Television Review: Radio Free Roscoe
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this series deals with modern
issues that go beyond those of the typical teen drama. Matters
like free speech are related back to the teen characters'
everyday life. That said, there are still plenty of battles
over love, friendship, and gossip. The anonymity of the radio
show allows the characters to be honest, question their
surroundings, and hash out the implications of their actions.
Families can talk about other programs that use politics or
civil liberties to drive their premise (if they can think of
any ...). Is the characters' maturity level realistic? Are they
role models? Do teens
prefer watching shows filled with drama and sex, or have
they simply become accustomed to that type of programming? How
does this series differ from other programs your teen
watches?
RADIO FREE ROSCOE is an underground radio station run, under tight anonymity, by four high school classmates: Travis "Smog" Strong (Nathan Carter), Ray "Pronto" Breno (Ali Mukaddam), Lily "Shady Lane" Randall (Kate Todd), and Robbie "Question Mark" McGrath (Nathan Stephenson). Every day after school, the foursome produces a show in which they're free to speak their minds on a range of topics -- from dating advice to free speech.
Subjects like crushes, friendships, and censorship are all handled maturely by the cast, who discuss the issues over the airwaves and in the hallways and classrooms of their high school. While it doesn't shy away from drama and teen angst, RFR also doesn't rely on scantily clad, overly sexed-up teens, unlike cohorts The O.C. and Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County . Rather, there is depth to both Radio Free Roscoe's characters and their issues.
While RFR teaches responsible thinking and taking action, the teen characters feel compelled to do their part over the radio, while hiding behind false identities. Does this tell teens that to be a free thinker or your own person you have to do it in hiding? Still -- to even have teens posing such a question puts RFR leaps and bounds ahead of popular shows in which beach-dwelling hotties struggle with their overdramatic lives.
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