spike, who is allowed to attend the dance after not being allowed to attend class, goes into a labor as the episode’s end credits roll. This is a huge moment, both because Spike is giving birth to Emma Nelson, who will be the lead character for the first few seasons of Degrassi: The Next Generation. A running joke on DTNG would be Emma’s hatred of Everybody Wants Something so, for me, it was kind of fun to watch this episode and discover that this was the last song Spike listened to before giving birth.

(Speaking of Degrassi: The Next Generation, I had to smile at just how much Joey freaked out about getting held back. DTNG was infamous for using the flimsiest of excuses to keep its more popular characters from graduating on time. Ashley, Jimmy, Spinner, and a host of others were all held back. Spinner was actually held back twice.)

And so ends the second season of Degrassi Junior High. The second season was great and this finale did everything that a good finale is meant to do. It wrapped up two major storylines while also hinting at what the future held. It also gave Pat Mastroianni, Neil Hope, and Amanda Stepto a chance to show how much all three of them had developed as actors since the show’s first season. Mastroianni especially did a good job as Joey realized that his year of goofing off and not trying had finally caught up with him. That said, I still think he needs to sue both the school and Mr. Raditch. He probably needs to get emancipated from his parents as well. What type of mother or father says, “Flunk my child?”

Next week, we start season 3!

Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi Junior High 2.11 “Trust Me”

Posted on March 31, 2024 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, it’s a Zit Remedy sleepover!

Episode 2.11 “Trust Me”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on March 14th, 1988)

Snake is super-excited! His parents are going out of town and he’s going to have the house to himself for a day and a night. Joey is excited because that means he and Wheels can crash over at Snake’s. Joey wants to talk about to them about his plans to take their band, the Zit Remedy, to superstardom. Joey gets even more excited when he sees that Snake’s parents’ left their car behind.

Here’s my question. Snake’s real name is Archie but he’s called Snake for reasons that I’ve never understood. Wheels’s real name is Derek Wheeler and his nickname obviously has to do with his last name. So, why is Joey Jeremiah just Joey? Why doesn’t he get a supercool nickname? Maybe Joey wouldn’t always feel the need to show off if he had a better nickname.

Joey, perhaps hoping to get a nickname like Drivey or Speedy, swears that he knows how to drive. At first, Snake sensibly says that no one is going to drive his parents’ car. But then everyone oversleeps and Wheels awakens with only 15 minutes to get to the eye doctor! (Wheels has already missed several appointments and is running the risk of getting grounded.) Joey offers to drive Wheels to the doctor’s office.

Amazingly enough, Joey manages to get Wheels to his appointment without crashing the car. But then, Joey insists that he and Snake should get breakfast. While Joey is ordering French fries at a local Toronto diner, a truck backs into the car and appears to break the taillight. Using the $85 that the band was going to spend on an amp, Joey and Snake get the taillight fixed. But then it turns out that the taillight had been broken for a week and, when Snake’s parents see that it has been fixed, they realize something happened while they were gone.

Phone calls are made. Snake and Wheels are grounded and ordered not to hang out with each other outside of school. And Joey’s parents decide to take away Joey’s keyboard. IS THIS THE END OF THE ZIT REMEDY!?

(Of course, anyone who has watched any of the various versions of Degrassi knows that the Zit Remedy is going to be around for a very long time, despite the fact that they only wrote and performed one song. Still, I appreciated the show’s attempt to build some suspense as to whether or not the band will ever actually get a chance to perform in public.)

Meanwhile, Spike is kicked out of school! Booo! The Farrell Twins, who have apparently decided they need more friends than just Stephanie, agree to bring her homework to her house so that Spike won’t get held back a year. Good for them.

This was a good episode, largely because it explored the dynamics of the Joey/Snake/Wheels friendship. Joey is the one who enthusiastically pursues every idea and who has limitless faith in himself and his friends. Snake is the pragmatist. Wheels is somewhere in between. Joey needs Snake to keep him grounded but Snake needs Joey to remind him that it’s okay to dream and have fun. Watching the three of them hanging out in this episode, it’s hard not to think about what the future holds for them. They’re not going to be rock stars but Joey is going to find success as a father and a car salesman. Snake is going to eventually be principal of Degrassi. And Wheels …. well, let’s deal with that when we have to. This is one of those episodes that’s more fun if you don’t know what’s going to happen to everyone in the future. If you do know, it’s actually rather sad to see everyone so hopeful and innocent.

