Freeridge | Official Teaser | Netflix

Freeridge does fall into some of the same storytelling quirks as its predecessor, however. A few character developments and changes in motivations hit too quickly, and the season’s curse arc gets weaker as its never-ending twists and turns lead to an anticlimactic conclusion. But Freeridge excels when it explores the bravery within vulnerability and a more mundane form of resilience, with its most heart-wrenching emotional scenes involving conversations about life and death in the characters’ kitchens. It’s difficult to balance heightened comedy and grounded drama, and Freeridge’s creative team does a solid job of giving both modes equal weight.

Advertisement

Throughout its run, On My Block was an underappreciated gem among Netflix’s endless options. It found its fans, but its renewal status was always a question of if rather than when. That was a shame for a show that depicted the full spectrum of joys and struggles among teenagers in a Black and Latinx community, and it will be a shame if Freeridge exists in the same limbo. Anyone who misses the world of On My Block needs to give this series a shot, obviously, but everyone else should tune in as well, if only to become familiar with this cast of rising stars.


Freeridge premieres February 2 on Netflix.