Teenage culture can be depressing, dark and senseless, whether we’re talking about hopeful movements falling apart for no reason, game show winners being bullied, or bleak adolescent TV dramas.
Should you watch ‘Euphoria’ or ‘Yellowjackets?’
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There are two ways Hollywood tells stories about teenagers. There are the ones looking-back on the vagaries of youth through an affectionally ironic lens, like Freaks and Geeks, and the ones that take the overblown emotions of adolescences seriously, like Dawson’s Creek.
Yellowjackets is Freaks and Geeks, but with cannibalism. Euphoria is Dawson’s Creek, but with nudity and drugs. Both are really well-written, compelling, and beautifully shot shows. If you’re the kind of person who thinks “Oh, the first day of school is hard? Try paying a mortgage.” Watch Yellowjackets. If you want a picture of just-before-the-apocalypse teenager-ness in America, and you can stomach stories that imagine kids today invented sex, drugs, and angst, you’ll like Euphoria.
Reddit’s antiwork board melts down
Back in November, I wrote about the burgeoning “antiwork” board on Reddit, and the idealistic young people powering a movement dedicated to better wages and conditions for workers. The subreddit grew to over 1.7 million members, but this week it completely imploded. One of moderators decided to appear on Fox News to be interviewed by Jesse Watters, and to say it was a train wreck is an insult to both trains and wrecks. I don’t want to heap further disapprobation on the poor moderator who must be having a very bad week, so I’ll just link to the video and let you judge.
The backlash from the subreddit’s members was fierce, and many users were banned for criticizing the moderator. The sub was set to private, reopened with a suspicious “new” moderator who was then un-modded, and people left in droves. What’s left are a million posts about the situation and many moderator attempts to apologize and “restructure.” It’s all very sad. Sorry, workers.
Turds target teen ‘Jeopardy’ winners
Sometimes the internet serves to amplify the very worst instincts of teenagers. Case-in-point: Jeopardy Teen Tournament contestant Claire Sattler (@clairesat) recently posted a video on TIkTok where she reports her victory on the game show resulted in legions of online dorks harassing her, stalking her, suggesting she slept with Alex Trebek for answers, and otherwise being insufferable. Other young Jeopardy contestants commented that they were targeted too. “I was on Kids’ Jeopardy! and they really tried to sexualize me and diagnose me at age 11,” contestant Aria Gerson (@not_like_stark) said. Read all about it on Dailydot, if you have the stomach for it.
Tiny TikToklets to enjoy
The kid-internet isn’t all cyberbullying and public meltdowns. On the positive side of the ledger, TikTok is great for letting people with obscure interests and tastes find likeminded folks. Here are three communities that could become your life (if you’re into these sorts of things.)
- Cleantok: If you like watching things be cleaned up, washed, and otherwise put in order, check out #cleantok. You’ll find videos of all kinds of weird cleaning jobs like bees being removed from a washing machines, satisfying clips of smudged electronic screens wiped clean, and somber clips of headstones being washed. It’s very relaxing.
- Eggpeelchallenge: Look, I’m not going to waste my time trying to peel the shell off a raw egg without breaking the sack inside it, but I applaud other people who at least have a hobby. Check out these eggpeel challenge videos then give it a shot yourself; shit’s hard.
- Plogging: Plogging combines fitness and cleaning up after society’s slobs in a delightful way. The idea is that you go jogging and stop to pick up trash along the way, turning your workout unselfish while adding a variety to an often drudgerous pastime.
- Moon Phases: The Moon is trending on TikTok, with users figuring out what phase it was in when they were born and imagining that means something about who they are. Kids, am I right?
Viral video of the week: DABABY X NBA YOUNGBOY – HIT [Official Video]
I really like DaBaby, and everyone on YouTube seems to as well. His new video for the song “Hit” with NBA Youngboy has been viewed over two million times in a couple days, and was created under difficult conditions: Youngboy is under house arrest, but that didn’t stop him from contributing his part to this compelling video. I like the way the Nerf guns subvert the idea of gangster rap (at least, I think they’re Nerf guns) and poke fun at DaBaby’s recent gun charge, andI like that everyone seems to be having such a good time. But don’t take my word for it. Check out a some reaction videos to see what committed fans think.