For a couple months in 1995 my friends and I would religiously sit down to watch one show that made a huge influence in our lives. My So Called Life was only on for one season and has already been cancelled by the time it came to England, but we'd heard so much about it from the imported Seventeen magazines we'd pour over in the High School Library that we felt it was essential for us to watch it. It seems to have been the defining show of that era for teenagers and pre-teens (I was only 11 when it was on), as it seems to come up in conversation pretty regularly. Since we were so young Angela's life seemed so exciting, especially since she made out with Jordan Cantalano. The clothes were also a major point of interest- the styles worn by Angela and her friends were reflected in Seventeen but were completely alien to the teen magazines we bought- Just Seventeen (back when it was still a weekly), Sugar and Bliss. Her grungy look can be seen on almost every hipster at the moment, and I can't help but think it is partly in homage to our first girl crush (or at least the girl who got our first guy crush).
Earlier today I started re-watching the first couple episodes, and they are still as insightful as I remember- listening to her narration really at seems to be like re-entering my 14-year-old mind. All of these reminisces were started when one of my best friends, Milena Selkirk, sent me a video she put together. Milena is one of the most talented musicians I know (her music can be found here and here), and she's now starting to play around with video. This is a mash-up between My So Called Life and Twilight, a phenomenon that might just be one of defining parts of being a teenager now (though sadly much more dumbed down, in my opinion). It's a fun video and they work perfectly together.