Teen Wolf

Teen Wolf

By Carlos Uribe

I'm a sucker for supernatural shows. I'm a big fan of the Vampire Diaries, and really enjoy Supernatural. So maybe it's because I am predisposed to like Teen Wolf, but I rather liked it. This doesn't mean the show doesn't have it's problems-it has it's share of problems-but I can also see that this show can either stay where it is, and be entertaining, to get worse, or to get to be must-watch television. MTV is really trusting that viewers will tune in to this show, but if it loses the teen interest then Teen Wolf may very well end before the wolf can grow up.

The characters were a bit more fleshed out than I thought. This doesn't mean though that the show doesn't fall back on cliches. For instance, there is the obvious popular girl and her jock of a boyfriend. The new girl is the love interest, but she's also becoming friends with the popular girl. The love interest's father happens to also be the werewolf hunter who is trying to kill Scott, the main character. His uncool, nerdy best friend Stiles is in love with the popular girl. Essentially a sterotypical high school kid gets turned into a werewolf at Cliché High School. This isn't to say there's no depth to the characters-as the clichés only form the base of the characters and from the very beginning it's obvious the characters will develop into their own.

The plot itself is kind of uneven. There were some rather creepy scenes, but there were other scenes that instead of being creepy came out to be campy. Being the dark serious show Teen Wolf is trying to be, it needs to perfect it's scare scenes. Likewise though it also needs to perfect character reactions. Stiles seems to be utterly supportive of Scott, to the point where you wonder why he isn't more freaked out by this. The show needs Scott to have a friend, but it would have been more interesting if Scott's only friend was the creepy Derek-the other werewolf. It would truly give a sense that Scott doesn't fit in now that he's a werewolf, even if he wanted to. But he is seen fitting in perfectly, albeit with urges to kill. The problem with that though is that we aren't getting the full magnitude-at least not yet-of the whole situation. The show also falls back on stereotypical situations when it can, and while it tries to avoid it, some scenes can end up feeling forced. While the actors and actresses are solid, for their roles, they'll probably get better as the series goes on.

In my opinion producers shouldn't force a romance, but rather look at who has romantic chemistry and build the romance on that. As it is, I don't feel that Scott has the romantic chemistry with his love interest Alison. While I could buy that he does like her, I'm not so sure she really likes him back (at least in the same way). But the show has it set to the exploit this idea that he wants a girlfriend but can't have her because it will change him. While that's perfectly fine, how long though can they keep this up? Either she knows he's a werewolf, or he constantly acts like a bad boyfriend. This will force her to either resent him or send them eternally to the friends zone. It's true that the show can take a different approach, but the chances of that happening are low. If the show wants to be great, it'll have to find a new look at this romance, and it's doubtful at the moment that they will be able to accomplish that.

The show will be entertaining, that is for sure. It does treat it's teen audience with some respect, but it will need to work on earning it's very existence. The whole story of a normal teenage getting bit by a wolf can be a very interesting series if it's done right. The show though felt like it was trying to be “Twilight” or the “Vampire Diaries” when it needs to simply be itself. If the writers are up for taking the show to new places, then it'll be a thrill ride. Otherwise it'll be a fun show that simply could have been better.

Some Lines I Liked:

“No, a body of water, yes dummy a dead body.”

“Right, 'cause sitting on the bench is such a grueling effort”

“I've been scarlett nerded by you”

“Scoring some shots will give the boys a confidence boost.” On why the Coach is temporarily making Scott a goalie

“Yeah I think it's called lycanthropy” Stiles joking that the “infection” Scott got is lycanthropy.

“I'm not going to end up on some reality show with a pregnant sixteen year old.”