... It Doesn't Come on DVD Either

If you are like me, born in the mid-80s, raised in the Clinton administration – the light shining between two Bushes - then you may have watched a reality show purer than the yellow snow being passed off as reality today. Bug Juice was the true story of kids at summer camp. Airing on the Disney Channel for three seasons, the simple stories of crushes, stage fright, and nerves leaving home were both touching and familiar. Bug Juice was The Real World for kids, and it didn’t have the pretensions of meaning anything beyond what it was: the tales and exploits of teenagers experiencing life outside their familiar bubble.

It seems that everyone has moved on but me. Douglas Ross, one of the Creators and EPs of the show’s three seasons has gone on to produce Big Brother, The Real Housewives of Orange County, and the ill conceived, poorly executed trash that was Date My Ex: Jo & Slade. Although I’m sure he’s sitting pretty burning $100 bills for sport, I really miss the days when reality television didn’t have a scriptwriter, and when the word ‘showmance’ wasn’t part of our vernacular. On a personal level, Bug Juice even helped me transition to college, the real test of leaving your comfort zone - seemingly for good. It was my first day at Northwestern University, my first class (History of Ancient Egypt), and who should I see gracing the same classroom? Andrew, from Season 1 of the show. Once the shy theater geek, he had clearly grown up and grown into his musical skin. It was certainly a comfort, whether I realized it or not, to know I was halfway across the country, but I still wasn’t too far from home.

Whether you relate to my lament for Bug Juice, which is probably more broadly a cry for all of my favorite shows of the 90s to reappear in my life, I sat down to write this post mainly because I want to watch Seasons 2 and 3 again, and cannot seem to find them anywhere. Disney never re-aired them after 2001, and ABC seems to be behind Fox and NBC in posting old content. Although my viewing of the series might be tainted by my enlightened perception (in Season 3 I distinctly remember a male character having a girlfriend, though he’s probably not interested in girls anymore, and I think one of the kids was kicked out for drug possession), I still want to reminisce with these kids more than I’d ever even consider re-watching an old Real World season, or certainly one of Mr. Ross’ more recent projects.