• About AwardsDaily
  • Sasha Stone
  • Advertising on Awards Daily
Awards Daily
  • 2026 Oscar Predictions
  • 2025/2026 Awards Calendar
  • EmmyWatch
  • Buzzmeter
  • NextGen Oscarwatcher
No Result
View All Result
  • 2026 Oscar Predictions
  • 2025/2026 Awards Calendar
  • EmmyWatch
  • Buzzmeter
  • NextGen Oscarwatcher
No Result
View All Result
Awards Daily
No Result
View All Result

Hulu’s ‘Pen15’ is a Thoughtful Throwback Comedy That Never Bullies Its Premise

Megan McLachlan by Megan McLachlan
January 25, 2019
in ADTV, ADTV Feature, ADTV Main, Recaps/Reviews
0
pen15 hulu

Photo by: Alex Lombardi/Hulu

Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle play teenage ICQ-ties in this sweet Hulu comedy series that’s as funny as it is truthful.

In Hulu’s Pen15, two real-life 30-something actresses (Casual’s Maya Erskine, Rosewood’s Anna Konkle) play 7th graders, Maya and Anna, going through some of the real-life turmoil they had experienced during their young adulthood in 2000.

Is this the most interesting art therapy ever? Imagine getting to redo some of your high school experiences as adults (it’s something that everyone fantasizes about at some point, right?). And what makes this television series a compelling exercise is that it never leans in too hard on the idea that two adult actresses/show creators are acting opposite prepubescents, ones they’re often supposed to have crushes on (although there is a laugh-out-loud scene between Konkle and her 13-year-old boyfriend that capitalizes on the absurd premise at just the right time). Despite the age difference, it’s not hard to view these characters as just older-looking 7th graders (it helps that the actresses appear youthful already, especially the petite-sized Erskine).

The 10-episode season is like a time capsule from the most recent turn-of-the-century, with homages to AIM and the most scandalous movie of the time period—Wild Things. This generation of teenagers probably won’t understand the pitch-perfect cultural significance of KC and JoJo’s “All My Life” playing during an important scene at a school dance, but the show touches on all of the same beats that young people go through today, including bullying, intolerance, unrequited love, and sloppy first kisses, meaning it should resonate with Generation Z the way Freaks and Geeks resonated with Millennials (before they knew they were Millennials).

Erskine, a scene-stealer most recently seen as Alex’s baby-mamma Rae on Hulu’s Casual, finally gets to be front-and-center in a series, and it’s way overdue. Both she and Konkle really do some heartfelt dramatic work toward the end of the season, with Maya dealing with jealousy and Anna her parents’ roller-coaster marriage. What’s most compelling about the tension in Episode 9 “Anna Ishi-Peters” is that some of it is teenage melodrama that will be completely forgotten about in 10 years, which is why it plays out so honestly on screen.

Pen15’s gimmick works two-fold, like a double-sided note passed in class. On one side, you have adult actors playing teenage characters going through relatable issues; on the other side is the message that what you live through as a kid leaves an unforgettable impression that will stick with you even as an adult.

Pen15 streams on Hulu Friday, February 8. 

 

Tags: anna konkleHulumaya erskinepen15
Previous Post

The State of the Race — The Oscars in the Time of Trump

Next Post

Clarence Avant To Be Honored at this year’s Pre-GRAMMY Gala

Next Post

Clarence Avant To Be Honored at this year’s Pre-GRAMMY Gala

2025 Emmy Nominations Announced
EMMYS

2025 Emmy Nominations Announced

by Sasha Stone
July 15, 2025
12

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Javier Bardem, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story”...

Nextgen Oscarwatcher: Temperature Check on Best Actor and Best Actress

Nextgen Oscarwatcher: Temperature Check on Best Actor and Best Actress

July 15, 2025
Why Superman Can’t Be “Just a Movie”

Why Superman Can’t Be “Just a Movie”

July 14, 2025
2026 Oscar Predictions: Always Be Closing

2026 Oscar Predictions: Always Be Closing

July 12, 2025
The Buzzmeter: How to Tell Good Stories and Why Hollywood Can’t Anymore

The Buzzmeter: How to Tell Good Stories and Why Hollywood Can’t Anymore

July 11, 2025
Nextgen Oscarwatcher: Temperature check on Best Picture and Best Director Pre-Festivals

Nextgen Oscarwatcher: Temperature check on Best Picture and Best Director Pre-Festivals

July 7, 2025
Doc Feature Watch: Mariska Hargitay’s My Mom Jayne a Frontrunner

Doc Feature Watch: Mariska Hargitay’s My Mom Jayne a Frontrunner

July 6, 2025
2026 Oscar Predictions – The Case for F1: The Movie

2026 Oscar Predictions – The Case for F1: The Movie

July 5, 2025
Superman and the Films Coming in July

Superman and the Films Coming in July

July 2, 2025
The Buzzmeter: Hollywood’s Elitism Has Cost Them Dearly

The Buzzmeter: Hollywood’s Elitism Has Cost Them Dearly

July 1, 2025

Oscar News

The Buzzmeter: Can Brad Pitt’s and F1 Invite the Public Back to the Oscars?

The Buzzmeter: Can Brad Pitt’s and F1 Invite the Public Back to the Oscars?

June 16, 2025

2026 Oscars: Neon Nails it Again with Sentimental Value at Cannes

2026 Oscars: New Rules Set for 9th Academy Awards

2026 Oscar Predictions: How the Oscar Game Destroys Movies

Best Picture Watch: Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another Teaser

EmmyWatch

The Gotham TV Winners Set the Consensus to Come

The Gotham TV Winners Set the Consensus to Come

June 3, 2025

Gothams Announces Television Nominees

White Lotus Finale – A Deeply Profound Message for a Weary World

EmmyWatch: Apple-TV’s The Studio Could Have Been Great, But They Played it Safe

  • About AwardsDaily
  • Sasha Stone
  • Advertising on Awards Daily

© 2025 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

No Result
View All Result
  • About AwardsDaily
  • Sasha Stone
  • Advertising on Awards Daily

© 2025 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.