Undeclared is the thematic follow up to Judd Apatow’s Freaks & Geeks, following a group of college students. The format is different, this series is a 20 min/episode comedy, so there’s a little less time to dedicate to characterization.
There are a lot of laughs to be had, and each character is well defined. The tone in general is very light and fun, but in the end I still got attached to the characters.
There’s an arc to Steven and Lizzie’s relationship, which is probably the main plot of the season. We start with Steven and Lizzie sleeping together on their first day in college. Then by the end Lizzie’s boyfriend Eric finds out and Steven and Lizzie end up together.
Apart from that, there aren’t well defined arcs for the other characters. Ron, Lloyd, Marshal and Rachel are pretty much the same through the season. The character of Hal has more going on in his life, going through a divorce. However he still deals with it with jokes and laughs, so it doesn’t drag down the fun tone of the series.
Because of the diminished focus on characters, I was as into this series as F&G, but I still enjoyed it a lot, thanks to the great humor and down to earth characters. The ending also wasn’t as satisfying, leaving some relationships open ended. This 17 episodes season does feel like a cancelled show, unlike F&G.
Rating: 3.5 Stars