Faking It: Season 1/ Episode 1 “Pilot” [Series Premiere] – Overview/ Review (with Spoilers)

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Overview

In a school where you have to stand out to fit in, two girls decide the best way to stand out is to be lesbians.

Review (with Spoilers)

As MTV continues to try to harness the sometimes raunchy, and often unfiltered, personas of their reality TV stars into scripted series, thus comes Faking It. A show set in Austin, Texas where apparently the liberals rules, conservatives are seen as backwards, and we once again have very few people of color who are visible, and with speaking parts. But with this being MTV, you can’t expect miracles right?

Topic 1: Meet the Girls – Amy & Karma

Amy (Rita Volk) and Karma (Katie Stevens) have been best friends since at least elementary school and they have the type of bond in which Karma considers their friendship to be like Amy Phoeler and Tina Fey; Lucy and Ethel, and a slew of other famous best friends. However, having each other seemingly is starting to not be enough for Karma. She wants popularity, almost by any means necessary. So, upon being mistaken by Shane (Michael Willett) as being in a lesbian relationship with Amy, it is decided that with all the attention Shane brings them, perhaps this should be their route to popularity!

Thing is, Amy is very content with being low-key and just spending Friday nights watching Netflix with her buddy, and really would like that to continue. But, being that she is truly a ride or die type of best friend to Karma, she goes along with this lesbian charade. Even though with a kiss to prove their relationship to the school, she seemingly realizes that pretending to be in a relationship with Karma maybe far harder than she thought.

Topic 2: The Co-Stars – Lauren, Liam, and Shane

Especially with her new sister Lauren (Bailey Buntain), who just moved in with her and her dad. You see, Lauren, unfortunately, is an overdone conservative stereotype who is anti-homosexuality, among other things, and sadly can only be seen as a joke. Don’t expect any interesting, or even an honest, depiction of young teen conservatives here. Her purpose, as of now, seems solely to be the show’s villain. Though considering how Sadie, on Awkward, sort of evolved over time, maybe there is hope?

But, Lauren aside, the really interesting characters are Liam (Gregg Sulkin), and especially Shane. Liam is Karma’s would-be love interest, and seemingly the Achilles Heel in her fake relationship with Amy. The attraction, in my opinion, comes from him being an old school, troubled artist type. Shane, on the other hand, is a slightly flamboyant gay guy. However, unlike Lauren, he seems like he isn’t written to solely fit a stereotype, but actually have layers to him. Not to say that he probably won’t have moments when you just feel the need to roll your eyes, but it seems already that he is going to have some type of emotional complexity which will aide Amy in her realization that she maybe bisexual or lesbian.

Either way, as Shane says at the end of the series preview, “I’m dying to see how this plays out.”