Whatever it takes, I know I can make it through this review. Welcome to Degrassi: Next Class, the latest reincarnation of your favorite Canadian show that never ends (you can thank the Family Channel and Netflix for that). So, why do we care this year? Zoe Rivas (Ana Golja) and Grace Cardinal (Nikki Gould). Assuming that you watched this summer’s Degrassi movie, Don’t Look Back, you know that Zoe and Grace got their lady kisses on and left things pretty open-ended. Well now that school is back in session, what did we get? A case of the sad baby gays and some major eye rolling. But we also got Zoe, whom I’m pretty sure the writers can’t take away from us too. And on that note, let’s dissect this bad boy.
Us gays stick together, so it’s no surprise that from the opening credits alone you can tell Zoe and Tristan are going to be tight all season long. So tight that he asks her to be his campaign manager in his run for school president, which he wins after his opponent (and ex) is disqualified. Friends in high places, Zoe!
As for Grace, she’s in a band with her friend Maya and the new kid, Jonah. I feel like I must point out that they play the kind of music that really should be hurting Grace’s soul, but what do they care? They’re chasing the dream, man! Anyway, apparently all this band stuff would explain why Grace has been too busy to return Zoe’s texts. At least, that’s what she tells Zoe when they bump into each other at a pool party. All the kids on this show are never not doing something on their phones, but okay. It’s totally fine, though, because they’re “still friends.” Zoe might have missed that line, too busy staring like a smitten kitten.
By the next episode, Zoe is asking Grace to be her assignment partner. To move the plot forward, she agrees. Tristan thinks it’s the perfect opportunity for Zoe to make her feelings known. Umm, didn’t the movie cover that? No? Well, it’s the perfect check-in point for Zoe’s character development. “I don’t even know if I’m gay!” But, more importantly, she doesn’t know if Grace likes girls. And if she doesn’t, what if she also doesn’t want Zoe in her life after knowing the truth? Helpful Tristan puts her at ease:
“Look at her. That hair. Those piercings. There is no way she’s doing that to attract boys.”
Take in those words. Recall them later when the Degrassi writers hit us with a revolutionary plot twist.
Back to the storyline: Zoe and Grace are clutching hands because they’re BFFs and assignment partners (as you do). And staying with Tristan’s line of thought, Zoe can’t help but point out Grace’s very distinctive look and ask what she thinks she’ll look like in the future, i.e. do you think you’ll still look this gay?
Then out of nowhere, Grace pulls away and takes off. What happened? Zoe’s baffled. Was it the handholding? The flirting? Obviously, you can’t wait until the next day to confront your crush when you think she’s mad at you, so Zoe decides to visit Grace at home after school. Grace’s mom has no idea who she is, which, ouch, but still lies and says Grace isn’t home. Yeah, except we all totally saw you hiding behind the curtains, Grace!
Things had to come to a head, and they do the next day in the school bathroom, where Zoe justifiably starts ripping into Grace. That is until Grace starts coughing up blood.
Guys, Grace has cystic fibrosis. After taking her home, Grace’s mom tells Zoe that Grace will likely live well into her 30s and maybe even past 50 because of new medical advancements. Again, this is one of those moments to reflect on because I don’t see how this would not influence some of the decisions we’ll discuss later on in this recap and even in seasons to come.
So what do you do after having such a bombshell dropped on you? You take the girl you’re crushing on up on the school roof and WebMD the shit out of her. And when that doesn’t work, invite her to commit suicide. Ugh, teenagers. To Zoe’s credit, it’s all more well-intentioned than it sounds. But it’s still all a bit much for Grace.
“This is why I don’t do relationships. Hard to commit when you’re one lung infection away from the end.”
Oh, Grace.
How do you even wrap up an episode like that? Apparently by having Zoe finish their project alone. She created a video that shows a glammed up version of herself kneeling by Grace’s gravesite. It’s pretty morbid, so of course Grace likes it. “You don’t suck as much as most people,” she proclaims. We’ll see about that.
In the meantime, there’s a lot that happens with characters we don’t care about it. It’s only worth mentioning because in between all that we get throw away lines from Tristan like, “You can eat Grace’s muffin later,” and shots of Zoe showing up to support Grace at her gigs, yelling “Yeah, Grace!” Precious moments, indeed.
Now back to our lesbian-scheduled programming: Zoe’s mom is driving the girls to school and being completely ignored by both of them. They’re texting each other even though they’re sitting asscheek-to-asscheek. I guess Zoe’s mom was able to pick up a lot from the giggles, because before she sends her daughter off she warns her: “That girl has a crush on you.” I can see it. Zoe’s mom can see it. Do the Degrassi writers really not see it?
Then Zoe’s mom says, “You don’t want people to think you’re gay.” You’ve lost me, lady. Zoe later describes her mom as a “strict Roman Catholic” who would disown her if she found out about her feelings for Grace. We’ll have to wait and see what that means for Zoe in the future.
Moving on, somehow this interaction has made Zoe think she needs to meet her dad because it’ll make the whole gay thing make sense. The problem is, she doesn’t know who her dad is. But she has a guess: David Sutcliffe, a.s in the actual actor who played Rory’s dad on Gilmore Girls. You’re about 10 years off the relevancy factor, Degrassi, but sure, run with it.