Next week, the sleazy substitute returns to Degrassi!

Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi Junior High 2.9 “Dog Days”

Posted on March 17, 2024 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, we check back in with Stephanie and Arthur.

Episode 2.9 “Dog Days”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on February 29th, 1988)

Stephanie is feeling depressed. She no longer cares about keeping up her grades. She no longer changes clothes or puts on makeup when she arrives at school. She wants nothing to do with her former best friends, the Farrell Twins. She’s no longer interested in being school president or even trying to capture Simon’s attention.

When her friends, her teachers, and her mother ask her why she’s so depressed, Stephanie refuses to tell them. “Maybe I’ll just kill myself,” she says at one point and while the Farrell Twins assume that she’s just being overdramatic, the viewer knows that Stephanie has been skipping school so that she can gaze up at a bridge and fantasize about jumping off.

(The bridge that appears in this episode was an actual bridge in Toronto that was nicknamed “Suicide Bridge,” because so many people did jump from it. So, Canadian viewers would have immediately understood the horrible significance of Stephanie standing in front of that particular bridge and staring up at it.)

Meanwhile, Stephanie’s mother wants Arthur to come over for dinner. Arthur is curious about the dinner but he’s also very concerned about what he’s going to do with Phil, an adorable puppy that has started following him around. Arthur tries to take the dog to school with him, hiding him first in his book bag and secondly in the school’s boiler room. Both times, the dog is discovered and Arthur eventually ends up with detention. Myself, I’m not a dog person but I thought the puppy was adorable and he definitely should have been enrolled in the school.

At dinner, Stephanie and Arthur’s mom announces that she’s getting married to Jerry, her latest boyfriend. Stephanie throws a tantrum and Arthur grabs Phil and leaves the house. Stephanie follows after him and finds him in the park. They have a conversation about how awkward their parents’ divorce has made their lives while sitting in the swings and Stephanie cheers up a little, realizing that Arthur will always be there for her.

During the first season of Degrassi Junior High, nearly every episode focused on Stephanie and Arthur. Up until this episode, they spent most of the second season in the background, overshadowed by the drama surrounding Spike’s pregnancy and Joey’s dreams of rock stardom. For me, as someone who likes to keep up with what’s going on with people, it was kind of nice to see the two of them finally get another spotlight episode. This episode hit close to home for me, as I struggled with depression when I was in high school and I also used to make life Hell for anyone who thought he could be my stepfather. I related to Stephanie in this episode and Nicole Stoffman did a great job of capturing the feeling of oppressive ennui that had afflicted her. Duncan Waugh also gave a good performance as Arthur, with this episode showing how much he had matured since the first season while also acknowledging that Arthur is still basically a very naive kid. I just hope he was allowed to keep the dog.

In typical Degrassi Junior High fashion, this episode ends without any clear or definite resolution. Stephanie is doing a little better but she’s still depressed and she’s still angry about her mom marrying Jerry. That was one of the great things about Degrassi. Whereas other shows always tried to wrap everything up in 30 minutes or an hour, Degrassi had the courage to admit that things were not always that easy or simple.

Late Night Retro Television Reviews: Degrassi Junior High 2.8 “Sealed With A Kiss”

Posted on February 26, 2024 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Sorry, I fell asleep last night before I could write up this week’s episode of Degrassi Junior High! Belatedly, here’s some thoughts on the episode to focus on the Farrell Twins.

Episode 2.8 “Sealed With A Kiss”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on February 22nd, 1988)

After spending much of the first two seasons of Degrassi Junior High in the background, the Farrell Twins — Heather and Erica — are at the center of this episode.

