Netflix’sBoo, Bitchfollows Erika Vu, a teenage girl who is more than satisfied with not attending high school parties. But, when her best friend Gia convinces her to attend one, neither realizes it will be the night that changes both of their lives forever. But,Boo, Bitchis not without its use of well-known and overused teen movie andtelevision tropes and clichés. Even with its paranormal elements, it still manages to get caught in teen tropes such as emphasizing the overall vitality of Prom, including a one-note bully for the sake of making the main character’s life miserable, and colossal house parties.
Certain teen tropes have existed for years, being recreated in one way or another in many films and television shows.Boo, Bitchis no exception, falling right into the trap of commonly overdone plot lines. While the series does attempt to use them entertainingly for its own purposes, that does not make those same storylines more exciting, given the number of times they have been done before. WhileBoo, Bitchattempts to use these tropes to its advantage, the series struggles at times to elevate its overused clichés to something new and fresher compared to what has been done before.
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6The Importance Of Prom
AlthoughProm is a rite of passagefor many teenagers, teen movies can have a bit of a habit of making them feel like the center of the universe. It becomes the most crucial thing for everyone, whether it be the perfect outfit, date, or planned night in general. Although it is rare for simply going to Prom to be the critical factor, that occasionally is the high point too.Boo, Bitchcentralizes on Prom as being considered unfinished business. However, Erika also uses it to avoid moving on from the mortal realm.
Not going to Prom means staying on Earth, at least; that is what she thinks for a while. The student body responds to cries of outrage toward going to Prom and then again, toward not going. While Erika reveals she understands the importance of the school dance at the end,Boo, Bitchalso had not made Prom the show’s center storyline, bringing up questions about how Erika could have made that determination so quickly.
5The Mean Girl
Is any teen story complete without the bully ruining the main character’s life? While some shows and movies have avoided theoverused “mean girl"trope,Boo, Bitchis not one of them. Riley is selfish and has enjoyed bullying Erika ever since Erika accidentally spilled something on Riley in freshman year. Riley got her revenge when Erika became widely known around school as “Helen Who” rather than her real identity.
Riley goes out of her way to make Erika’s life miserable for no narrative purposes other than to show how awful she is and how Erika is treated at school. Riley is never given a deeper exploration of who she is or why she is that way, as the series has no interest in creating a layered villain. Instead, when Riley and Erika slowly transform into frenemies, it is because of Erika’s development as a character, not because of who Riley is.
4Throwing Massive Parties
Throwing an unrealistically massive party is undoubtedly a well-known teen trope. Usually held in an enormous house and conveniently without adult supervision, teenagers get their hands on tremendous amounts of alcohol and bring chaos to someone’s home.Boo, Bitchfeatures at least two giant parties throughout its eight-episode run. The first is at the beginning of the show, and a few episodes later, Erika and Gia throw another at Gia’s empty house.
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3The Invisible Introvert
Unfortunately, this one has a habit of showing up a lot too. Somehow it was determined that if a person enjoyed spending time alone or with a small group of close friends and did not get invited to parties or enjoy them, they were considered the lowest of the low in high school.Boo, Bitchacknowledgesthis to some degree. While Gia wants to go to parties and Prom as they end their time in high school, Erika has no interest in either. Following suit, Erika is bullied in school, and in the moments she isn’t, Erika is just as invisible to her classmates as Gia. The only people they know well are each other. While neither seems to mind, at least at first,Boo, Bitchwalks the line between acknowledging that they have lived, at least quietly, and treating the characters as if being an extrovert would have made them happier.
2Unfinished Business
When it comes to ghosts sticking around after death, the biggest reason tends to be they have unfinished business on Earth.Boo, Bitchuses this to explain why Erika would remain on Earth. After discovering she is dead, Erika wants to do everything she can to understand her unfinished business. However, after being proven wrong that kissinglong-time crush Jake Cis not her unfinished business, Erika strives to figure out what keeps her around. However, the show’s big plot twist would explain that Erika’s situation was far more complicated than she realized.
1Trading Invisibility For Popularity
Erika standing up for herself, catches the attention of her classmates, and, all of a sudden, Erika isriding the popularity wave. She trades her introverted ways for joining the popular kids. Erika is enjoying her new lifestyle. However, this is not a new storyline either. When those who have been disregarded by their classmates gain a sense of popularity, it has become well-known they tend to drop their long-time friends and beliefs to stay in the in-crowd. However, in other circumstances, it may be a little more subtle.Boo, Bitchdoes not create a long-term plan for Erika’s transformation, instead teasing it slightly before jumping to a jarring transition from kind girl to popular jerk without portraying the development.
