Sterling Point is everything we’ve forgotten a teen drama can be. Instead of feeding us another book adaptation — something that has become so much the norm that watching a show with no previous backstory seems almost odd — Amazon Prime’s latest teen drama reminds us why real TV should be treasured. There is no book to skim, no set-in-stone endgame, and no hoard of die-hard fans stressing out over multimedia changes. Simply put, it’s incredibly refreshing to not know how a story will end.
The show follows New York City native 17-year old Annie (Ella Rubin) who sets off on a summer of discovery after she learns that her estranged grandfather has died and left her and her twin brother Connor (Keen Ruffalo) a Canadian island. It’s hard not to say any more without giving anything away, but I will say it’s a familiar, but altogether intriguing premise that is pulled off with many genuinely surprising twists and turns, and a brilliant supporting cast.
This is director and co-writer Megan Park’s first television show but she plays on similar themes and styles that made her previous work — 2021’s The Fallout and 2024’s My Old Ass — such great watches. Park’s approach to young adult narratives has always felt grounded, balancing comedy and tragedy, as complex characters deal with real-life issues. This is one of the highlights of Sterling Point, there is no one who is easy to root against — no cartoon villain, no rival group to despise — even in Annie’s love triangle both guys seem like decent, albeit different choices. It’s really nice to be invested in a show where you are trusted to come to your own opinions about a character, and where characters can exist to be more than just the ‘bad guy’.
Sterling Point is a rare show where Gen Z characters actually talk in a normal and relatable way, which shouldn’t seem like the feat it is. This is an issue that has plagued television and films with young adults for a while now, with one of the worst examples being Mindy Kaling’s Not Suitable for Work — which was also released this summer — where stiff and stunted dialogue stumbled awkwardly as if AI attempted to imagine what young adults say to each other after only watching Tiktok influencers. Whereas in Sterling Point, most of the lines and conversation feel natural and real, with the dialogue keeping you in the story rather than throwing you out of the narrative.
Every part of production seems carefully thought out and considered. Representation isn’t awkwardly shoe-horned in, storylines and characters feel purposeful, and we get to spend time with more than just one character in this world. The landscape is beautiful, the clothes are trendy, fashionable, but normal enough — thankfully no Netflix crazy micro-trend styling here — and the soundtrack captivates. But trapped by the parameters of eight episodes, Sterling Point could use a little more time to breathe in the final few episodes. While there are many plot twists, Sterling Point shines the most when the characters are simply hanging out, just chatting and navigating day-to- day life drama of friendships and relationships.
Sterling Point is nowhere near perfect, but with further investment, it has the potential to become a young adult TV classic. If anything, this should be a sign that we need to create more original TV shows, and why investing in good writing and casting pays off. Teen dramas don’t need to be perfect TV to be great, they just need to entertain and give us characters we want to root for and care about. Sterling Point certainly fits that bill, with a spark of excitement that has left me hooked, excited, and desperately hopeful for more episodes and more shows like it.
Photo by Leah Berman on Unsplash
