For young millennials, The-N was THE channel we all grew up watching. It broadcasted all of the teen shows that related to our adolescent struggles. The-N understood who we really were inside. Nostalgia is all the rage these days, so here's a list of teen shows that dominated our Friday nights in the early-mid 2000s!
Instant Star (2004-2008)
16-year-old Jude Harrison wins an American Idol-esque talent competition called "Instant Star". The show follows her life as she evolves into a bonafide rockstar, falls in love with bad boy ex-boyband member and producer, Tommy Quincy (b.k.a. Lil Tommy Q) , and tries to balance her normal teenaged life and her newfound fame. It was canceled after 4 seasons due to lack of funding from the channel (and I will never forgive them for that rushed ending). The show features a teenaged Tatiana Masley in its final season and has some of the best soundtracks of all TV shows EVER. Even the Backstreet Boys covered one of the songs on their album "Unbreakable" [Japanese edition].
Backstreet Boys cover
South of Nowhere (2005-2008)
A religious family of 5 moves from Ohio to California. The series focuses on the high school drama of siblings Spencer, Clay and Glen, as well as their parents and the difficulties of moving from a small conservative town to glamorous and liberal South California. Similar to Degrassi: The Next Generation, South of Nowhere was praised for dealing with controversial issues affecting teens such as addiction, sexuality and teen pregnancies.
Queen Bees (2008)
Super shit quality of the girls' intro:
The main reason why Instant Star was canceled was because The-N wanted to pour funding into reality T.V. shows. Enter Queen Bees, a show about rich girls with nasty attitudes who tried to become better people through various character-building challenges. It featured Stassi Schroeder of Vanderpump Rules fame and gave us some great gifs, courtesy of queen Shavon.
Beyond the Break (2006-2009)
Four female surfers navigate life in Hawaii while realizing their dreams to become the best pro surfers in the world. The show features a pre-Japanese potato'd Olivia Munn and Kim Kardashian's original face!
Miracle's Boys (2004-2005)
Based on the novel by Jacqueline Woodson, Pooch Hall's fine ass stars as the oldest brother of three, struggling to raise his younger siblings in pre-gentrified Harlem after their parents die. It only lasted a season but I remember it being a decent show. Any excuse to look at Pooch Hall is great tbh.
Radio Free Roscoe (2003-2006)
A group of high school students create a pirate radio station and hide behind fake identities to keep their radio personalities a secret. High school shenanigans and love triangles happen.
Girls vs. Boys (2003-2007)
A teenaged version of The Challenge: Road Rules v. Real World, except the teams were separated by gender. The teens were made to live together in a house and compete in physical challenges. In the end, whichever team had the most points split a check amongst themselves. Each season was held at a different location and featured a different cast. Lauren Collins and Jake Epstein (Paige and Craig from Degrassi: The Next Generation) joined the teams in season 2. This show has damn near been scrubbed from the Internet.
AND OF COURSE, LAST BUT NOT LEAST, THE MOTHER OF ALL TEEN SHOWS!
Degrassi: The Next Generation (2001-2015)
Easily the most iconic show for teenaged Millennials, Degrassi: The Next Generation dealt with every issue you can possibly imagine (puberty, racism, homophobia, school shootings, teen pregnancies, rape, etc.). The show featured a couple of actors who have blown up beyond the Canadian borders!
Drake (Jimmy Brooks)
Nina Dobrev (Mia Jones aka Mamma Mia)
Shenae Grimes (Darcy Edwards)
Craig Manning (Jake Epstein)
Other forgotten The-N shows: The Best Years, About A Girl, Whistler, O'Grady, The Assistants (featuring a young Michael B. Jordan).
Source: My memory, Wikipedia, and 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11
Thank you Canada
