Teen dramas are the backbone of culture. They’re messy, they’re chaotic, and they teach us that no problem is too big to be solved by a very dramatic voiceover or a mid-season love triangle.
Some are iconic, some are unhinged, and some make you question whether the writers have ever met an actual teenager. Here’s a definitive, slightly savage ranking.
6. Riverdale
Credit: Netflix
What started as a moody murder mystery about a small-town teen spiraled into seven seasons of cults, time travel, and people actually saying things like: “I’m weird. I’m a weirdo.” By the end, it was less a teen drama and more a fever dream you’d have after eating a questionable brownie. But god, it was entertaining.
5. Ginny and Georgia
Credit: Netflix
Basically Gilmore Girls if Rory was permanently stressed and Lorelai might kill you. It’s chaotic, camp, and half the time you’re watching just to see what morally-questionable scheme Georgia’s pulling this week. Bonus points for the random TikTok dances Ginny does mid-breakdown.
4. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
Credit: Netflix
Not technically a “drama” but Netflix turned it into a teen phenomenon, so we’re rolling with it. Lara Jean and Peter Kavinsky had everyone in a chokehold circa 2018, and we all learned the life-changing fact that writing love letters you never send is apparently normal behaviour. Cute, wholesome, but not exactly life-ruining TV.
3. The Summer I Turned Pretty
Credit: Amazon Prime
This show single-handedly revived the Team Conrad vs Team Jeremiah discourse we didn’t know we needed. Belly spends 80% of her summer crying on a beach, 20% choosing between two brothers, and somehow it still has you hooked. Also responsible for Taylor Swift’s Spotify streams skyrocketing.
2. Heartstopper
Credit: Netflix
Soft, wholesome, rainbow-coloured serotonin. While every other teen drama is throwing in drugs, murder, or some sort of twisted parental subplot, Heartstopper just says: what if queer teenagers got to be happy? It’s sweet, it’s funny, and it makes you want to send your Year 10 self a hug.
1. Euphoria
Credit: HBO
The exact opposite of Heartstopper, Euphoria is, simply, the best teen drama of the century. Zendaya acts her face off, everyone’s eyeliner could cut glass, and nobody seems to go to a single class despite it allegedly being about school. A perfect storm of trauma, glitter, and HBO chaos. Probably not an accurate reflection of teen life, but definitely an accurate reflection of Sam Levinson’s brain.
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Featured image credit: Netflix, HBO, Amazon Prime
