This is a special episode of my favorite TV show of all, Degrassi! Originally airing on October 28th, 2008, The Curse of Degrassi features Degrassi’s main mean girl, Holy J Sinclair (Charlotte Arnold), getting possessed by the vengeful spirit of deceased school shooter, Rick Murray (Ephraim Ellis). Chaos follows! Fortunately, Spinner (Shane Kippel) is around to save the day. As any true Degrassi fan can tell you, only Spinner has a chance against the forces of the undead.
What I like about this episode is that, in the best tradition of Degrassi, it goes there. Holly J does get possessed. Just about the entire cast end up dying horribly. Spinner has to battle the undead spirit of Rick Murray and he has to do it without the help of Drake. And, as far as we know, this episode is canon. So, yes, Rick Murray’s ghost actually does haunt Degrassi Community School and yes, only Spinner can save us all.
Last night, I watched a classic episode from the 3rd season of Degrassi: The Next Generation, Take On Me!
Why Was I Watching It, eh?
A few days ago, when I wrote my review of R.L. Stine’s Trapped, I started thinking about how much I love Degrassi‘s take on The Breakfast Club. That led to me getting out my Season 3 DVD and watching Take On Me!
What Was It Aboot?
This episode originally aired on February 16th, 2004. It’s the weekend in Canada but instead of watching a hockey game and studying the dual languages of their native country, five Degrassi high school students are serving detention. Ellie Nash (Stacey Farber) skipped school. Hazel Aden (Andrea Lewis) used the school computers to look up porn. Jimmy Brooks (DRAKE! — back when he was still known as Aubrey Graham) and Toby Isaacs (Jake Goldsbie) hacked into the school’s computers in an attempt to change Jimmy’s grades. And rebel Sean Cameron (Daniel Clark) is in detention because he’s suspected of being a part of a gang of thieves who are terrorizing the entire school!
Together, the five students talk about their different cliques, play truth or dare, and sneak up to the roof. Ellie and Sean start to fall for each other but how will Sean react when he discovers that Ellie has a secret motive for being in detention?
What Worked:
This is one of those episodes of Degrassi that you either love or you hate. You either can’t believe how blatantly the show ripped off The Breakfast Club or else you watch it and go, “Oh cool, they’re ripping off The Breakfast Club!”
Myself, I love this episode! Not only does it center on two of my favorite characters, Ellie and Sean, but it’s also the start of the Ellie/Sean romance! Unfortunately, the Ellie/Sean romance would only last a few episodes but they were a great couple. Stacey Farber and Daniel Clark had a really great chemistry in their scenes together, as can be seen in this episode when they go up to the roof and they talk about thievery and self-harm. The scene where Ellie shows Sean the scars on her arm is one of the best in the history of Degrassi.
This episode also features one of my favorite Degrassi exchanges. When Ellie says she’s in detention for skipping school, Jimmy deadpans, “Wow, that’s a great story, Ellie.” It’s just the way the line is delivered.
What Did Not Work:
There’s this really weird subplot involving the principal, Mr. Radish (Dan Woods). Radish is at the school to supervise detention. He brags about how it’s all a part of his new “no tolerance” policy for misbehavior. However, Archie “Snake” Simpson (Stefan Brogren), the media arts teacher, stops by the school and tells Mr. Radish that there’s more to life than just following rules. Sometimes, tolerance is a good thing.
At the end of the episode, a chastised Mr. Radish tells the detention kids that he’s just trying to do the right thing. He suddenly decides to show some tolerance and he lets everyone go home early. The thing is, though — Sean was stealing things from the school. And Jimmy did bully Toby into trying to change his grades and Toby did hack into the school’s computer. Hazel and Ellie were both in detention for minor reasons but the three guys actually did some serious things wrong. Their behavior was exactly the sort of thing that would get most students in a lot more trouble than just weekend detention. If anything, Mr. Radish was being nice by just having them give up a few weekends as opposed to calling the cops.
Finally, the end of the episode reveals that Ellie was actually working undercover for the local news station, for a story they were planning on doing about the thefts at the school. But why would a big city news station care about such a minor crime and whose bright idea was it to get the story by putting an emotionally vulnerable teenage girl in potential danger by sending her in with a tape recorder? And couldn’t they have at least given Ellie a less bulky tape recorder? It’s almost like they wanted her to get caught.
“Oh my God! Just Like Me!” Moments
Honestly, every single minute of every single episode of Degrassi is pretty much an “Oh my God! Just like me!” moment, as far as I’m concerned. That said, I always related the most to Ellie. We both have red hair. We both spent a good deal of high school dressed in black. We both went through a cutting phase and a rubber band on the wrist phase and I’ve always appreciated the sensitive way that Degrassi handled that subject matter. (Whatever flaws it may have had, Degrassi was way ahead of its time when it came to dealing with anxiety.)
