|
Season Two DVD Secrets of an American Teenager
by Larson Hill
 At
first I didn't know what to make of the ABC Family
series, The Secret Life of the American Teenager.
Given the debate surrounding the merits of depicting
weekly drama of a pregnant teen in high school,
the fact that ABC Family took such a bold step
in programming took some time to digest. In the
early days of the family oriented network, teenage
pregnancy would have been a taboo topic. But you
have to give the programming execs at ABC Family
credit for not only venturing into unsafe TV territory
but also for recognizing that "family" comes with
many challenging real life issues that some feel
are better left behind closed doors. Is The Secret
Life safe in a mainstream teen drama like other
popular shows? Sure. But it's a different type
of safe as compared to the perception of "family
drama," especially in Season 2, which is now out
on DVD as a three disc set as of June 16.
Although both sides of the teenage pregnancy debate have solid ground to stand on in terms of either glorifying or bringing awareness to a sensitive issue, a more significant TV fact is that The Secret Life of an American Teenager became a hit in its first season, as actress Shailene Woodley's Amy Jeurgens character struggled to deal with the past, present, and future repercussions of her one-night actions. In Season 2 of the ABC Family series, Amy Jeurgens was forced to deal with the reality of being pregnant and all that comes with being an accelerated adult while trying to live life as a normal high school teenager.
 If
anything during the first season of The Secret
Life, the predicament that Amy Jeurgens found
herself in was a weekly lesson in the importance
of choices. And this is where the teenage pregnancy
debate gets interesting. Although season one
was no cakewalk for its lead character, many
pregnant teens in real life don't have it as
good as Amy Jeurgens. At the same time, many
parents deal with teenage pregnancy in a much
more negative light than what we see on The
Secret Life. And when families are split by
divorce, teen pregnancy is even harder to deal
with. So no matter how you view the portrayal
of teen pregnancy as the foundation of a weekly
series, if a struggling pregnant teen or parent
can take something positive away from the show
to help their own situation, there's something
constructive to be gained from The Secret Life.
Whether the series glorifies teen pregnancy is a completely separate issue with its own unique dynamics. If I see a blue sky and you see a black sky, what's the real color of the sky? There's no doubt that The Secret Life of an American Teenager walks a very fine line in relation to what people will perceive. Although the show finally cracks open an issue most networks won't touch to confront real issues, teens need to keep in mind that getting pregnant shouldn't be the latest fad just because you see it on TV. A baby isn't an iPod. But it's not my job to tell teens that in a DVD review, it's the responsibility of being a parent.
The drama of the second season kicked off with
a bang of nuptials, but quickly grew into an
exploration of love between Amy and boyfriend
Ben Boykewich (Ken Baumann) who has his own
challenges of being the guy that just doesn't
measure up to the cooler real father of Amy's
baby, Ricky (Daren Kagasoff). As I mentioned
earlier, teen pregnancy is often harder to deal
with during a strained marriage between parents
and The Secret Life second season also explores
the challenges of living life as a teen with
domestic issues. As one would expect, the second
season of The Secret Life of an American Teenager
is a more mature series that settles into its
own along with its lead character as she settles
into the reality and responsibilities of motherhood.
 Special
Features:
Music Video Performed By The Strange Familiar
Character Secrets - The Cast Reveals All!
Cast Close-Ups-Visit The Set As The Cast Dishes In A Series Of Personal Videos
If you've been waiting to watch the second season of the series until the DVD release, The Secret Life of the American Teenager: Season Two is a more diverse experience than season one with extra insight into the actors and characters as they've grown as an on-screen family. If you’re new to the show, Don't get pregnant, get the DVD instead.
|
