Every once in a while,enemas eroticism blogs tumbler social media is swarmed by people participating in 10 year challenges, where people dig up photos of themselves from a decade ago and juxtapose them with a more recent picture. These challenges are meant to show how much time has changed someone, but to be real — they're really just a flex on how much hotter people are now than when they were teenagers.
10 year challenges often start conversations about how wild fashion was back then, why anyone thought a then-trendy haircut looked good, or how everyone has puberty to thank for erasing the humiliating forms of their younger selves. The "after" picture exists as a thank you, or perhaps a thank god, that the acne and bad jeans of the past don't exist anymore.
SEE ALSO: Everything coming to Hulu in February 2019PEN15on Hulu is the opposite of a 10 year challenge. Through its setting in the year 2000, it forces grown people to confront what those younger years were like and flashes back to a time when just wearing a bra or seeing a boob felt like the epitome of adulthood.
It is, like many too-real flashbacks, excruciating to watch at times. The slang and aesthetic of its era is grating, as are the reminders of how petty and irritating life as a middle schooler can be. But in between the moments of cringe is the quiet truth that everyone was young and dumb once, and getting older and smarter doesn't make the emotions of youth any less valid.
PEN15stars Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle as Maya and Anna, their own teenage selves. Both actors are in there 30s, but use the not-quite-magic of clothes and hairstyling to portray their 13-year-old alter egos, who are as crushingly awkward as they are endearing.
PEN15 packs a lot of funny into the idea that being a teen and having feelings is fine and important.
The awkwardness is compounded by casting age-appropriate actors to play every other character in their age range, so Konkle and Erskine play most of their scenes next to real pre-teens. Since Maya and Anna are definitely not cool kids, this setup often leads to the only adults in the room being bullied and belittled by actual children, which somehow makes every insult land harder.
Maya and Anna go through a lot over the course of the season, but their outsized reactions to thongs, makeout parties, awful crushes, and petty betrayals never feel false or stale. PEN15is transportive, bringing viewers back to a time when whether a 12-year-old with a butt-looking haircut liked you or like-liked you felt like the most important unknown in the world. It's easy to empathize with its stars because literally everyone has been there, even if most people would like to forget.
The fact that PEN15 focuses on the deep friendship between two young girls is another element in its favor. It's heartwarming to see how obsessed Maya and Anna are with each other, and the tenderness of girls in perfect BFF love is something that doesn't often get respect in TV shows about young people.
No one looks back on middle school thinking that they made amazing choices, but PEN15packs a lot of funny into the idea that being a teen and having feelings is fine and important. Sure, 10 years later the selfies look better, but shows like this remind us that the "before" picture was a person too. And probably a pretty awesome one.
Topics Hulu
Roborock Saros Z70 at CES 2025: A huge flex
Facebook is within reach of 2 billion users
Start your engines for this possible RuPaul's Drag Race
Rejoice! Hillary Clinton is writing a book of personal essays
Amazon CEO tries to sell kids on working on the moon
This cake is getting married and you can't even get a date
The Price is Wrong: This is What GPUs Should Have Cost
This cake is getting married and you can't even get a date
Preorder the new Anker Soundcore Sleep A30 earbuds with ANC for $159
Beyoncé graciously shares even more photos from her pregnancy shoot
The Ideal Smartphone for 2017
The Price is Wrong: This is What GPUs Should Have Cost
Donald Trump is being a total 'mean girl' to world leaders right now
Everyone stop everything: Beyoncé just announced that she's pregnant with twins
CES 2025: Everything to expect
7 February games you should get excited about
Exxon's former CEO is now our secretary of state. So, there's that.
This MP made a 'Trainspotting'
ChatGPT has gone down the day after Christmas
Everyone stop everything: Beyoncé just announced that she's pregnant with twins
#EveryoneWelcome campaign challenges you to stand in solidarity with trans peopleTrump's absurd statement on health care gets trolled because how could it not?Weapons and ammo in 'Horizon: Zero Dawn' are confusing, so here's a guideWhy the internet was so screwed up todayGloria Steinem refuses to talk sh*t about Emma Watson, obviouslyGloria Steinem refuses to talk sh*t about Emma Watson, obviouslyTrump's absurd statement on health care gets trolled because how could it not?Facebook ready to ramp up flights of its solarThis openly gay football player is about to make historyAlec Baldwin is coCNN will bring journalism students to the White House Correspondents' DinnerTwitter Eggs and trolls are now finally getting the banhammer they deserveCinema just can't resist pranking its audience after that Oscars mixMarvel's 'Inhumans' series has found its star in Anson MountFoursquare offers every mobile app access to your whereaboutsIn an ironic twist, a 1991 Shell ad contains a warning about climate changeWorld Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva has a 'Slumdog Millionaire' moment in IndiaThis openly gay football player is about to make historyChicago breaks surprising 146Adele invites drag impersonator on stage to belt tunes and take selfies How to be a persuasive leader (hint: it's about the 'moment before') We finally have a tracklist and release date for Harry Styles' debut album We could learn a lot about 'The Last Jedi' and new Han Solo movie this weekend This guy built his own iPhone by buying parts in China 'Beauty and the Beast' just put the big $B in box office Microwave what?! Research suggests we've been drinking tea all wrong Elon Musk just confirmed that a 'next level' Tesla Semi truck is coming soon Here's why your shoelaces annoyingly come undone See the emotional Carrie Fisher tribute from Star Wars Celebration Huawei's CEO trashed smartwatches even though his company makes them Ed Sheeran walked into an Irish pub and things escalated quickly Apple could soon make selfies way more noisy This 'Game of Thrones' fan theory is peak Lannister While the United fiasco unfolded, a travel writer made $11,000 off overbooked flights NASA finds key ingredients for life pouring out of Saturn's icy moon Enceladus New luxury internet cafes in China are ensuring gamers won't ever want to leave Rampaging pig runs from police officer in hilarious dash cam footage The world looks stunning in new photographs released by NASA IndyCar champ Tony Kanaan has special wearable tech to win races I just (virtually) adopted a piece of Earth, and so can you
1.7842s , 10196.84375 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【enemas eroticism blogs tumbler】,Prosperous Times Information Network