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Baldwin Hills | August 02, 2007

I've watched all three seasons of Laguna Beach, and most of The Hills. If MTV continues to churn them out, I'll probably continue to watch. That isn't to say that I'll watch any teen reality-drama that MTV throws on the air. I've opted out of more Laguna Beach knockoffs than I can remember. Thats why it's been such a surprise to me that I've gotten hooked on a show that can only be described as a Laguna Beach knockoff.

As sure as Fox will be there to copy a reality hit airing on NBC, CBS, or ABC, you can expect BET to mirror any hit airing on its sister channel, MTV. Normally, I don't give their imitations the time of day. I had been interested in Baldwin Hills, though, from the first day that I'd read BET was developing it. It was to be Laguna Beach with black kids, and I had to see at least one episode to see how that would turn out. I did not realize that it would be so much more interesting than any season of Laguna Beach has ever been.

The third season of Laguna Beach attempted something different from the first two seasons. It explored an insider/outsider dynamic by following both the "popular crowd" and Tessa, a girl who was a former member of that clique. The problem was that the distance between Tessa and the popular girls was minute. What was the real difference between Tessa and the other girls? As far as I can tell, the difference was that Tessa was whiny and the others were rude. Baldwin Hills, on the other hand, has a real insider/outsider story that is interesting.

Baldwin Hills is an affluent neighborhood in Los Angeles not too far from many of LA's poorest neighborhoods. Most of the show's cast comes from that rich neighborhood. A couple of the characters, however, don't. One of the characters, Sal, has recently moved to Baldwin Hills from a less well-off neighborhood. He has a friend, Staci, "from the hood," who is also a mainstay. The way Staci and her wealthier counterparts interact has been a revealing display of the effects of class among blacks, something you rarely see on television.

Another difference between Laguna Beach and Baldwin Hills is the presence of parents. You see the parents far more frequently in Baldwin Hills than on Laguna Beach. Not only that, but you also see them intervene more often. I'm sure that's just an editorial choice, but I think it provides a richer picture of the lives of its characters.

There's also plenty of what you've come to expect and love about these kinds of shows. You're watching rich kids display the kind of behavior that is comical now but will be despicable in ten years. They're begging for impossibly expensive cars, throwing tantrums about parties, going on first dates. You're seeing a careless freedom that you lost years ago, that these kids will lose in just a couple years. Like Laguna Beach, Baldwin Hills is a high school yearbook with moving pictures, the kind you wish you had to help you remember just how stupid--I mean young--you once were.

Baldwin Hills season is almost half over, but you can still watch new episodes Monday nights on BET or anytime on BET OnDemand.

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