By: Bella Martinek, W*SS Social Work Intern
Spoilers Ahead!
Haven't you always wanted to vividly recall your worst middle school experiences? Probably not, I know I would definitely pass on that. Luckily, now you don’t have to! In 2019, Hulu premiered ‘Pen15’, the two season sitcom that Rotten Tomatoes described as “A poignant coming-of-age comedy that hits all the right nostalgia notes for those who endured the trials of adolescence in the early 2000s”. Just looking at the title ‘Pen15’ (a juvenile way of spelling penis without getting in trouble from your elders) one can assume that the show will capture the image of immature and sexually curious minds of middle schoolers.
In my opinion, the co-stars and creators of the show, Anna Konkle and Maya Erskine, do an outstanding job of depicting how complicated yet exciting life as a middle school girl is at times. What makes the show truly unique is that Konkle and Erskine (both 32 years old when filming) are playing thirteen year old versions of themselves alongside their castmates who are actual middle schoolers. The two girls experience all types of what they consider to be hardships such as bad haircuts, strict mothers, perverted boys, mean girls, and any other middle school nightmare you could think of. I constantly found myself laughing, cringing, and even crying at points all while thinking, “that is so accurate it actually hurts to watch”. Throughout it all, the girls prove that they have a friendship some would describe as untouchable. They bicker and pick small fights as all preteens typically do, but never fail to show up for one another at the end of the day.
While this show is undeniably hilarious, it also provides a window into the truly challenging aspects of growing up. Throughout the entire series, Anna’s parents constantly argue and eventually get divorced. As viewers, we can see how difficult this is for Anna to understand. She longs for her parents to fall back in love and is oftentimes emotionally misguided when they do share a short moment of what seems like happiness. This was probably one of the most difficult situations for me to watch throughout the show. I kept finding that my heart was aching for Anna. She would often put the blame of the divorce on herself or allow her mind to believe the divorce was going to be called off, all because her parents exchanged a slight smile.
While Anna is navigating her confusing family relationship, Maya is struggling to accept and embrace the fact that she is Japanese. Her mother and older brother are much more involved in Japanese culture than she is, which often makes her feel like an outsider in her own home. The kids she surrounds herself with at school are no help to this feeling at all. In an episode entitled “Posh”, Anna and Maya are put into a group project with three other girls where they must recreate the iconic Spice Girls. Maya expresses that she wants to be Posh Spice, but her White classmates tell her she looks more like Scary. Reluctantly, Maya agrees and plays the role of the outstanding Melanie Brown. On top of being told she should take the role of the one minority member of the Spice Girls, they also instruct her to act like a servant in the video. Hunched over, and talking with an accent that is mocking those who speak Spanish, Maya gives in to peer pressure and allows her White classmates to make her feel like she deserves less than them. This was a harder scene for me to watch, but nonetheless important. It made me think back on my days in middle school and all of the microaggressions that I probably witnessed but never quite understood to be offensive. This is a topic that we must make apparent to our youth in the hopes that we can end these abhorrent acts of racism before they have even begun.
Pen15 is a show that will make you laugh out loud and fight back tears, possibly within the same episode. It is a short series with only two seasons, but in my opinion, it is an absolute must watch. Being a girl in middle school is such a vivid yet distant memory for many, myself included. Now that we have made it out of what seemed like those three dreaded years, it can be nostalgic to look back and be reminded of the crazy ideas we had in our youth.