I have to admit; I have a weakness for high school drama, whether it is a movie or TV show. Cheesy as they may be, there's a certain nostalgic quality that keeps me coming back. When Dawson’s Creek premiered, I actually thought it would be a quality show (and it was in intermittent spots.) While it didn't completely achieve that, it still remained a very addictive show that kept me glued to the TV set for the next six years.

Dawson’s Creek focused on the lives of four teenagers living in the small northeastern coastal town of Capeside. 15-year-old Dawson Leery (James Van Der Beek) was a film buff who had posters of Steven Spielberg movies all over his bedroom walls. He had two lifelong friends, the tomboyish Joey Potter (Katie Holmes), and town prankster Pacey Witter (Joshua Jackson). Two things would happen that completely changed their relationships: puberty and Jen Lindley (Michelle Williams). Dawson and Joey had slept in the same bed together almost every night, but recent changes made things very uncomfortable. It was even more awkward when Dawson immediately took a liking to Jen, who was the new girl in town with a mysterious past.

The first season followed Dawson as he pursued a nervous Jen, while Joey began to develop her own feelings for Dawson, not that she'd ever admit it. This triangle got old pretty fast. It was clear that Dawson and Jen did not have much chemistry together, and later seasons of the show smartly dropped this relationship. The only interest this story brought were the rare scenes between Joey and Jen, who were far more interesting than Dawson himself.

On her own, Joey quickly became the most sympathetic and entertaining character, almost completely due to the captivating screen presence that Katie Holmes brought to the show. It was easy to feel for her as she cringed each time Dawson turned his affections to Jen, even if I could never understand what she saw in Dawson in the first place. Joey had a rough home life. Her mother passed away when she was younger, and her father was now in jail. Because of this, Joey had very low self-esteem, making it even harder for her to express her feelings to Dawson.

When not making wisecracks, Pacey pursued an older woman who turned out to be his high school teacher. In most shows, this would have been treated as a cutesy joke or as a very special episode warning you about the dangers of predators. What Dawson’s Creek did was astonishing: Pacey and his teacher not only became infatuated with each other, but they slept together constantly. And the show never shied away from its wholesale endorsement of the relationship. Pacey had always felt like the town loser and this allowed him to escape from that, even giving him some confidence against his insulting older brother Doug. Questionable moral conclusions aside, the show's willingness to go this far was at the very least an eye opener.

The show was created by Kevin Williamson, who at the time was riding the wave of success from Scream and Scream 2. He was probably the most notable screenwriter in Hollywood, even getting rare marquee billing for the movies that were developed from his screenplays. He was perhaps a little too confident, though. Dawson’s Creek was an overwritten show with hilariously misplaced use of larger words. The writing was on the level of a high school student who just bought a brand new thesaurus and decided to try and impress his teacher. Williamson tried to make the show appear edgy with frank discussion of sexual activity, but the ridiculous vocabulary usage by the characters made such discussions unintentionally funny.

One of the biggest problems Dawson’s Creek faced throughout its run was the central performance of James Van Der Beek. He was by far the weakest actor of the four main cast members, and was constantly overshadowed by Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson. To be fair, he wasn't helped by writing that made Dawson an extremely unsympathetic character. Dawson had a much better home life than the other characters, but constantly whined and complained more than anyone else. Still, he was completely unable to sell any of the most dramatic moments. A key scene in the season finale where he visits Joey's father is disastrously bad. All of this created a gaping hole at the center of the show that hampered Dawson’s Creek for most of its 6 year run.

Dawson’s Creek had a very mixed first season, but there were some standout episodes during the year that are worth talking about. In "Hurricane", a hurricane was approaching Capeside and all of the characters had to take shelter, creating some uncomfortable situations. This episode was directed by film veteran Steve Miner, and featured stunning cinematography and a strong sense of foreboding danger. In "Detention", the show paid tribute to 80s teen classic The Breakfast Club as each of the main characters were stuck in detention on the same day, leading to amusing escapades and the reveal of some emotional secrets. The season finale "Breaking Away" showcased Joey’s emotional confrontation with her father, leading her to consider finally revealing her feelings to Dawson. This episode featured the best use of Michelle Williams (who in later seasons would prove to be the show's most complete performer), as atheist Jen dealt with questions of faith after her grandfather died.

Despite these few strong episodes, Dawson’s Creek didn't turn out to be the great teen show that Kevin Williamson wanted. It never reached the literate heights of My So-Called Life and never matched the thrilling trashy fun of Beverly Hills, 90210. It also contained a main character that you wanted to throttle just about every time he appeared on screen. But however bad it got, there was still an extremely addictive quality that made the next week's episode a must see, and that is one of the most important things for a teen show to accomplish.

The DVD set features all 13 season one episodes, plus two audio commentaries from Kevin Williamson and producer Paul Stupin. There is also a retrospective featurette, and a season one time capsule.

Reviews of other seasons:

Dawson's Creek - Second Season
Dawson's Creek - Third Season
Dawson's Creek - Fourth Season
Dawson's Creek - Fifth Season
Dawson's Creek - Sixth Season

Recommended:
No

Viewing Format: DVD