Talk about a show that is filled with lies, drama, high school problems and relationship issues. I’ve dealt with shows that have a lot of drama, but it was nothing compared to Ginny and Georgia.
Ginny and Georgia follows Georgia, the young mom of teenager Ginny and son Austin, as they start a new chapter in their lives by moving from Texas to Wellsburry, Massachusetts. With the move comes new people, new friends and new secrets. This season explores the adventures of both Ginny and Georgia as Ginny starts school and Georgia searches for a job to provide for her family.
Ginny and Georgia have the typical mother-daughter relationship. There are frequent arguments, moments of embarrassment for the teenage girl and lots and lots of secrets. Ginny wasn’t always the rebellious teen that she becomes throughout the season. In episode one, we see that she hasn’t done anything that makes her a regular teen. She hasn’t had a boyfriend or a first kiss. She is the most perfect child and student that a parent could ask for. This all changes when she moves to Massachusetts and starts her new high school. She meets some people that she bonds with and encounters some potential love interests. A messy love triangle forms that makes things complicated as the season moves forward. Georgia is a single mother raising two children. She might be young to be a mom, but she makes sure that her kids have anything and everything, even when it’s difficult.
Race is a prominent theme that goes on in the season. This is first introduced when Ginny starts her new school and her AP English teacher believes she can’t handle the workload. The teacher has it out for from the beginning and it is implied that his motives may be based on race. Ginny tells him off and says that she can do the work, and that her race is not a factor. The show highlights the struggles of being Black and/or mixed. It’s an identity crisis of who a person is when they are mixed. White or Black? This is also shown later in episode five when Ginny and her new friends want to match and they decide to wear ponytails. All the girls have long and straight hair, but Ginny wears her hair naturally curly; typically, curly hair is hard to put in a ponytail. The woman that starts doing Ginny’s hair struggles and Ginny’s hair gets ruined. It shows how much Ginny wanted to fit in, but her hair doesn’t let her do it. This portrays how Black women might feel pressure to change what they wear and do to feel welcome or fit in. Also, the show portrays the most healthy lesbian relationship I have seen in a while. One of Ginny’s friends, Max, gets into a lesbian relationship and she is happy. In TV shows and movies, lesbian relationships are often kept secret or characters are struggling with their own individual issues on top of those in the relationship. It’s nice to see a change in that and observe a happy and healthy same-sex relationship on screen. The show also does a good job at approaching the subject of self-harm by giving a real, accurate portrayal.
There is a lot to unpack about this season. The first season of Ginny and Georgia consists of ten episodes that are about an hour long. I do not recommend anyone binging this show in one night. This is a good show to stretch over a long weekend or a random week in summer break.
Overall, I think the season and show are good. The plot is very suspenseful and keeps you on the edge of your seat about what’s going to happen next. It was nice to see that even though most relationships come with a lot of baggage, these relationships between characters are so happy and healthy.
Imani Turner-Wells is a second year Cinema and Photography major. They can be reached at [email protected].
Art by Art Editor Adam Dee.