I find that I have little patience for most teen programming. The writing and performances on Disney Channel 'sit-coms' are so excruciating that without the laugh track one might forget that they are supposed to be funny. Yet, 6teen is consistently funny without resorting to cheap sight gags and pratfalls all of the time by being cleverly observant of teen life with its insecurities and hangups. The characters are well individualized, if oddly mismatched, and the dynamic between each of them is explored and evolves as the show goes on and the characters pass through the usual teen rites of passage, such as dating and breaking up, getting a job and getting fired etc... Shallow, fashion-obsessed Caitlin wants to fit in, and clicks quickly with athletic and driven Jen, but dark non-conformist Nikki isn't looking for an 'insta-friend'. And sensitive Wyatt finds himself an odd man out among chauvinistic Jonesy and slacker Jude. Yet, the six teens are closer to one another than to anybody else in their lives and they wind up supporting and lending strength to each other as they dust themselves off after every new misadventure.
The character animation and action direction are very simplistic. Heads rarely move in a shot, just mouths, and if one figure is moving the rest are static. Fortunately the show is driven primarily by its character interactions anyway and it thrives on its writing rather than action.
The character animation and action direction are very simplistic. Heads rarely move in a shot, just mouths, and if one figure is moving the rest are static. Fortunately the show is driven primarily by its character interactions anyway and it thrives on its writing rather than action.