I especially related to Ellie in this episode, both because I always ended up crushing on the sensitive rebels like Sean Cameron and I also got assigned detention a few times. Of course, I always skipped detention because I was really into the whole “No one’s going to tell me what to do” thing. Strangely, I never got in any trouble for not showing up to detention and I always wondered if everyone regularly skipped or if it was just me.
Lessons Learned
There’s nothing more fun and emotionally rewarding than weekend detention!
In this episode, the latest batch of students at Toronto’s Degrassi Community School decided that the perfect way to end their summer is to go up to an isolated cabin in the woods. I know, it doesn’t make much sense to me, either. No one invites Clare because, by this point in the series, Clare had started to transform into Canada’s most dramatic yandere. However, because Clare is upset over her mom marrying the father of her ex-boyfriend, she goes up to the cabin anyway and ends up getting lost in the woods.
Of course, all sorts of weird things are happening around the cabin. Are the Degrassi students about to fall victim to the Canadian version of Michael Myers? Or do they just have an overactive imagination?
This episode originally aired on October 24, 2011, in Canada. It didn’t make it’s way over to the U.S. until November 18th, which definitely diluted its horror-themed impact. In many ways, it’s typical of later-era Degrassi, in that the plot is kind of fun and cute but you can’t help but think about how much more fun it would be if it was Ellie, Emma, Manny, Craig, and Spinner in the cabin instead of their replacements. But then again, that’s true to life. No one stays in high school forever.
Anyway, enjoy the horrorthon’s final episode of Degrassi! Tomorrow, we start a new show!
The world of Degrassi is like our own but not quite.
For instance, on Degrassi, Kid Rock was named Kid Eldrick. When Darcy started posting racy pictures of herself, she posted them not on MySpace but instead on MyRoom. A few seasons later, when Alli created the infamous I Hate Holly J group, she did so not on Facebook but instead on Facerange. Oddly enough, I think Degrassi‘s Twitter was called Twitter as well, which just proves that Twitter is the one social media network that you can’t escape.
Finally, in the world of Degrassi, students did not read Twilight and then fantasize about being a vampire’s lover. Instead, they read a series of YA books called …. Fortnight. Of course, this was before Fortnite itself became a thing but still, it’s always somewhat amusing to hear Degrassi students talk about how romantic they find Fortnight to be.
In tonight’s episode of Degrassi, it turns out that Clare Edwards (Aislinn Paul) is not only obsessed with Fortnight but she’s also having dreams about her classmate, Declan (Landon Liboiron). It kind of makes sense because Declan is totally a vampire name. The first problem is that Declan is dating the seemingly-evil-but-not-really-that-bad Holly J (Charlotte Arnold). The second problem is that Clare might be turning into a vampire herself.
In this episode’s subplot, Sav (Raymond Ablack) directs a music video and Degrassi‘s house band, Studz, performs House Arrest for the thousandth time. Even though Spinner (Shane Kippel) graduated several seasons ago, he’s still Studz’s drummer. It’s all so Sav can try to win back Anya (Samantha Munro), which was a storyline that just went on and on.
This is a special episode of my favorite TV show of all, Degrassi! Originally airing on October 28th, 2008, The Curse of Degrassi features Degrassi’s main mean girl, Holy J Sinclair (Charlotte Arnold), getting possessed by the vengeful spirit of deceased school shooter, Rick Murray (Ephraim Ellis). Chaos follows! Fortunately, Spinner (Shane Kippel) is around to save the day. As any true Degrassi fan can tell you, only Spinner has a chance against the forces of the undead.
What I like about this episode is that, in the best tradition of Degrassi, it goes there. Holly J does get possessed. Just about the entire cast end up dying horribly. Spinner has to battle the undead spirit of Rick Murray and he has to do it without the help of Drake. And, as far as we know, this episode is canon. So, yes, Rick Murray’s ghost actually does haunt Degrassi Community School and yes, only Spinner can save us all.
When last we checked in with Toronto’s Degrassi Community School, the school was recovering from a recent school shooting by putting on a production of Dracula. While a fake vampire drained blood onstage, his real-life equivalent tempted girls into his van at the ravine with the promise of cheap bracelets and an escape from all the trauma of the past month.
In the second part of Secret, the play is finally ready to open but, much as how Dracula has infecting the stage with vampirism, Jay (Mike Lobel) has infected the school with gonorrhea. Can Emma (Miriam McDonald) get through the play without having a complete breakdown?
