I got my image of what being a teenager was like by watching Beverly Hills 90210. You live with your parents but your life is focused on a close group of friends. You go to school, and after school hang out with friends. You have crushes and boyfriends. You get in fights with your family, friends and boyfriends over important things you feel passionately about. You drive around town and find fun. You hang out at the local café where you are friends with the fatherly owner. You get your heart broken. You go through hard times. Your friends are always there for you. Your family is there with bowls of ice cream and heart to heart talks. You keep on, you grow, and you survive.
I used to watch Beverly Hills 90210 with my mom and sister every week. It was our way of watching teenagers and families deal with growing up. We never had lively deep discussions afterwards though. Watching a character get her heart broken and talking about our broken hearts was a different story. Somehow we could never use the many teen topics brought up on the show to speak of our own worries or experiences. Perhaps the show thoroughly discussed and hashed out how to deal with these tough situations so well we felt it was not necessary. Instead of my mom or older sister giving me advice from their experiences, we watched Brenda, Kelly, Donna, David, Brandon, Dylan and Steve go through their teens and twenties together. Now we can refer to ‘that time Dylan’s dad died and he became an alcoholic’ or ‘remember when Brenda’s best friend and her boyfriend fell in love and she said, “I hate you both! Never speak to me again!” when she found out.
In a media focused culture, characters in long running television shows become the story telling narrative that is passed down, retold through reruns for the next generation. Each character is a symbol, each episode a step, each season a journey, each series an epic tale. Watching Beverly Hills 90210 as I grew up, I grew up alongside the characters in the story. It may seem silly or pitiful to have a connection with a character, but it is how I felt and how I still feel. Virtual connections are a mirror to our human experiences.
