Teen drama

A teen drama is a genre or type of drama series with a major focus on teenage characters. It came into prominence in the early 1990s, especially with the popularity of the Fox series Beverly Hills, 90210. After 90210 became a success, television writers and producers realized the potential for this new genre to reach out to a previously ignored demographic. In the past, most series that maintained a focus on teenagers had been sitcoms, while adolescents in drama series were usually part of a larger ensemble that included adults and children.

More often than not, teen dramas have soap opera elements, incorporating one or more ongoing story arcs spanning several episodes. The young characters must deal with the dramatic ups and downs of their friendships and romances while facing an array of issues thought to be typical of adolescence. There have also been many successful teen-based series with major science fiction, fantasy and action/adventure themes.

The most popular teen dramas are set in affluent locales (such as Beverly Hills, 90210, set in the Beverly Hills suburb of Los Angeles; The O.C., which was set in Newport Beach, California; and Gossip Girl, which was set in the Upper East Side of New York City), or in fictional small town settings (such as One Tree Hill, which was set in the North Carolina town of Tree Hill; Dawson's Creek, which was set in Capeside, Massachusetts; and Gilmore Girls, which was set in Stars Hollow, Connecticut). Most teen dramas have a cast of attractive, Caucasian, upper-middle class characters. Shows that depict teenage life in a more realistic manner tend not to do as well – such examples include My So-Called Life and Freaks and Geeks, which were critically acclaimed, but suffered from low ratings and were subsequently cancelled. Though the genre originated in the United States, teen dramas have also become popular in other countries such as Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and Ireland.

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