REVIEW: On My Block, Season 1 (2018)
Ambitious and endearing, if a little clumsily executed at times, On My Block provides a welcome relief from the typically stylised dramas that dominate the Netflix teen category.
The series revolves around a group of freshmen navigating life in the fictional Los Angeles neighbourhood of Freeridge and takes genre-mixing to a whole new level. It employs comedy to explore a variety of challenges—from run-of-the-mill high school crushes to the very real threat of gang violence—yet avoids melodramatising these issues, a cliché that often afflicts similar releases.
The main cast includes Monse (Sierra Capri), a no-nonsense tomboy with aspirations to become a successful author; Ruby (Jason Genao), a silver-tongued mathematical genius who struggles to find breathing room within his vibrant family; an unapologetically dorky Jamal (Brett Gray), who provides much of the series' comic relief; and Cesar (Diego Tinoco), the younger brother of the local gang leader who struggles to come to terms with his recent initiation throughout the season.
The show mostly successfully balances the eccentric with the dramatic and contains several significant plotlines which intertwine throughout the first season, each of which initially feels like it belongs to a completely different show.
The first of these plotlines follows the secret romance between Monse and Cesar, which eventually blends into a love quadrangle when Ruby's family take in Olivia (Ronni Hawk) following the deportation of her parents. Then Jamal gets caught up in a Goonies-style hunt for the mythical spoils of a 'RollerWorld' heist, all while trying to stop his parents from discovering that he quit the school football team. This leads to Monse's search for her mother who abandoned her as a child. And finally, there's Cesar, whose storyline blends these threads together and introduces a grimmer feel to this world, one where death and violence are genuine threats at all times.
On My Block is the creation of Lauren Iungerich (MTV's Awkward), Eddie Gonzalez, and Jeremy Haft (All Eyez On Me). The differences in their styles show throughout the first season, and despite the many gripping twists and turns, it would benefit from more emotional consistency. However, the significance of having a predominately Black, Hispanic, and Latino cast cannot go unmentioned. The series succeeds in presenting the intersectional realities of diversity in the United States, covering issues such as poverty, racism, and violence. It also offers an 'insider's' view of the trope of a 'bad' neighbourhood, involving characters who would usually be pushed aside in favour of those more palatable to a middle-class demographic.
The characters themselves are engaging and well-rounded, with strong personalities that are not defined by environmental obstacles, but rather by their own interests. Additionally, the scenes that depict the group of friends interacting like typical teenagers in their social environment—just hanging out or discussing their college plans, for example— outnumber those that involve petty crime or gang activities. This feature is particularly refreshing in portraying the nuanced realities of racial and cultural diversity in the US, without succumbing to clichéd 'ethnic minority' tropes that are so embedded in popular media.
The first season of On My Block contains only ten fast-paced, half-hour episodes. These range from the fantastical to the gritty and are complemented by a fantastic soundtrack, culminating in an eyebrow-raising finale which guarantees that viewers are gripped for the second season. Yes, sometimes the acting and plot are hit-or-miss. However, it fits well with Netflix's recent generational focus, and I, for one, will be looking forward to season two, eager to see where the story goes.
Star Rating: 4/5 stars
Summary: a fun but thought-provoking series with a promising young cast.
Article tags: | intersectionality | diversity |
Image Source: On My Block/Netflix
Image Source: On My Block/Netflix; NME
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