Heather (Maureen Deiseach) is the responsible twin who has never had a date and thinks that French kissing sounds gross. Erica (Angela Deiseach) is the twin who is older by about six minutes and who wants to date and have fun. Heather and Erica have always been close but, as this episode begins, they’re both a little annoyed with the other. That’s not just a twin thing, it’s a sibling thing and, as the youngest of four sisters, I could relate. My sisters and I have always been very close but, growing up, I think all of us always fought to establish our own individual identities outside of just being one of four Bowman girls. I specifically refused to try out for cheerleading in high school because two of my sisters had been cheerleaders and I wanted to find my own thing to do. Considering my long history of klutziness, that was probably for the best. Anyway….

When Degrassi holds a dance with another school, Erica meets Aaron (David Stratton). Aaron is kind of a dork (i.e., he’s in high school but he comes to a junior high dance) but he wears a leather jacket and drives his dad’s car. Heather is scandalized when she and Alexa comes across Erica making out with Aaron on a stairwell. Erica’s happiness over having a boyfriend is short-lived, as she soon comes down with a fever and a sore throat and fears that Aaron has given her mono.

(“At least he didn’t give you AIDS,” Alexa cheerfully says.)

While a miserable Erica rests in bed, Aaron stops by the Farrell house to see her. When Heather explains that Erica is sick, Aaron decides that one twin is as good as another and invites Heather to take a ride in his Dad’s car. Heather agrees and she ends up making out with Aaron as well. Oh no! MONO!

Well, don’t worry. It turns out that Erica just needs to have her tonsils taken out. No one has mono. She and Heather both agree that Aaron was a dork. Heather says that at least there’s a difference between them now. One has tonsils and the other doesn’t. Uhmm …. okay, Heather.

The Farrell Twins have never been my favorite characters on Degrassi Junior High. Erica is shallow and Heather is judgmental. That said, their showcase episode was not a bad one. Along with being able to relate to the sibling dynamic, I could also relate to Erica and Heather competing for the attention of a guy who, quite frankly, wasn’t worthy of either of them. And I had to laugh at Alexa’s cheerful vapidness as she managed to see the positive in everything that the twins were getting upset about. Even the show’s final twist was kind of a nice relief from Degrassi’s usually bleak view of teenage life. For once, no one was seriously ill. No one had an STD. No one was left sobbing as the end credits rolled. Instead, the show ended with a dumb joke about tonsils. It was a nice change-of-pace.

Next week …. Stephanie is suicidal!

Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi Junior High 2.6 “Fight!”

Posted on February 11, 2024 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, we meet Dwayne Myers!

Episode 2.6 “Fight!”

(Dir by Mike Douglas, originally aired on February 8th, 1988)

After appearing in the background over the past few episodes, Dwayne Myers (Darrin Brown) takes center stage in this episode.

At first glance, Dwayne is the school bully. He’s bigger than everyone else. He appears to be in a permanently bad mood. He deliberately knocks Joey off of his skateboard and then laughs about it. When he later overhears Joey calling him a “dozer,” (which is seriously one of the most Canadian words that I’ve ever heard in my life), Dwayne tells Joey that he’s going to beat him up after school.

And yet, Dwayne is not all bad. When Scooter (Christopher Charlesworth), a student who is younger and smaller than everyone else, needs help opening his locker, Dwayne is the one who yanks off the lock. Later, when Scooter can’t reach his bag of chips (because some other bully put it on top of a high shelf), Dwayne lifts Scooter up so that Scooter can get them. Dwayne seems to sincerely like Scooter, perhaps because Scooter is the only person at the school to not show any fear of him.

Scooter, however, is shocked to hear that Dwayne is going to beat up Joey because Joey, like Scooter, is considerably smaller than Dwayne. When Scooter asks Dwayne why he’s going to beat up Joey, Dwayne shrugs and says, “It’ll feel good.”

And Dwayne proceeds to do just what he said he would do. Joey doesn’t attempt to run away from the fight and that wins him a measure of respect from the other students. But, in the end, he still gets thoroughly beaten up. On the plus side, it wins him some sympathy from Liz and it also wins him a new friend when Scooter decides that he would rather hang out with Joey than Dwayne.