There’s a B-plot here, of course. Jimmy (Drake …. yes, the Drake) has been in the hospital ever since getting shot in the back by Rick Murray. With the help of Craig (Jake Epstein) and Marco (Adamo Ruggiero), Jimmy escapes from the hospital so that he can attend a Kid Eldrick show. (Kid Eldrick is Degrassi‘s version of Kid Rock.) It’s actually kind of a nice little story. My favorite line is Marco’s one about wanting to look like a ninja.
That said, this is the episode will forever be known for making national news when it aired in the United States. Though it may seem strange now, this was considered to quite a controversial show back in 2005. (Canadians, of course, got to see the episode first, when it aired on December 7th, 2004.)
One thing I like about this episode — and the reason why I am specifically sharing it now — is the way that the school staged their production of Dracula. It looks like they did a good job. I especially liked the way that they faked the blood in the staking scene.
Tonight’s televised horror comes to use from the year 2004 and the nation of Canada! Love you, Canada!
In this episode of Degrassi: The Next Generation, the students at Toronto’s Degrassi Community School are still struggling to come to terms with a recent school shooting that left one student dead and another paralyzed. What better way to help the school deal with their trauma than a play? And what better play to select than an adaptation of …. Dracula?
J.T. (Ryan Cooley) and Libertry (Sarah Barrable-Tishauer) are directing their own script. Starring in the play is Emma Nelson (Miriam McDonald). Before the shooting, Emma was known for being rather strident about her political and environmental activism. After the shooting, Emma has been spiraling out of control. And, as we all know, spiraling out of control on Degrassi inevitably leads to a visit to the ravine where all-around trouble-maker Jay (Mike Lobel) has a van and a collection cheap bracelets.
Meanwhile, in another part of the school, Ashley (Melissa McIntyre) tries to get Craig (Jake Epstein) to join a support group that will help him deal with his recent bipolar diagnosis. Craig is upset to discover that Ellie (Stacey Farber) is in the same group. This episode was the start of the very long and very angsty Craig/Ellie relationship arc. When I first watched Degrassi, I always related to Ellie and I still do to a certain extent but, in retrospect, I think I was probably a lot more like Ashley when I was in high school.
This episode of Degrassi aired, in Canada, on November 30th, 2004. This episode was considered to be so controversial that it actually made national news when it later aired in the United States. (I can actually remember watching some outraged wannabe censor talking about how Degrassi was a corrupting influence.) Part Two of Secret, which we’ll get to tomorrow, was even more controversial.
As for how this fits in with October …. it’s Dracula! And really, when you think about it, Jay’s a bit of a real-life Dracula. That’ll especially become clear in the next episode.
Anyway, here is tonight’s episode. Remember — whatever it takes, you can make it through!
Well, Halloween and this year’s horrorthon are both nearly over.
Since I started things off with The Curse of Degrassi, it only seems appropriate for me to end my part of it with Degrassi of the Dead! This 10 minute film takes a non-canonical look at what would happen to everyone’s favorite Canadian high school if there was a zombie apocalypse!
(By the way, I know what you’re thinking but this was actually made in 2007, long before the premiere of The Walking Dead.)
Well, actually I didn’t watch it last night. Instead, I spent last night bring in the new year with my boyfriend, my BFF, my sister, and about two dozen people who I kinda knew or, at the very least, they seemed to know me. Seriously, it reminded me of that old commercial where every where this girl goes, everyone’s all like, “So, what color panties are you wearing tonight?” In my case, I was wearing black panties and this morning, I’m wearing red, white, and blue panties because dangit, this is 2012 and I’m proud to be an American, yes, I am! But anyway, what was I talking about?
Oh yeah, so I didn’t actually watch this last night but I did DVR it last night. And then I watched it this morning. Anyway, what I watched was the 15th episode of the 8th season of my favorite Canadian tv show, Degrassi: The Next Generation. The title of this episode: A Touch of Grey.
Why Was I Watching It?
Well, first off, it was Degrassi. Secondly, it was one of the Degrassi drug episodes. So, of course, I was totally going to make sure I got a chance to see it.
What’s It About?
This is the episode where Emma (played by Miriam McDonald) worries that her classmates view her as being boring. So, she tells everyone to call her “Blaze” and then passes out a bunch of pot brownies. At first, everyone has a great time eating the brownies and giggling and stumbling about. But, uh-oh, one girl gets so stoned that she forgets to take her insulin and slips into a diabetic coma. Will Blaze confess to the Canadian police or will she allow her cute boyfriend to take the fall?
