5 out of 5

Director: Apatow and gang

A truly brilliant blend of humor and pathos, I did not want to like Freaks & Geeks, because I’m not really into the legion of Judd Apatow projects. But, with this show… I get it. I get the appeal. This is truly affecting stuff, following around, mainly, the Weir siblings – Lindsay, a good kid who ends up falling in with “the freaks” (depending on your era, these were the burnouts, or the bad kids) – and Sam, a good kid who has stayed fallen in with “the geeks.” While the series sort of starts out unevenly, trying to find the perfect blend of comedy and non-comedy, about six episodes in you really start to feel it, mostly because the writers keep everything honest: this stuff is skewed toward being funny, but it all really happens. All of these personality types exist, and even minor characters are allowed to be fleshed out so that they’re not just filler. This patience pays off with some really powerful episodes toward the end. The series has some elements for anyone, and for many age ranges.