There’s so much to unpack about this new 60-minute melodrama that landed on Netflix on Feb.24. Ginny and Georgia follows the life of a mother-daughter duo, Georgia (Brianne Howey), a 31-year-old single mother of two with a rough past, and Ginny (Antonia Gentry), her fifteen-year-old daughter, who was born when Georgia was the same age. The show opens with Ginny sitting in the back of the class staring into space as we are greeted with a voice-over, “My mom had me at my age, fifteen..”
Directly after, Ginny is pulled out of class to learn of her step-father Kenny’s death, and we are then transported to his funeral. The next thing we know, the twosome and Austin (Diesel La Torraca), Georgia’s nine-year-old son and Ginny’s younger brother, are heading to Massachusetts to “start over.” Upon arriving at their new home in Westbury, Georgia spots the neighbor, Ellen (Jennifer Robinson), yelling at her son, Marcus (Felix Mallard), who is smoking weed outside. The two, Ellen and Georgia, meet when Ellen brings over welcome cookies to bond over suburban motherhood. We then are introduced to more recurring characters as Georgia drops Austin off at school and introduces herself to the other moms. Georgia’s gesture unfortunately gets her roped into going to the school board meeting by Cynthia Fuller (Sabrina Grdevich), an uptight local real-estate agent.
Meanwhile, Ginny is off to her first day at school herself. She walks into her AP English class and stands her ground as her new teacher doubts her academic ability. In class she meets Max (Sara Waisglass), Ellen’s daughter and Marcus’s fraternal twin. Max takes her under her wing and introduces her to her friends, Hunter (Mason Temple), Abby (Katie Douglas) and Norah (Chelsea Clark)—from then on, the group is inseparable. Hunter asks Ginny on a date, even though she already has her eye on Marcus.
For Ginny, the rest of the show plays out like your standard teen dramedy. Drama, romance, betrayal—you name it, it’s there. Ginny finally has a group of friends, and two guys after her, making her fall into a cliche love triangle. As this is something she has never experienced before, she is on top of the world—that is until the grim reality of relationship issues comes into play.
One scene in particular didn’t sit right with me as I watched it. Hunter and Ginny got into this heated argument, which wouldn’t be uncommon for a teen show, but the topic was uncomfortable. As the two are fighting, they make jabs at their race, Ginny being biracial and Hunter being Asian-American. Hunter was making cracks at Ginny not being “black” enough, and Ginny was telling Hunter he’s not “Asian enough.” It was a lot to watch, and being that the writers were both white females, it made it even more uncomfortable.
As for Georgia, who is charismatic yet sneaky with her motives, when the scenes switch to her, it feels like you are watching a murder mystery. It all starts when Georgia gets herself an appointment with the town Mayor, Paul Randolph (Scott Portner). She approached him about a job, but he denied her, claiming he’s not hiring. However, after proving she’s capable, he eventually caves and gives her an assistant position. Throughout the series, we are greeted with flashbacks of her early life—young Georgia (Nikki Roumel) meeting Zion (Nathan Mitchell), running away, and committing insufficient acts are some to name. We learn about her past and start to question everything we thought we knew about her character.
As the series progresses, Georgia begins to date Paul. Ginny, who is no stranger to her dating habits, replies in response to Georgia commenting on her dating life, “Why do you care? You go through men faster than Taylor Swift.” This quote, on its own, is a no from me. It is 2021, why are we continuously putting down women with sexist jokes? It might have seemed minor to the writers, but as women, they should have known better. We have to do better because that was not cute.
However, Georgia quickly covers her tracks and leaves the audience craving more of her twisted ways. Suspicions arise, and someone becomes weary of her ways, calling in a private investigator. Ginny gets approached by Gabriel (Alex Mallari Jr.), the private investigator, at the cafe owned by Joe (Raymond Ablack), Georgia’s old friend and Ginny’s boss. Gabriel had been sneaking around following the family since the news of Kenny’s death. Gabriel tells her that her mom is dangerous, as he accuses Georgia of a heinous crime. She shakes it off and tells him she isn’t capable of such acts. However, as we come to a close, we see Ginny come to a realization. This leads the audience to think, was she capable? How did it happen?
All in all, besides that uncomfortable scene and comment, the show was enjoyable. It keeps your interest and draws you in for more. The unanswered questions add more depth to these characters. Whether it was for you or not, the show’s future, like the show, is a mystery yet to be solved.
‘Ginny and Georgia’ is available to stream on Netflix.