Television series

Awkward.

Awkward. is a half-hour comedy-drama about a teenage girl navigating social catastrophe, secret romance, and the mortifying gap between how you see yourself and how the world sees you. Narrated through Jenna's sardonic blog posts, it finds genuine warmth and humor in the small humiliations of high school. It's for anyone who remembers being fifteen and feeling like the only person in the world things happened to.

TVMaze rating3.7

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The Summer I Turned Pretty2022

A warm, character-driven teen romance that understands the intensity of adolescent feelings without mocking them. Beautiful to look at, genuinely funny, and interested in its characters as people rather than plot devices.

But Spends a lot of time on love triangles and beach aesthetics. If you want plot momentum over introspection, you'll find it slow.

The Summer I Turned Pretty poster

Never Have I Ever2020

Sharp, funny, and full of heart. A teen navigating identity, family, grief, and first love with a narrator who's both self-aware and fallible. Balances comedy and real stakes the way Awkward. does.

But The first season is stronger than what follows. And the main character's narration occasionally tips into being smarter-than-thou.

Never Have I Ever poster

Everything Sucks!2018

A love letter to '90s teen comedy that understands why those shows worked: they took their characters seriously even when the situations were ridiculous. Genuinely touching underneath the pranks and crushes.

But Cancelled after one season, so it doesn't resolve everything. Some storylines feel half-baked as a result.

Everything Sucks! poster

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Awkward.

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Eighth Grade2018

Both use comedy as camouflage for real vulnerability. Both understand that adolescence isn't a phase to survive—it's the place where you become yourself, and that's mortifying and important in equal measure.

Bo Burnham's directorial debut captures the specific texture of being thirteen in 2018 with painful accuracy. It's uncomfortable, hilarious, and deeply compassionate about the gap between how kids see themselves and how they actually are.

But Extremely cringey by design. Watching a shy kid navigate social media and school in real-time is hard. Some viewers find it genuinely stressful to watch.

Eighth Grade poster
More like this (8)

Atypical2017

A coming-of-age series that's funny and observant about how teenagers actually talk and think. It's messy and honest about family, identity, and the difficulty of being understood.

But Occasionally veers into sentiment a bit too hard. And some subplots in later seasons feel obligatory rather than organic.

Atypical poster

Ginny & Georgia2021

Captures the particular exhaustion and humor of being a girl navigating school, social hierarchies, and family chaos. Knows its tone—it's lighter than Awkward. but working from similar emotional DNA.

But The plotting sometimes prioritizes drama over character consistency. The second season in particular strains credibility.

Ginny & Georgia poster

10 Things I Hate About You1999

A teen comedy that actually cares about its characters and treats them with respect. Funny, smart, and genuinely romantic in a way that doesn't feel saccharine. It aged surprisingly well.

But Shot on film in the late '90s, so the aesthetic might feel dated. And the pacing is slower than modern TV.

10 Things I Hate About You poster

The Half of It2020

A contemporary teen romance that's funny, awkward, and tender in equal measure. Smartly written, diverse in its casting, and genuinely interested in what it feels like to be seventeen and confused about identity.

But Low-key and introspective. If you want big comedic set pieces, you won't find them here.

The Half of It poster

Schitt's Creek2015

A comedy about displaced people rebuilding their lives that gets funnier and more genuinely moving as it goes. The humor comes from character and situation, not contempt. It earns its emotional payoffs.

But Doesn't really hit its stride until season two. And it's about adults, not teens, so the specific texture of adolescence isn't there.

Schitt's Creek poster

Kim's Convenience2016

A sitcom about family, identity, and small moments of connection. It's warm without being saccharine, and genuinely funny in its understanding of how people actually talk to each other.

But Very low-stakes. If you want narrative momentum or dramatic conflict, this isn't it. And it was cancelled somewhat abruptly in season five.

Kim's Convenience poster

Heartstopper2022

Both center teenage perspective and take it seriously without condescension. Both find humor in social anxiety and romantic uncertainty, and both understand that belonging matters more than popularity.

A British teen romance about first love, identity, and found family that's visually gorgeous and emotionally intelligent. Funny and tender without ever being cynical. It trusts its characters and treats them with genuine affection.

But Very earnest and sincere. If you want snark and edge, the softness might feel cloying. Some find the optimism unrealistic.

Heartstopper poster

Freaky Friday2003

Both use absurd situations (identity mixup, misinterpreted accident) as gateways to genuine self-understanding. Both find comedy in the gap between intention and perception, and both care deeply about how misunderstanding damages connection.

A body-swap comedy that's genuinely funny and also genuinely moving. It understands the real pain of parent-child disconnect while also making you laugh out loud. Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan have real chemistry.

But It's a Disney movie, so it lands on sentiment hard. And the premise is objectively silly, which some viewers won't buy into regardless of execution.

Freaky Friday poster

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