i like this show

i am about halfway through watching "freaks and geeks", which i haven't seen in ten years, although for most of those years, the dvd set has been sitting in my amazon cart.

the internet is full of raves about how awesome this show is, how unlike even the most poignant and dramatic shows set in a high school, it is the most real, the characters have acne and it isn't even a plot point, the writing is brilliant, the attention to detail using props from several eras rather than just a canned, disco-era 1980 set, the way the characters do "normal" things, and on, and on. what struck me this time around, besides forgetting most of the individual plots of the episodes, was that i'd forgotten who the actors were. i recognized over half of them from current movies and tv: james franco - seth rogen - jason segel? i just hadn't put all of that together.

(um, spoiler for a twelve year old show here): there is an episode where the freak kids get fake ids, just to see a local band that they're really excited about. they get to the bar and cheer for the band and then realize the lead singer is their guidance counselor. after the first song plays, the counselor gets on the mic and gives the kids a shout out and asks for the house to deliver them a free round of their finest pop. the facial expressions and the general mood of that scene were hilarious!

i kind of want to watch the rest now. eight episodes left, i think?

if you haven't seen it ever, or in a while, put it on your to do list. or, you can start here.