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Late Night Retro Television Review: Degrassi High 1.5 “Everybody Wants Something”
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, 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!
What Lisa Watched Last Night #123: Til Death Do Us Part (dir by Farhad Mann)
Last night, I finally got a chance to watch the latest Lifetime original film, Til Death Do Us Part.
Why Was I Watching It?
I missed this one when it premiered on Lifetime last Saturday because I was busy watching Lake Placid vs. Anaconda on SyFy. Thank God for the DVR!
What Was It About?
It’s yet another Canadian-produced Lifetime movie about a new bride who suspects that her husband might be hiding a deadly secret. Sandra (Haylie Duff) has just married a doctor named Kevin (Ty Olsson). At first, Kevin seems like the perfect man but, after they move to a small town, he starts to reveal a controlling and angry side. Because Sandra has a heart condition, he demands that she constantly take pills. At the same time, his obsessively devoted sister, Jolene (Magda Apanowicz), has literally moved into the house.
When one of Sandra’s coworkers mysteriously dies, Sandra starts to wonder if maybe her husband was somehow involved.
What Worked?
The film’s first hour worked perfectly, largely because it emphasized Sandra’s confusion and her struggle to adjust to being a part of couple. Haylie Duff gave a pretty good performance during this part of the movie and was just unstable enough to allow the viewer to think that maybe — just maybe — everything really was just in her head. Unfortunately, the film sacrificed all hints of ambiguity during the far less satisfying second hour but, for those initial 60 minutes, it was a good and effective thriller.
Ty Olsson and Magda Apanowicz were both well cast as the mysterious husband and his creepy sister. Magda Apanowicz particularly deserves a lot of credit for totally committing herself to her role.
What Did Not Work?
This is one of those films that was great as long as you didn’t know what was going on. As long as the viewer was as confused as Sandra, the film worked. But then, as Kevin’s true nature became more and more obvious, the film itself became less and less interesting. I almost wish that no effort had been made to provide any motivation for either Kevin or his sister. If the two of them had remained enigmas, this film could have been an existential masterpiece as opposed to just being another take on Gaslight.
It was hard not to feel that Sandra could have avoided a lot of her troubles by simply doing a google search on Kevin before agreeing to marry him.
“Oh my God! Just like me!” Moments
If and when I do get married, I hope that my wedding will be as fun and as full of dancing as the wedding that opened this film. Seriously, I loved the first 15 minutes of this film because it was all about the wedding!
Lessons Learned
Before getting married, be sure to do a google search.
Through the Shattered Lens 