What Worked
Any Degrassi episode dealing with drug abuse is automatically fascinating because Degrassi, on the one hand, took a lot of pride on treating the issues realistically but, at the same time, there’s no way that a teen show could get away with allowing any character to abuse drugs for more than one episode. As such, drug episodes of Degrassi have this wonderfully schizophrenic feel to them where everything starts out normal until about 18 minutes in, at which point THE WORST POSSIBLE THING THAT WILL EVER HAPPEN happens. In A Touch of Grey, we find out that handing out pot brownies will not only help induce a coma but will also lead to you breaking up with your cute boyfriend as well.
What Didn’t Work
It was Degrassi. It all worked.
“Oh my God! Just like me!” Moments:
When I first went to college, my roommate used to call me “Blaze” too. In my case, though, it was either because of my hair or my temper.
Lessons Learned:
Uhmmm…hello? Don’t just go randomly handing out pot brownies like you’re freaking Martha Stewart or someone. That was the main lesson but as an extra, bonus lesson, I learned that you can apparently pin any crime on a devoted boyfriend. And thank God for that!
Last night, I watched the classic Degrassi 2008 Halloween special, The Curse of Degrassi.
Why Was I Watching It?
Last night, I was suffering from conflicting emotions. I was depressed and angry over the fact that I’m probably going to have to go spend a few thousand dollars on a new laptop. However, I was also all happy and hyper because, after spending a week far away in Houston, Jeff’s back! So, I was like “Yay!” and “Boo hoo hoo” all at the same time and Jeff finally suggested that maybe it would help me get my mind off the boo hoo part if I watched something silly and stupid. And, as usual, he was right! Though, in its defense, Degrassi may often times be kinda silly but it’s rarely stupid. Except when it is. Anyway, The Curse of Degrassi is available for free viewing off of Uverse OnDemand, which is how I watched it last night.
What’s It About?
Okay, so like many years ago, there was this very special, two-part episode of Degrassi: The Next Generation in which bullied, picked-on Rick Murray (played by an excellent actor named Ephraim Ellis, and by the way, that’s Jeff’s last name too but they’re not related and believe me, I asked) was competing in some sort of high school quiz-like game show and he ended up getting a bunch of yellow paint and chicken feathers poured on him by school bully Spinner (Shane Kippel). So, naturally, Rick went home, got a gun, and came back up to school and started shooting people until he himself eventually ended up getting shot and killed.
Now, four years to the day after Rick’s death, a group of Degrassi students are all up at the school at night, getting things ready for the upcoming Harvest dance. Group ringleader Holly J. Sinclair ends up getting possessed by Rick’s vengeful spirit and proceeds to kill off the entire cast. And no, this is not a dream or one of those non-canon fantasy episodes. Which is cool because, quite frankly, Holly J. annoys me…
What Worked?
To be honest, the entire 22 minute episode worked. For a Canadian teen show, this was actually pretty scary and had some fairly effective (in their own fun way) special effects. Plus, as much as I complain about the character she plays., actress Charlotte Arnold does a pretty good job playing psychotic, possessed Holly J. Plus, even among all the mayhem and death, the episode gets across a well-meant and sincere anti-bullying message and if you don’t get a little bit emotional when Rick says, “I’m dead, aren’t I?,” then you have no soul. That’s right — you’re a freaking zombie.
(Though, at the same time, Rick Murray was kind of a disturbed guy who, let’s not forget, first appeared on the show as an obsessive, abusive stalker who put Terri in a coma when he pushed her down and she hit her head on a rock. It was his abusive behavior that led to Rick becoming a pariah though Spinner, ultimately, took things too far. By the way, I always loved how Degrassi students all had names like Spinner.)
Plus, you get to see all the Degrassi kids die.
What Didn’t Work?
Seriously, it all worked. In fact, I’m just going to say that this is the greatest thing ever to come out of Canada. Okay, maybe not. But still, I enjoyed it.
“OMG! Just like me!” moments
I always have a lot of “Oh my God! Just like me!” moments whenever I watch any TV show or movie that features silly people falling victim to some unseen supernatural force. Usually, they’re along the lines of, “WHAT!? There’s a killer stalking the school and you’re going to stop to make out with your boyfriend in some dark, isolated room that only has one exit!? OH MY GOD! JUST LIKE ME!” Anyway, I had quite a few of those while watching The Curse of Degrassi. Though my biggest “Oh my God! Just like me!” moment came when Holly J. screamed, “I’M HOLLY J. FREAKIN SINCLAIR!” as that’s the way I usually chose to introduce myself as well.
Lessons Learned:
The world can do without the Harvest Dance. That, and be nice because otherwise, you might get possessed by Rick Murray.
Until next time, this is Lisa Marie Freakin Bowman saying, “Stay supple!”
