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Judy Blume’s 1974 novel Forever… was more mature than what the author had written to that point, exploring a relationship between two teens that progresses slowly as they figure out how love and sex intertwine with each other in intimate relationships. Veteran producer Mara Brock Akil has adapted the novel and brought the narrative forward to 2018, with a mostly Black cast.
FOREVER: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: Shots of Los Angeles. “2017. New Year’s Eve.” We flash to a beautiful modern house, and a teenager yelling “Fuck!” as he tries to start a term paper.
The Gist: Justin Edwards (Michael Cooper Jr.) is trying to finish this paper, but his ADHD is getting the better of him. His buddy Darius (Niles Finch) invites him to a mansion party, but Justin’s mother Dawn (Karen Pittman) is pretty adamant: No information, no party. Besides, it’s the first time that his dad Eric (Wood Harris) has been home for NYE in ages. Eventually, though, his parents agree to let him go, but Eric makes sure Justin knows what can happen to a black teenager going to a party attended by a mostly white crowd.
At the party, Justin sees a girl that catches his eye. When Keisha Clark (Lovie Simone), a friend of Chloe (Ali Gallo), the party’s host, approaches him, she chides him a bit about not recognizing her. They actually went to elementary school together, and were pretty good friends there. The spark between them is undeniable. They make a plan to go out the next day.
Justin’s life is full of pressure, given that he’s a star basketball player. He practices, of course, but he also gets enunciation lessons and has to do extra work to make sure he’s impressive to recruiters. Keisha’s life is full of other pressures; she wants to go to Howard, and given that her mother Shelly (Xosha Roquemore) works two jobs and barely makes ends meet, Keisha needs a scholarship or other financial help to go. So she’s making sure her academics are stellar.
When the two of them go out on Fairfax to shop, their chemistry continues. He even offers to pay for something she wants, given he has a gift card he got for Christmas from his grandmother. At the movies, they start making out, and she goes “south of the border.” Justin, who’s not only a virgin but an insecure one at that, asks if she’s doing that because he bought her something. Of course, that doesn’t go over well, but Keisha wonders if he’s seen the video of her that’s been going around. Justin truly has no idea what she’s talking about, but she decides to cut the date short and block him anyway.
Then Darius sends him the video; Keisha’s former boyfriend, a college football star, videoed Keisha giving him sexual favors. Justin is determined to get back in touch with Keisha to let him know that he’s not her ex, even going so far as DMing Chloe.
Photo: ELIZABETH MORRIS/NetflixWhat Shows Will It Remind You Of? Based on Judy Blume’s 1975 novel (Blume is an EP on the series), Forever was adapted for this version by veteran producer Mara Brock Akil, and this show’s easygoing storytelling reminds us of Akil’s 2018 series Love Is_. Other Judy Blume adapatations to hit the silver screen include Tiger Eyes and Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Our Take: First loves are a universal concept, which is one of the big messages of Akil’s adaptation of Blume’s 50-year-old novel. It doesn’t matter if it’s 1975 or 2018, or if the characters are all white or multicultural; the basics of the on-again, off-again relationship between Justin and Keisha will be relatable to everyone who ever experienced love and the expectations around intimacy when they were teenagers.
But the pressures on teenagers in 2018 are a lot different than they were 50 years ago, especially when the ubiquitous factor of social media is added to everything. Akil expertly layers in those factors, as well as the experience of being a Black teenager in 2018, into Justin and Keisha’s relationship narrative. The fact that they face similar difficulties despite their families’ different economic situations is a message that Akil tries to convey with some subtlety.
What we loved the most about the first episode, though, was the immediate chemistry between Simone and Cooper as Keisha and Justin. Justin may be a basketball star, but he’s not a jock, and Cooper plays his inherent weirdness as a natural outcropping of his personality. Simone, on the other hand, conveys Keisha’s determination to hold on to whatever shreds of her reputation are left after her ex sends out the video. During their first date, you can definitely see how this relationship can blossom.
Another thing we enjoyed about the first episode is that Keisha is also owning that she may have been to harsh with Justin, even if the question he asked in the movie theater would make anyone cringe. Akil is not going to portray this relationship as anything but a relatively mature push and pull between two smart people who are trying to figure out what they want out of life. We don’t often see this level of maturity in scripted relationships between adults, much less teens.
Photo: ELIZABETH MORRIS/NetflixSex and Skin: We mention the sexual moments in the first episode, but there’s no nudity, at least not yet.
Parting Shot: Justin gets in trouble with his mother Dawn for forging her signature on a permission slip to leave school, which is what he needed to do in order to go to Keisha’s school and talk to her.
Sleeper Star: We’ll give this to both Karen Pittman and Xosha Roquemore as Justin and Keisha’s respective mothers. They both want what’s best for their kids, of course, and both know just how hard it will be for both of them, no matter how much they achieve.
Most Pilot-y Line: Justin gets a bunch of the kindergarten classmates to tag Keisha on Instagram in order to get her to unblock him, and while Chloe thinks that’s “low-key adorable,” we think that’s borderline stalkery.
Our Call: STREAM IT. Forever takes its time to tell its story of first love, with all the ups and downs that teens who are discovering love and sex in the social media era have to deal with. It’s a vibe that we love, aided by the chemistry between the show’s stars.
Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.
English (US)