Speaking of hanging out with each other, Stephanie is still obsessed with getting Simon to notice her and Simon is still only interested in Alexa. Even when Stephanie pretends to sprain her ankle, Simon barely notices. (Ankle sprains are no joke, Stephanie! Believe klutzy little me, I know.) Stephanie finally asks Simon to go to the fight with her and Simon says sure. Stephanie is overjoyed until Simon brings Alexa with him as well. Amazingly, Simon and Alexa are both totally clueless as to what Stephanie is doing. Then again, I think we’ve all known at least one couple like Simon and Alexa, who are so perfect for each other and so thoroughly vapid in their personalities that you just know they’re never going to have any disagreements at all and that the real world is never going to invade their fantasy.

This was a good episode, largely due to Darrin Brown’s multi-layered performance as Dwayne. While this is Dwayne’s only big Junior High episode, he is destined become one of show’s most ground-breaking characters once the action moves into high school.

Late Night Retro Television Reviews: Degrassi Junior High 2.3 “Great Expectations”

Posted on January 14, 2024 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Finally, after being preempted two weeks in a row, Degrassi Junior High returns!

Episode 2.3 “Great Expectations”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on January 18th, 1988)

There’s a new student at Degrassi Junior High. Her name is Liz O’Rourke (Cathy Keenan) and she’s not happy to be starting at a new school in a new country. (Liz formerly went to school in London.) Liz dismisses the students at Degrassi as being a bunch of “preppy” snobs and Stephanie and the Farrell twins do their best to prove her right by making a bunch of catty comments and making her feel even more like an outsider. Only Spike and Joey attempt to befriend Liz. Spike knows how it feels to be an outsider at Degrassi. As for Joey, he’s desperate to lose his virginity and he’s convinced himself that Liz, because of the way she dresses (even though she doesn’t dress all that differently from anyone else at the school), wants to have sex with him. When Joey shows up at Liz’s house to work on a school project and then, from out of nowhere, asks to have sex with her, Liz kicks him out.

Oh, this episode broke my heart. As someone who moved around a lot when she was younger and who frequently had to get used to new schools and as someone who learned early on that teenage boys almost always had one thing on their mind, I knew exactly what Liz was going through. In true Degrassi style, this episode opened with Liz feeling miserable about starting at a new school and ended with her feeling even more miserable about being at a new school. One of the many things that set Degrassi apart from and elevated it over other teen shows was that Degrassi rarely ended on an altogether happy note. The problems that the students dealt with on Degrassi could rarely be solved in just 30 minutes. Cathy Keenan did a great job capturing Liz’s brief hope that she may have found a new friend and also the crushing heartbreak of discovering that friend was only talking to her because he thought she was “easy.”

For those of us who first discovered the character on Degrassi: The Next Generation, it can be a bit jarring to see the way Joey Jeremiah behaves on Degrassi Junior High. There’s a big difference between the mature, adult Joey of Degrassi: The Next Generation and the immature and self-centered Joey of Degrassi Junior High. But I suppose that’s true of most people. Everyone does foolish things when they’re younger and everyone makes mistakes when they’re immature and unsure of themselves. As the episode ends, Joey tells Wheels that he actually did like Liz and that he made a huge mistake. Joey realizes what he did was wrong but that’s not going to make things any easier for Liz, who starts another day of school while feeling more alone than ever.

Things work out a bit better for Arthur and Yick Yu. Arthur is freaking out because he’s been having wet dreams so Yick encourages Arthur to call Dr. Sally (Sue Johanson), a sex educator who has her own radio show. Arthur calls and Dr. Sally tells him that his dreams do not make him a pervert. It’s a pretty simple storyline but an important one as it introduces the character of Dr. Sally, who will be mentioned many times throughout both Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi: The Next Generation. It’s also an important storyline because of the contrast between how Arthur and Joey handle their questions about sex. Arthur asks an adult and is lucky enough to get a straight-forward and nonjudgmental answer. Joey convinces himself that he’s ready for sex when he’s obviously not, freaks out just trying to buy condoms, and then ruins his friendship with Liz.

Finally, Stephanie is once again secretly changing into her trampy clothes at school in an attempt to get Simon to notice her. However, whenever Stephanie tries to talk to Simon, she gets interrupted by the Alex, the dorky student council treasurer. Even if Alex didn’t keep showing up, I doubt it would have made a difference. Simon’s just not that into her.

