The O.C. May Have Been a Teen Soap, But Its Best Moments Were Pure Comedy

Teen dramas have often been disparaged as soapy and lowest common denominator, the type of TV shows meant to pull in numbers but not necessarily critical acclaim. Thankfully the tide seems to be turning, this old-fashioned notion being put to rest as newer shows like Riverdale, Yellowjackets, and Wednesday receive rave reviews, taking their place alongside previously praised teen series such as Friday Night Lights and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Often overlooked in this conversation is The O.C., which doesn’t have a sports focus or an added supernatural element like many a teen drama. Instead, it’s a classic fish-out-of-water story about troubled teen Ryan Atwood (Ben McKenzie), who’s taken in by the upper crust yet surprisingly warm Cohen family in Newport Beach. The O.C.’s real focus was its characters and their evolving relationships, and as a result the series’ highlights aren’t dramatic climaxes, but rather its consistent comedic beats.

Key to The O.C.’s comedy gold is the dynamic between Ryan and his adopted brother Seth Cohen (Adam Brody). Ryan is stoic, bordering on wooden at times, the straight man to Seth’s nerdy goofball. Despite being born into a wealthy Newport Beach family and living next to resident hot girl Marissa (Mischa Barton), Seth has never fit in—he’s the dorky, skinny kid obsessed with indie bands and video games while his peers are overly macho, chest-beating water polo players. He and Ryan’s shared outsider status, albeit in different forms, bind the two together. Seth’s enthusiasm and general uncoolness soften Ryan’s edges, and Ryan pushes Seth to be braver and bolder than he dared to be before. Brody and McKenzie share great chemistry that makes their scenes all the funnier; Seth often runs his mouth in classic Cohen style, and Ryan will shut him down with a terse one-liner. Their relationship can be summed up pretty easily with this exchange from the first season: “​​Sometimes I think you talk just to make sounds,” Ryan says, to which Seth replies, “Well, sometimes I do.”

Brody and McKenzie breathe life into dialogue that was already hilarious and witty to begin with (Chad Michael Murray was considered for the part of Ryan and he just wouldn’t have brought the same oomph). Series creator Josh Schwartz wrote many of the episodes in the show’s first—and best—season, along with Allan Heinberg, Peabody winner Melissa Rosenberg, Erica Messer, and Stephanie Savage (who later teamed up with Schwartz to develop the popular teen series Gossip Girl). Savage holds the special distinction of writing the first Chrismukkah episode, “The Best Chrismukkah Ever,” which mines plenty of humor from Seth’s attempts to merge his parents’ winter holiday traditions. Vitally, the writers never talked down to their young audience, which is why The O.C.’s snappy repartee works so well. By taking teens seriously, the writers maximized their comedic potential.