Twelve years in the making, we finally have a TV adaptation of John Green’s Looking for Alaska, and it is the teen show we’ve been needing. Among the overwrought teen dramas of today, dramas that always have to have an edge or a twist, be something big, bold, and original, this show is simple and earnest, telling the very human story of what it’s like to be a teenager.
The show opens with a scene heavy with foretelling. A car crash in the pouring rain, red and blue flashing lights, police staring in shock. Main character Miles Halter (Charlie Plummer) voices-over a monologue about his morbid fascination with the last words people say before they die. Then the screen goes dark, with the single word “Before” written on it. You already know something dark is going to happen…. But what?
Next, we flash to a goodbye party for Miles. He’s leaving for boarding school, intent on using this time to follow the last words of poet Francois Rabelais, “I go to seek a Great Perhaps.” He’s tired of his safe, ordinary life. He longs for something more. When he arrives, he meets his roommate, the Colonel (Denny Love), a short, bossy scholarship kid who loves pranks and hates rich kids, of which there are many at Culver Creek. The Colonel quickly takes Miles under his wing, nicknaming him “Pudge” and introducing him to his fellow troublemakers, Takumi (Jay Lee) and Alaska (Kristine Froseth).
Miles has found his Great Perhaps in this new group of friends, spending his free time drinking and smoking cigarettes at “The Smoking Hole,” instead of studying. He finds all three fascinating, but it is Alaska who has captured him. Alaska is a mystery. She’s attractive, but also deeply broken in a way that draws him in. She loves to read and philosophize like he does — during their first conversation, she shares her own favorite last words, “How will we ever get out of this labyrinth?” Is the labyrinth life or death, she asks, setting up the main theme the show will try to wrestle with throughout these eight episodes.
One of the things that sets this show apart from other popular teen shows or media are the questions it asks. These are philosophical questions, yes, but they are human questions, questions we usually first ask as teenagers. This show never shies away from being raw and authentic, which can be hard to watch at times, but it is so necessary.
Another thing that differentiates it is that the majority of teen shows are plot-driven. Take Riverdale for example. That show is extremely plot heavy, and I often felt like the plot was almost dragging the characters along, sometimes even making them do things completely out of character in order to serve that plot. In contrast, Alaska focuses on the characters, allowing their decisions to drive the plot. In expanding on the book, this show takes each character and really fleshes them out. Instead of being limited to Miles’ point of view, we get to see each character live out their own story, with fully fleshed backstories and interactions with other characters without Miles around.
One that sticks out is Mr. Starnes, “the Eagle,” who at first comes across as rather one dimensional. He’s a strict rule follower. If he finds you drinking, smoking, or having sex, you are immediately expelled. But as the show goes on, you see his motivation — he cares for the kids really deeply and it’s his way of making sure nothing bad happens to them. You also see how far he will go in this mission, even allowing his marriage to fall apart, and you feel for him. He’s a broken person too, just trying his best, as we all do.
All of the characters in this show are exceptional. None of them are good people; they are all deeply unlikable, but still likable at the same time, which makes them very real. The Colonel is bossy and controlling, but hilarious and charismatic. Miles is exceptionally passive, but adorably dorky. Takumi can be blunt and rude, but he’s crazy smart and full of iconic lines like, “no one can catch the motherfucking fox.” These are people who will infinitely frustrate you with the bad decisions they make, but you will still love spending time with them and your heart will break for their pain.
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All of the characters in this show are exceptional. None of them are good people; they are all deeply unlikable, but still likable at the same time, which makes them very real. The Colonel is bossy and controlling, but hilarious and charismatic. Miles is exceptionally passive, but adorably dorky. Takumi can be blunt and rude, but he’s crazy smart and full of iconic lines like, “no one can catch the motherfucking fox.” These are people who will infinitely frustrate you with the bad decisions they make, but you will still love spending time with them and your heart will break for their pain.
Although this TV adaption does add plot and tension to the story that makes it more enjoyable to watch — the episodes are full of pranks that Miles and his friends play on the entitled rich kids, pranks that sometimes have awful consequences — it is the characters that make this story truly shine. This is a teen drama where, if you are a teenager, you can feel understood, and if you’re not a teenager anymore, it will bring all those emotions right back. I know it did for me. It can be a difficult watch at times, but ultimately, it’s completely worth the ride. I highly recommend this show to anyone with a heart, quite honestly. You won’t regret it.
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