Awkward premiered on MTV in 2011, and it spent five seasons turning the awkwardness of teenage life into a running joke. The show follows Jenna Hamilton, a 15-year-old from Palos Verdes, California, whose life takes a strange turn when a simple accident gets mistaken for a suicide attempt. The mistake starts when Jenna receives a harsh “care-frontation” letter, meant to push her toward popularity, and the show tracks how that letter sets off a chain of events that shape her relationships, her self-image, and her online presence.
Trailer, via alex.
Jenna’s Blog
Jenna writes a blog to process her life, and the show’s narration comes from those posts. That first-person framing gives the series its tone: irreverent, confessional, and full of the kind of self-deprecating humor that feels immediate. The show leans into the absurdity of teenage social life without losing sight of the stakes. Jenna’s blog posts capture the humor within the struggles, and the series leans into both the chaos and the quiet moments of growth.
Jenna’s Main Love Interest
Beau Mirchoff plays Matty McKibben, Jenna’s main love interest. Matty starts as a typical popular jock, but the show reveals a deeper, more sensitive side over time. He struggles when he is out of his comfort zone, since he rarely has to try hard to be well-liked. His relationship with his parents is strained, and he discovers mid-series that he was adopted. Later, he meets his birth father, who, like Jenna’s parents, had Matty at a very young age.
Jenna’s Family Life
Nikki DeLoach plays Lacey Hamilton, Jenna’s mother. Lacey wrote the brutal “care-frontation” letter herself, in an ill-advised attempt to make her daughter happier and more popular. Once the truth comes out, Jenna stops speaking to her, and Jenna’s father moves out of the family home. The show spends time on the fallout, but the two eventually reconcile. Lacey and Jenna seem polar opposites at times, yet Lacey shows genuine love and concern for her daughter throughout.
Tamara Kaplan and Other Friends
Jillian Rose Reed plays Tamara Kaplan, Jenna’s best friend. Tamara is a perky, type-A personality who is as obsessed with her own brand of slang as she is with becoming popular. She succeeds in many of her schemes, even when they backfire. Her loud antics make her fun and outgoing, but also bossy and annoying at times. Brett Davern plays Jake Rosati, Matty’s best friend, while Molly Tarlov plays Sadie Saxton and Greer Grammer plays Lissa Miller round out the supporting cast.
How the Show Holds Up
The show’s first season was generally well received, with critics praising the realism and writing, along with Jenna as a character. The show earned several award nominations, winning one Teen Choice Award and one People’s Choice Award. Its premise is simple: a girl gets a letter about popularity, has a mistake, and learns to live with it. The show does not pretend otherwise, and that honesty is part of its appeal.
| Element | Strength | Weakness |
|---|---|---|
| Jenna’s blog narration | Personal, funny, relatable | Can feel repetitive in later seasons |
| Matty McKibben’s arc | Deepens the show’s emotional core | Takes time to develop fully |
| Family drama | Adds weight to everyday teen issues | Sometimes feels tacked-on |
Final Verdict
Awkward ran for five seasons, ending on May 24, 2016. The show’s legacy rests on its willingness to be uncomfortable, to sit with the messiness of teenage life, and to find humor in the pain of growing up. It is not a perfect show, and its later seasons sometimes lean too hard on repetition. But its early seasons remain sharp, funny, and deeply human. For a show about awkwardness, it has a surprising amount of grace.
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