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While on the surface, season one of 'The Hard Times of RJ Berger' looks like another teen sex comedy, what lies beneath is an enjoyable comedy with some heart.
RJ Berger is an unpopular teenage boy trying to survive Pinkterton high school. By his side is the equally unpopular Miles - an overweight loudmouth, sex-obsessed kid- and Lily, a dorky girl obsessed by RJ since kindergarten. RJ, on the other hand, only has eyes for Jenny, the hot, popular cheerleader who in a relationship with basketball jock Max.
While it may seem like a stereotypical set-up, RJ has an anatomical "gift" most of his male classmates would kill for. Fortunately, 'Hard Times' avoids becoming a constant stream of dick jokes, instead developing into a coming-of-age comedy with a bit of substance – like a cross between 'The Wonder Years' and 'Superbad'. RJ is a sweet kid who's constantly torn between his urges for Jenny and the desire to the do the right thing, Miles's outgoing personality is a cover for his traumatic childhood – including a dead mother, a crazy, war-affected brother and a suicidal cat. The biggest surprise is Jenny.
While it would have been easy to characterise her as the stereotypical bimbo (her boyfriend is given the stereotypical treatment as the jealous, loud, arrogant douchebag), instead she's a kind-hearted girl who genuinely appreciates RJ, perhaps even more than Lily, who's constantly lusting after RJ, despite him spurning her advances. Structually, the show has self-contained episodes (usually involving Miles trying to get both himself and RJ laid) leading up to the season climax – the Pinkerton Winter Formal.
Though it would be easy to write off 'Hard Times' as a stereotypical high school comedy, look past the initial set-up and its an enjoyable show which moves past its gimmicky hook into something substantial.
score 8/10
Donatien3 12 January 2013
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw2735870/ |
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26-11-2020 22:48:08