This was a sad episode but I’m glad I finally reviewed it! Between taking time off for the holidays and getting ill, I was worried I’d never review Degrassi again! But, as the theme song says: “In yourself, you must believe.”

Late Night Retro Television Reviews: Degrassi Junior High 2.2 “A Helping Hand”

Posted on December 24, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, Degrassi goes there!

Episode 2.2 “A Helping Hand”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on January 14th, 1988)

There’s a lot of drama to be found in this week’s episode of Degrassi Junior High. In fact, this is actually the first episode that I’ve seen that juggled three on-going B-plots along with the A-plot. Watching this episode felt very much like being dropped into a real middle school where everyone has some sort of drama playing out in their lives.

For instance, Shane tells Spike that he told his parents about Spike being pregnant. For a moment, Spike is proud of Shane for finally doing the right thing. Then, she finds out that Shane’s parents want to meet with Spike and her mother, which is something that neither Spike nor Shane are looking forward to dealing with. Shane also mentions that his father is a preacher. Even though the meeting doesn’t actually happen during this episode, I can already guess what’s probably going to happen when it does. It’s never a good sign when someone on Degrassi is a preacher’s kid.

Meanwhile, Stephanie is upset that Alexis is still wearing Stephanie’s old clothes and that she’s still dating Simon as result. At first, Alexis refuses to return Stephanie’s clothes but, after Alexis’s mom comes across them, Alexis is ordered to return them. An excited Stephanie changes back into her trampy clothes and smiles at Simon in the hallway and Simon totally ignores her. Ouch!

As for Stephanie’s former crush, Wheels is struggling in school and running the risk of being held back a grade. His parents have even declared that Wheels can no longer be the Zit Remedy’s bass player until his “marks” improve. With the support of Ms. Avery, Wheels gets his eyes checked and he gets a pair of glasses! (Those of you who know your Degrassi history know what an important moment this is. Those glasses — and eventually a mullet — would become Wheels’s trademark.) Wheels can now see but Joey and Snake aren’t sure if there’s ever been a rock star with glasses.

“What about John Lennon?” Wheels asks.

“Who?” Joey replies.

“Some 60s guy,” Snake explains.

(Did Canada ban the Beatles?)

With Wheels temporarily sidelined by his bad grades, Joey and Snake look for a substitute bassist and just happen to hear Simon playing a bass guitar. Simon may not have Wheels’s tragic past (and future) but he does have perfect eyesight.

Finally, in this episode’s main plot, Mr. Raditch is in the hospital so his homeroom gets a substitute teacher. Mr. Colby (Marcus Bruce) is dorky but likable, a youngish teacher who wears goofy sweaters and who encourages his students to think for themselves and who is extremely touchy-feely when it comes to Lucy. Lucy, who is still on probation for shop lifting and who is lonely since her best friend Voula moved away, at first appreciates Mr. Colby’s attention. She gets upset when L.D. (Amanda Cook) says that Mr. Colby is creepy.

“You’re just jealous!” Lucy snaps, despite the fact that L.D. is her new clothes-borrowing best friend.

“At least I’m not a shoplifter!” L.D. yells back.

(Ouch! Then again, maybe if L.D. was a shoplifter, she’d actually have some decent clothes of her own to wear.)

Eventually, Mr. Colby asks Lucy to stay after class. When he puts his hand on her back and whispers that she’s a very special student, Lucy realizes that L.D. was right! Fortunately, Wheels is standing on the other side of the door and, with his new super-vision, he sees what Mr. Colby is up to. Wheels steps into the classroom and says that he needs to get a book. Lucy takes advantage of the distraction to make her escape.

The next day, Mr. Colby passes Lucy in the hallway and tells her not to say anything about what happened before adding that, of course, nothing did happen. Lucy just misinterpreted his attempts to be friendly. What a creep! Wheels approaches Lucy and offers to testify on her behalf. Lucy smiles as the jarringly cheerful theme music starts up and the end credits roll.

