During our class discussions and readings, a lot of violence and sex in shows have been dubbed "teen television." Yet, these young teenage boys thought a show about someone's sexual choice was uncalled for and not interesting. "It's their business, not mine," said one of the teens. Yet, a series that these teenagers thought was interesting was MTV's hit-series, Teen Wolf. This series was on one of those "free on-demand" channels which encourages viewers to binge watch series until the last aired episode. This kind of "free on-demand" stunt has been seen other networks like BBC's series Orphan Black. When you think about it, a lot of networks let their series go into free on-demand, which is rather clever since on-demand channels are easily accessible. Furthermore, on-demand is seen as a fast way to make new fans since fans of the series will make their friends and family members watch a few episodes with them. For me, this was the same case.
Being late into the Teen Wolf craze, I listened to how the teenagers quickly explained what had been happening before the intro credits were even finished. Before each episode of Teen Wolf there is a recap of the major events that have happened prior to the new episode. Afterwards, the show begins with a dark setting and a catchy moment of either a murder or a machismo line from one of the male werewolves with their eyes glowing their Alpha/Omega status (ex. red means Alpha). As we watched the episodes, there was a lot of attention on the "bad" Alpha, Scott McCall, whose looks remind me a lot of Aladdin. The biggest complaint of Scott was his inability to defend his friends as an Alpha should be. Scott is too soft. He doesn't assert his authority, making the Omegas get themselves and others into trouble. Now, this isn't one of those "hyper-masculinity" issues where the teenage boys wanted someone who was mean, authoritative, and emotionally cold. They actually disliked those male characters and told me they thought those characters were "assholes" who needed to get over themselves. What they didn't like about Scott was that he has an important job as Alpha: protect his werewolf clan and make sure no other (non)supernatural impeded on their safety and well-being. Yet, Scott is somewhat submissive to others (non)supernatural creatures, he wasn't clever at problem solving as he should be, and he couldn't protect his clan as an Alpha should. During high-tension moments, he focuses too much on wanting to understand the enemy than defending himself and others, and leaving the understanding till after everyone is safe from harm's way. Yet, the teenagers still liked Scott's "human" side: he is caring and always there for his friends, and he stumbles over the girl he likes and (later) being the caring boyfriend he should be.
These three teenage boys contrast the stereotypes that surround "teen television." Not all male teenagers like hyper-masculine characters, sex, and violence. Male teenagers also want good and engaging story-telling. True, there is violence and sex in Teen Wolf, but the teenagers are more focused on the fighting and moral aspects that lie within the fighting. The fighting was more of a survival aspect they admire. Furthermore, the teenagers said that the violence and story-telling keep things more interesting. It was action. And the romance stuff in between wasn't too much to take away from the action of werewolves, banshees, and other supernatural creatures.
The Idealized Alpha:
1. Assertive, but not demeaning
2. Fair & Just
3. Brave
4. Protective, but not overly-protective
5. Clever at problem solving
6. Successful in protecting his clan and (non)supernatural allies
7. Physically strong
8. Emotionally available and not emotionally detached
9. Asks for help when he needs it
