Online Entertainment

A few weeks ago I finally got around to watching Quarterlife online. The great thing about it being an online show, is that I had the option of doing this on my own time, instead of watching on schedule.

The short episodes (about ten minutes each) have a lot more entertainment in them than I would have expected. I think the short segments force the writers to cram in only relevant dialog and action into the show. The web show is created by the forces behind "My So-Called Life," a fact that is almost obvious. One of the main characters, Dylan, seems so much like Angela Chase grown up that it is scary. The show feels like what Friends would have been like as a melodrama. There is a core group of twenty-somethings living in a city. However, instead of sitting around coffee shows making jokes, they are talking (or video-blogging) about the problems in their lives. This is not as annoying as it sounds, almost all the characters are likable. One exception is Debra. I liked her character well enough, until the episode where she and her boyfriend, Danny, broke up. Her story changed from best friend/supporting character to depressed girl. I can certainly understand the dramatic reasons for this, but I have never found it interesting to watch a depressed person mope. To state it obviously, it is depressing.

I am much more interested in following Dylan. She revealed she was in love with Jed, but since he has also proven to be interested in Debra, I am hoping nothing happens with Jed/Dylan. No one deserves to be dating someone who is in love with someone else. When Eric was introduced, I was also against Eric/Dylan as a couple. I know a lot of people think two characters who fight are meant to be, but often people just fight because they dislike each other. Early on, this was what I thought described Dylan/Eric. But now that they have kissed, I am starting to see that they could be a couple. However, I also have a feeling Dylan is the type of person who is happier being miserable, so it will be interesting to watch her in a good relationship.