That’s a nice ending for a well-done episode but again, it’s hard not to think about what’s going to happen in the future with all of these characters. Lucy and Wheels may be smiling now but, if you know the history of this show, you also know what’s going to happen after they graduate high school. Wheels is going drive drunk and, with Lucy in the car with him, end up crashing his car, killing a kid, and temporarily blinding and crippling Lucy. The future for Wheels is jail and the future for Lucy is years of painful physical rehab. Seriously, Degrassi Junior High is one dark show!

As for this episode, every woman has had to deal with a Mr. Colby at some point in their lives and I will admit to cringing whenever he placed his hands on Lucy’s shoulders while talking to her. I could relate to what Lucy was feeling all too well. Mr. Colby’s final declaration that he didn’t do anything wrong and that it was Lucy’s fault for misunderstanding him sounded all too familiar. Fortunately, Lucy had people in her life who were looking out for her and who had her back, like L.D. and Wheels. (As usual, Lucy’s parents were present only as voices on an answering machine.) Both Wheels and Mr. Colby said they wanted to help Lucy but Wheels was the only one who meant it.

Next week, Joey gets a new girlfriend and Arthur calls a sex therapist. That’s right …. it’s time for Dr. Sally!

Late Night Retro Television Reviews: Degrassi Junior High 2.1 “Eggbert”

Posted on December 17, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

It’s time to start the second term!

Episode 2.1 “Eggbert”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on January 4th, 1988)

It’s time to start the second term at Degrassi Junior High and a few things have changed.

For instance, both Voula and Rick are no longer enrolled at the school, though they still appear in the opening credits. Two new students have enrolled at the school. Scooter Webster (Christopher Charlesworth) is a young genius who has skipped ahead a few grades. Meanwhile, the enigmatic Simon Dexter (Michael Carry) is blonde, handsome, and apparently is already working as a male model. Stephanie and the Farrell twins are excited when Simon joins their class. Yick and Arthur, meanwhile, are excited that Scooter’s presence means that they are no longer the nerdiest kids at school.

Lucy is still on probation as a result of getting arrested for shoplifting and she has decided to tone things down until she’s finished her sentence. She still wants to throw a party at her house but she now has very firm rules about what her classmates can do — i.e., no drinking and no breaking the furniture.

Stephanie has given up her trampy look and is now determined to be the best school president that she can be. She gives all of her old school clothes to Alexa (Irene Courakos), just to then watch as Simon starts flirting with Alexa because, as he tells Snake, “I love the way she dresses.” When Stephanie later asks Alexa to return her clothes, Alexa refuses.

One thing that hasn’t changed is that Spike is pregnant and still trying to decide whether she wants to keep her baby or not. The counselor at her support group suggests that Spike carry around and take care of an egg for two weeks so that she can experience what it would be like to have to spend all of her time taking care of a baby. Spike agrees. At school, Alexa takes the egg, draws a face on it, and names it Eggbert.

Shane, who has still not even told his parents that Spike is pregnant, begs Spike to forgive him and to let him be a part of her life again. Spike tells Shane that if he really wants to be a part of her life, he needs to spend a week taking care of Eggbert. Shane is hesitant but agrees. And while all the girls thought it was cute when Spike had the egg, all of the boys are quick to make fun of Shane when they see him carrying around Eggbert.

Lucy throws the first party of the term and everyone’s miserable because she won’t allow them to have any fun. To Spike’s surprise, Shane shows up at the party and he brings Eggbert with him. Soon, Eggbert is getting tossed from person to person. Even Shane tosses Eggbert to Joey. Somehow, Eggbert survives. However, when Spike and Shane have an argument outside about Shane not being responsible, the egg falls to the ground and breaks.

YIKES!

I swear, I nearly cried when that egg hit the sidewalk. It was a powerful symbol of the fact that neither Spike nor Shane was ready to be a parent. While it was irresponsible for Shane to bring Eggbert to the party, it was also irresponsible for Spike to leave the egg with someone who she knew would not be able to properly take care of it. At the end of the episode, Shane finally tells his parents about Spike but it really does feel like a case of too little too late. Shane had his chance to step up and he failed.

