Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick have a new show called "Quarterlife" and the material is right in-between thirtysomething and My So-Called Life. It's about a group of twenty-somethings trying to figure out what's next -- exactly the type of premise I like. With Herskovitz and Zwick behind the project, I'm very willing to sift through every episode and while it's not amazing so far, it's also not bad. The interesting thing about the show is that it's being released online through MySpace in 36 eight-minute episodes (they're currently up to thirteen).
The general manager of MySpace TV said that this is the "single best-produced piece of serialized content for the Internet, ever" because of its production budget and the creative team behind the project. Of course, the show was picked up by NBC and will hit regular television soon and it'll be interesting to see how well it does. Either way, if this thing is a hit, it can't be cancelled after one season; there'll always be MySpace!
In the show, the main character, Dylan Kreiger, blogs about her life and runs afoul of her friends by revealing too much. Heck, that's something I want to do! I'd love to write a dishy blog about everyone I know. But that seems like a poor life decision since I'd soon be hailed as a pariah and outcast from any social groups that I claim membership. But I'd have millions of fans to compensate right?
An awesome thing about the show so far: the end credits have the little ditty so familiar to any fan of MSCL. "And dance by the light of the moon..."
Wondering if you qualify for a quarter-life crisis? Here's some common characteristics, as gleaned from Wikipedia. You "win" if you score more than ten.
- feeling "not good enough" because one can't find a job that is at one's academic/intellectual level
- frustration with relationships, the working world, and finding a suitable job or career
- confusion of identity
- insecurity regarding the near future
- insecurity regarding present accomplishments
- re-evaluation of close interpersonal relationships
- disappointment with one's job
- nostalgia for university, college, high school or elementary school life
- tendency to hold stronger opinions
- boredom with social interactions
- financially-rooted stress
- loneliness
- desire to have children
- a sense that everyone is, somehow, doing better than you
