My So-Called Life New Box Set Available

In 1994 I wasn’t a tremendous TV fan, and I never would have guessed what a tremendous TV fan I would someday become - but I was actually a pretty big fan of My So-Called Life. Now, in that year, I did not see all of the 19 the episodes (a far too little number for such a great show), it’s true.

But the episodes I did see, stayed with me. The visuals were iconic, so much so that I remember trying to repeat one scene in particular - crawling into my Mother’s bed just the same way Angela had done, hoping for solace and comfort.

However, instead of solace and comfort, my Mother sort of backed away and pointed out that I was just copying what I’d seen on TV. I remember being angry that she’d done that. This was life imitating art, here!

And what pretty art it was.

The heart of the show was based on the life of fifteen year old Angela Chase, and what she went through with her family, new friends, old friends, and love interests. In that collection was her overlooked and often ignored younger sister, Danielle (Lisa Wilhot), her Mother, Patty (Bess Armstrong) and Father, Graham (Tom Irwin). She was growing apart from her old friend Sharon (Devon Odessa) as well as her neighbor, Brian (who had a very obvious and extreme crush on her). Her two new friends were Rayanne (A.J. Langer) who was a wild child, and Rickie (Wilson Cruz) who openly gay (very, very taboo at the time). Jordan Catalano was the too-cool guitarist (played by Jared Leto - now of 30 Seconds to Mars fame) that she crushed on.

Now of course, there is no way I have just listed for you all of the intricacies that made these characters truly interesting. To do that, you need to see the show. The show gave a very realistic portrayal of life in the nineties, from all of the viewpoints listed above. Yes, it focused greatly on the p.o.v. of a 15 year old girl, but that wasn’t all it offered.

There was something magical about the show that is to this day, in 2007, untouchable. The quotes that are spoken have wry truth to them, but are also deep and truthful. The actual scenes are filmed with golden light, and dark shadows. Angela was used as a mouthpiece to speak her mind on things that many girls at that age are thinking but don’t know how to speak about.

She finds things utterly confusing when someone compliments her parents. And when those parents say something dumb, she sarcastically corrects them. And even still, she’ll manage, by the end of the day, to have a deep thought regarding one of them.

Angela: “Sometimes I think if my mother wasn’t so good at pretending to be happy she might be better at actually being happy. “

And what are most teenage girls, if not complex? Sometime’s you’ll feel dumb, sometimes you’ll be dumb. Fifteen is a hard time.

But to be transported back into a time where every little detail - a guys sleeve on yours is the biggest moment of your day, that’s something special.

It was a show that ABC unjustly canceled, and though devoted fans tried to bring it back, it just didn’t happen. So whether you’d like to fondly reminisce about your teenage days, or you have a teenager now, consider getting them the newly released box set.

With this new box set, you get more than you’ve gotten before:

1. A 36 page booklet that has lyrics, episode liner notes, letters, and an essay by Janeane Garofo.

2. DVD extras, such as a ‘making of’ featurette, and interviews with Claire Danes and series creator and writer, Winnie Holtzman.

3. Commentary on six episodes. This includes commentary from Claire Danes, Brian Gummersall, and Wilson Cruz.

My So-Called Life - The Complete Series (w/ Book) Price: $37.98 USD

ABC.com is putting a new episode of MSCL up each Friday, for those of you in the USA with broadband.

Narrator: Will Angela ever get over Jordan? Will Rayanne ever stop drinking? Will Brian ever be cool enough? Will Cousin Tino ever actually show up?