Once upon a time, Zoe’s mom was an extra on Gilmore Girls. As a consequence of this, she’s always hinted that she and David put his trailer to good use (I guess she wasn’t more of a Luke girl). Naturally, Zoe thinks she’s inherited her acting genes from daddy David and wants to track him down. Tristan decides he’s not going to be a good gay and won’t tag along with his determined friend. Fortunately, Grace overheard the conversation and volunteers to help Zoe get proof of paternity. “I miss my friend,” she reasons. Puh-lease! That girl’s actual friend just jumped ship because this idea is ridiculous.
It’s full steam ahead, though. David is shooting a movie in town, and so the girls sneak into his trailer looking for anything that’s got his DNA on it. He catches them, of course, and throws around some crap about how a new generation of fangirls have emerged since Gilmore Girls went up on Netflix. Grace stops him before I can: “I don’t even know who you are.”
He’s not Zoe’s dad. He’s never slept with any extras. But the one thing he’s good for is telling Zoe (with Grace gone by now) that it’ll be okay and that she shouldn’t live her life for her mom. “It’s your life, not hers. And you can only ever make yourself happy.” Preach!
Well, none of this makes Zoe feel better. After all, she’s got a mean mom and still doesn’t know where on earth her dad is. Which in her angst-ridden teenage brain means she has “no one.” Grace isn’t going to let that slide. Zoe has her, the “girl who just broke into a TV star’s trailer for you.” Can someone please tell this girl that “just friends” don’t do that?!
Zoe clearly thinks the same thing, because she kisses her. For her part, Grace isn’t heavy with the reciprocation, but she doesn’t push her off either. She just looks a little confused. Which, really?
But not long after that, Grace is all confidence and smiles. Suddenly, Zoe is coming over for a Netflix hangout. We all know what that means.
And I’ve been harping on them, but credit to the writers for this resulting witty piece of back and forth:
Grace: I heard there’s this amazing doc about a California cult.
Zoe: Sounds super romantic.
Grace: Is that what you want? A romance?
Zoe: Don’t you?
Don’t you, Grace? Don’t you?! We’ll never know how she would’ve answered because her friend Zig barges in at that exact moment and ruins their date. Zoe is visibly pissed, but it’s Grace who voices what we’re all thinking: “I think you’re in the wrong place.”
Zig stays for much too long, but when it eventually starts getting late Grace’s mom kicks him out. But not Zoe. Oh no, not Zoe. She can sleep over. Ah, sleepovers. Perhaps the biggest perk of being a teenage lesbian around a clueless parent.
Things progress from there. Of course, Grace’s insecurities flare up too: “I’ve never felt this close to anyone. What if it messes everything up?” I’m trying to understand you, Grace. Even if the writers don’t.
It’s pretty PG (especially compared to the straight kissing on this show), but they do sleep together. And yes, you’re allowed to get angry about how tame and quick what we actually saw was. Hey, the actresses who play them are both older than 18, so no shame.
Imagine my surprise then when this is what Grace tells Zoe at school immediately afterward: “I’m not gay. I’m sorry. I tried for you. You’re my best friend.” That’s not how that works! That’s not how any of that works!
Zoe panics. No surprise there. This is so not the conversation she thought they would be having.
Zoe: That’s my first time with a girl. Maybe we did it wrong. What part didn’t you like?
Grace: All of it.
Ouch! It’s all so condescending, especially the look of pity painted on Grace’s face.
Not willing to give them up, Zoe asks Grace to name one guy she’s ever liked. She literally points out the first one that walks through the door: Zig. Where have the signs of this been all season? This is stupid.
Zoe’s reaction is pretty stupid too. To spite Grace, she films herself making out with Zig, who has a girlfriend, and sends the video file to her. But Grace’s biggest concern with this is keeping her friend Maya from finding out her boyfriend cheated on her. If Grace was interested in Zig (and I just don’t see how this season that could be possible), the looks of disgust she throws his way after finding out about the Zoe incident are pretty solid proof that the infatuation is now over. If any of that anger is about him kissing the girl that had been warming her sheets just a short time ago, well, that’s not said.
These 10 episodes have been a trip. Look, if Grace never takes another dip in the lady pond, there’s nothing I can do about that except rant. But if this really is the end of her gay adventures, I’m not giving the Degrassi writers’ room a standing ovation. Oh my, you took some longstanding stereotypes and turned them on their head. How clever of you. Tell me, though, what segment of the population are you trying to speak up for? The teenage girls who just hate being thought of as lesbians because of the way they look? Maybe you should ask them what’s so bad about being thought of as a lesbian. While you’re on that, maybe you should think about not dismissing how important it was and still is for some women to “look like a lesbian.” It wasn’t so long ago that this was our main means of identifying one another. Not to mention that “looking like a lesbian” can be about self-empowerment too. But hey, you connected with the one straight insecure goth girl with shitty music taste actually watching your show, so congrats.
I think that’s enough about Grace. As I mentioned at the start of this thing, we have Zoe. We have her whether you want her or not. And that’s the thing about Zoe—she’s not the nicest or most relatable queer teen you’ll ever meet. But at least she’s actually queer. She’s also just had her heart broken, doesn’t have a lot of close friends and has some rough days ahead with her mom. So what I’m saying is, she needs us. Let’s claim the girl and root for her. She needs all the support she can get because, if not Grace, which of the incredibly straight girls on this show is suddenly going to have an epiphany? Please, just bring somebody else in (there’s already like 25 people as series regulars anyway). I guess we shall see. For now, you can count on me being in your corner, little baby gay Zoe.
Degrassi: New Class is available on Netflix now.
