From Boo, Bitch to the Gordita Chronicles, Do These Coming-Of-Age Stories Work?
Figuring out who you are isn’t easy, but it’s so much fun to follow those journeys on your favorite streaming platforms from the comfort of your couch. From a girl turned ghost to a complicated summer fling to a superhero coming into her own, here’s some new coming-of-age stories with varying degrees of success.
Boo, Bitch
Boo, Bitch had all the makings of a winning limited series. The creators of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Awkward, and On My Block? Check. A superstar talent in Lana Condor? Check. So what went wrong? It just makes no sense.
The show follows a high school senior who has flown under the radar and finally seizes the opportunity to start living an epic life. The only problem… she wakes up the next morning as a ghost. Condor and Zoe Colletti play two best friends trying to figure out the whole ghostly sitch, but 5 minutes into the second episode during a trip to a coffee shop — plus the fact that everyone can see and talk to Condor’s character Erika Vu — just makes the plot twist crystal clear and ruins the trajectory of the show. While we get to see Condor flex her comedy chops and embrace some Mean Girls vibes, the overall story is a waste of time unless you try to severely suspend disbelief. The twist is very obvious and just doesn’t work.
Boo, Bitch is streaming on Netflix.
Gordita Chronicles
“I didn’t come all the way to America to not be wildly successful.” - Cucu Castelli
After leaving the Dominican Republic to start a new life in Miami, Gordita Chronicles tells the refreshingly funny and authentic story of the Castelli family working to fit into and reimagine the American Dream.
Olivia Goncalves delivers a break out performance as the bold and aspirational Cucu Castelli. While she is the center of the story, each family member gets their own entertaining individual storylines that allow them to grow and support each other. Savannah Nicole Ruiz, who plays Cucu’s sister Emilia, goes on a particularly profound journey of self-discovery, navigating fake friends to find her true passion. The series, full of heart and humor, is narrated from the future looking back at 1985, similar to shows like Everybody Hates Chris or Fresh Off The Boat.
Gordita Chronicles is streaming on HBO Max.
Hello, Goodbye, and Everything In Between
Jordan Fisher and Talia Ryder star in Hello, Goodbye, and Everything In Between, a coming-of-age romance movie based on Jennifer E. Smith's bestselling novel. Claire and Aidan have a year long whirlwind romance, making a pact to break up before college with no regrets and no broken hearts, but one epic goodbye date may offer them a last chance at love.
While Hello, Goodbye, and Everything In Between has some cute moments, Fisher and Ryder lack the chemistry needed to take the romance to the next level. The story feels tired and predictable and just serves as a vehicle to showcase Fisher’s latest song.
Hello, Goodbye, and Everything In Between is streaming on Netflix.
Ms Marvel
Newcomer Iman Vellani makes her superhero debut as Kamala Khan in Disney+’s new series Ms Marvel. The YA hero series follows the Muslim American teen growing up in New Jersey as she struggles to balance her culture, her mega superhero fandom, and her oversized imagination. Things get even more complicated when she gets super powers like the heroes she’s always looked up to — particularly her idol Captain Marvel.
The representation of a Pakistani American girl developing superpowers is powerful itself, but what really makes Ms Marvel really stand out is the unique connection between Kamala’s powers and her family’s past. It makes for a really compelling coming-of-age mystery that gives her an even deeper connection to her family as she discovers who she really is.
Ms Marvel is streaming on Disney+.
The Summer I Turned Pretty
Based on the books by Jenny Han, The Summer I Turned Pretty follows Belly Conklin and her family as they head to the Fishers’ beach house in Cousins. Every summer is the same… until she turns sixteen. It’s a summer of first love, first heartbreak, and growing up. The show really makes you fall in love with Cousins Beach and makes the whole town feel like a character in itself where magical summer adventures can happen at any time.
Jenny Han is not only the author of the books, but took on showrunning for the first time with the adaptation of The Summer I Turned Pretty. In adapting the story to the screen, she wasn’t afraid to deviate from her own source material. I love that she was able to update the storylines in a way that both feels more streamlined, but also really feel like they make sense for the characters. Belly, Conrad, Jeremiah, and Steven are all flawed and learning and coming into their own as people and the young cast of Lola Tung, Christopher Briney, Gavin Casalegno, and Sean Kaufman bring them to life vibrantly and authentically.
The Summer I Turned Pretty is streaming on Prime Video.
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