I know I’m not the only one who gets a kick out of recognizing actors from one show when they pop up on a different series. (I’m not right?) Watching Bunheads this week, made me think about this mini-thrill, as actor after actor from Gilmore Girls showed up for an episode here and there.
Thinking more about it, it occurred to me that I particularly enjoy seeing crossovers that arise strictly within the teen drama genre. For one thing, it can be funny when an actor suddenly ages, as when Charisma Carpenter leaves the Buffy/Angel universe as teen/young adult Cordelia to resurface on Veronica Mars as Kendall, a gold-digging trophy wife.
Or, when they end up repeating high school all over again, like when Dave leaves Gilmore Girls togo to college and Adam Brody shows up as Seth on The O.C., a high school sophomore once again.
It can also be fun to superimpose characters, which, for instance, leaves me wondering how a gay high school student on Dawson’s Creek might turn into a sweet talking lady’s man who has sex with Buffy Summers her first year of college.
Or, why David Silver’s father form Beverly Hills 90210 moved across the country to teach Dawson Leery’s film class (as Mr. Gold, no less!!).
Or, what might have happened to turn a Deadhead hippie chick on Freaks and Geeks into a comic book loving school girl with a crush on Seth Cohen on The O.C.
Or, is it plausible that a dork in high school turned soft-hearted super villain on Buffy might grow up to be the editor of the Yale Daily News on Gilmore Girls? (If he hadn’t died, I should think so!)
In any case, spotting a familiar face in the teen drama universe can be fun, and while thinking about this phenomenon it occurred to me that no series seems to have sent their cast further or wider than the incredible, yet short lived, Freaks and Geeks. Some amazing and hilarious characters from all the shows I have mentioned above (and more) can be seen here first, which, along with kickstarting careers for Jason Segel, James Franco, Seth Rogan, etc, is a pretty phenomenal feat for a single 18 episode season of television.