What a sad episode! Still, this episode is an example of what set the Degrassi franchise apart from other teen shows. Whereas other teen shows would have resolved this storyline as quickly and as patly as possible, Degrassi Junior High portrays the subject matter with realism and sensitivity. There are no easy solutions in Toronto and it doesn’t matter how well-intentioned or optimistic everyone tries to be. Sometimes, you just end up with a broke egg on a frozen sidewalk.

Late Night Retro Television Reviews: Degrassi Junior High 1.13 “Revolution!”

Posted on December 10, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, the first season of Degrassi Junior High ends …. WITH A REVOLUTION!

Episode 1.13 “Revolution!”

(Dir by Kit Hood, originally aired on April 12th, 1987)

Degrassi Junior High’s first episode featured Stephanie Kaye running for and winning the office of student body president. Stephanie flirted her way to victory, exchanging kisses for votes and asking the students to go “All the Way with Stephanie Kaye.” Stephanie’s best friend, Voula, was scandalized but every guy at Degrassi voted Stephanie into office. Having been elected, Stephanie swore to herself that she would be the best president the school had ever had.

As the first season progressed, it become obvious that Stephanie did not keep that promise to herself. She got drunk at the first school dance. She continued to snub anyone who wasn’t in Grade 8. Stephanie developed a crush on Wheels and she spent more time trying to flirt with him than actually doing whatever it is that a student body president does. With everyone getting tired of Stephanie’s attitude, it was obvious that it was only a matter of time before open revolution broke out.

This episode opens with Stephanie asking out Wheels, just for him to tell her that he can’t go out with her because he needed to spend his time studying for the end-of-term exams. Miffed, Stephanie decides to make Wheels dangerous by pretending to like Joey, who has had a huge crush on Stephanie since the show began.

Stephanie is so obsessed with Wheels that she barely notices that, due to a student transferring to another school, the position of “sports rep” is now open. The sports rep is a member of the student council who represents the athletic teams. (I’ve never heard of a student council sports rep before. Maybe it’s a Canadian thing.) Traditionally, the sports rep is a member of Grade 7 and star basketball player Yick Yu wants to run for the position. However, Stephanie decides to cancel the election and to just give the position to Joey, despite the fact that Joey is not even on a team!

Grade 7 erupts into open rebellion. Soon, signs that announce “IMPEACH STEPHANIE KAYE” start appearing on the school walls. Caitlin and Rick circulate a petition demanding that Stephanie step down. After they finish their exams, the Grade 7 students storm the halls while chanting, “Out of our way, Stephanie Kaye!”

Meanwhile, Joey has been taunting Wheels about how he stole Wheels’s girlfriend from him. However, Wheels overhears Erica and Heather Farrell talking about how Stephanie is only dating Joey to make Wheels jealous. Wheels tells Joey and Joey asks the Farrell twins himself. When Joey runs into the Grade 7 protestors, he announces that he doesn’t want to be sports rep because “It’s a Grade 7 position.”

Thoroughly humiliated, Stephanie has several minutes of flashbacks to the first episode of Degrassi Junior High. Realizing that she hasn’t been very nice over the past few months, she walks home with her brother, Arthur. (During the first episode, Stephanie ordered Arthur to not tell anyone that they were related.) Arthur says that he enjoyed his first term of junior high. Stephanie says that the second term is going to be totally different and much better.

While it’s good that Stephanie and Arthur’s storyline came full circle (and it also proves that the show’s writers were making some sort of effort to tell a realistic story, as opposed to just making it up as they went along in the style of Saved By The Bell), this episode is also important because this is the first episode in which Joey, Wheels, and Snake’s band is officially called “The Zit Remedy.” This episode also featured them performing, for the first time, Everybody Wants Something, the only song that the band would ever write.

This episode also featured Mr. Raditch having a panic attack when he discovers that he’s left his end-of-term exams at home, which gave Dan Woods a chance to show off his comedic timing. Given just how much of a jerk Mr. Raditch would eventually become in Degrassi: The Next Generation, it’s kind of nice to see him having a human moment in this episode.

And so, season one of Degrassi Junior High comes to an end. It was a good season, without the unevenness that one often comes across in the first season of a long-running series. This episode was absolutely everything that a season finale should be, bringing storylines to a close while hinting at future developments to come.

Next week, we start season two!