THE SUMMER I TURNED PRETTY
Emma Castillo
The show “The Summer I Turned Pretty” follows the summer in which the main girl Isabel Conklin or “Belly”, as the characters refer to her in the show, turns 16. It tells the story of two intertwined families , the Conklins and the Fishers, with whom they pretty much grew up together. Belly gets caught up in a love triangle with the Fisher brothers, Conrad and Jeremiah; there are a lot of ups and downs in the series, such as Susanah, the mother of Conrad and Jeremiah, battling cancer, the struggles of dealing with separated parents, and the hardships of a mother-daughter relationship.
Even though the show's target audience is catered towards young women, I would say it's not exclusive; a great part of the show strives for it’s relatability. Firstly because it's one of the few shows that demonstrate a somewhat realistic experience of being a teenager. A rarity when it comes to today's media and entertainment, the show somehow was freed of older generations writing scripts with “Gen Z language” which ends up just killing the realness of the storylines and characters. It also gives its characters enough traits so they are likable and as a watcher when they mess up you can feel empathy for them, but not to the point where they are lifted to a god complex; what I mean by that is, there are points were the characters actions may make them seem insufferable but you understand them nonetheless.
One of the shows undeniable strengths is it’s aesthetics, they capture excellently the fleeting feeling of summer slipping away as you grow up, and the sentiment of the beach on a windy afternoon; Not to mention the smart use of soundtrack for these moments in the show. The show uses Taylor Swift songs for the majority of the show, but they do it so seamlessly that the songs are just tools to encapsulate characters' feelings or the moments they're going through.
"If you're anything like me, and you love movies that don't really go anywhere but are just a bunch of learning experiences and happenstances, then you’d definitely like the show."
Not to compare LadyBird by the director Greta Gerwig to “The Summer I Turned Pretty” but in a way, these two directors and authors have a thing in common; They just know how to make entertainment that focuses on relationships, emotions and the coming of age sentiment in general. Jenny Han the author of the books the show is based on, embraces the nature of youth while soundtracked to GenZ’s favorite artists, resulting in the eliciting nostalgia, demonstrating a keen understanding of its target audience, and that's truly commendable.
Lastly the show might not be as nuanced or political as this day and age demands its media to be, I can say as a teenage girl myself, that in a way, I see myself represented within it. The show elevates its dramatics and the characters' emotions, but at the end of the day, isn't it just exactly that what being a teen is about?. The show uses as a backdrop a summer to symbolize the urgency to embrace and understand oneself before the inevitable changes that come with adulthood. This urgency to define oneself, to navigate emotions, and to find a place in the world is a main theme that many teens struggle with, making the storyline emotionally significant and relatable.