Hidden Remote
Fansided

5 good streaming shows to watch on Christmas Eve

By Shana Lieberman

Anna Baryshnikov in “Dickinson,” premiering November 1 on Apple TV+.. Image Courtesy Apple TV+
Anna Baryshnikov in “Dickinson,” premiering November 1 on Apple TV+.. Image Courtesy Apple TV+ /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 6
Next
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 05: Wilson Cruz attends as Entertainment Weekly Celebrates Its Annual LGBTQ Issue at the Stonewall Inn on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Entertainment Weekly)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 05: Wilson Cruz attends as Entertainment Weekly Celebrates Its Annual LGBTQ Issue at the Stonewall Inn on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Entertainment Weekly) /

Stream My So-Called Life on the ABC site this Christmas Eve.

My So-Called Life made our list of good streaming shows to watch on Christmas Eve for a number of reasons. First of all, it’s one of the best shows of all time, despite only having been gifted with a measly single season.

The series can be credited with launching the careers of Claire Danes (Homeland), Jared Leto (Suicide Squad), and Wilson Cruz (Star Trek: Discovery). And in a time when television wasn’t exactly the most inclusive, My So-Called Life featured a gay, latinx character.

That character, Rickie Vasquez, was as much a core part of the story and just as well-developed as the leading lady. Which brings us to why this series is one you should watch on Christmas Eve, in particular.

The fifteenth episode, “So-Called Angels,” reminds us what happens to people who are cast out, just for being themselves. The episode was a heartbreakingly real look at teen homelessness and how all-too-easy it is for privileged folks to turn a blind eye.

Angela Chase’s gay best friend Rickie Vasquez was beaten up by his uncle and literally left out in the cold for Christmas. Despite knowing him personally, Angela’s parents were anything but welcoming when Angela tried to offer Rickie a place to stay.

While Mr. and Mrs. Chase couldn’t just come out and say it, it was obvious that they had a problem with Rickie’s sexual orientation, no matter how much they tried to pretend otherwise.

At one point, Angela’s mom expressed her distaste for the fact that Rickie loved to wear makeup, which was totally a great excuse for risking letting him freeze to death. Talk about showing your homophobia in the most thinly-veiled way possible. The episode made it a point to note that Rickie and the other homeless teens could easily have been any of us.

But as the Trevor Project notes on its site even decades after “So-Called Angels” aired, LGBT+ teens like Rickie are still “represent as much as 40% of the homeless youth population” in 2019.

So, while watching My So-Called Life might not be the happiest experience you will have this holiday season, all the angst is well worth it.

In its Christmas episode and others, the series tackled some important topics in ways that have yet to be matched since it aired in the mid-90s. And “So-Called Angels” was one of the most painfully beautiful examples of that.

Home/Streaming