WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The CW‘s All American, Seasons 1-4.
In the past 16 years, The CW has earned a solid reputation as the home of spooky-meets-sexy fare like The Vampire Diaries and Supernatural, as well as splashy comic book adaptations such as Riverdale and the Arrowverse. That reputation has only increased as the Arrowverse in particular grew to become arguably the most popular crossover franchise since the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, amidst all of the monster mayhem and superhero showdowns, one show quietly stood apart, slowly growing to become one of the network’s can’t miss series.
Debuting in the fall of 2018, All American was something of an outlier for The CW. Based on the story of real-life NFL linebacker Spencer Paysinger, the show has no monsters, no superhumans and no megavillains bent on global domination. Instead, the show focuses on Spencer James (played by Daniel Ezra), a star wide receiver from South Central Los Angeles who is recruited to play at the upscale Beverly Hills High. Over the last four seasons, the show has dealt with James’s struggles to adapt to his new life, while also charting the family drama that unfolds around him, both at home and with his Beverly High football coach, Billy Baker (Taye Diggs). With the recent announcement that All American has been renewed for a fifth season, now is the perfect time to get caught up.
Unlike many of its network peers, All American doesn’t have anything supernatural or paranormal from which to draw its drama. It relies solely on the strength of the relationships between the main characters to keep viewers engaged. At the outset, Spencer James is a stellar athlete, but he’s also angry, dealing with his dad’s disappearance several years earlier. When Coach Baker takes Spencer in, he becomes almost a second father to him, which leads to some initial jealousy from Baker’s son, Jordan (Michael Evans Behling). These family conflicts are, for the most part, handled realistically, without devolving into the kind of hysterical melodrama that has marred so many other prime time series.
Additionally, All American highlights social issues ranging from gang violence to steroid use to Black Lives Matter. It does so by letting events unfold organically through the eyes of the characters rather than simply screaming out a message. In the first season, Spencer and Jordan get pulled over by the cops. Spencer instinctively puts his hands on the dashboard and complies with the officers’ demands. Jordan, having been raised in a more privileged environment, talks back to the police and ends up face down on the pavement.
It’s a stark, sobering look at what can happen to Black men in America. Later, during the third season, a Black woman is killed by the police during a shootout. At a crucial game, Spencer opts to take a knee rather than play as a sign of protest, knowing that doing so will put the team’s season at risk. By weaving these issues into the narrative, All American gives viewers an opportunity to examine and discuss them without sacrificing the story. Not an easy line to tread.
Of course, let’s not forget about the football. At the end of the day, All American is a show about an aspiring football player, and the series delivers some of the most exciting and hard-hitting gridiron action since Friday Night Lights. That said, if football isn’t your thing, don’t worry. The show’s writers find a way to tie the game into the story, making everything, even catching a perfect pass, about family, brotherhood and bonding.
But, even then, if you still don’t have any love for the game, there are plenty of other subplots to keep you hooked in. From the aspiring musical career of Spencer’s longtime best friend Tamia “Coop” Cooper (Bre-Z) to the efforts of Spencer’s long-suffering mother (Karimah Westbrook) to hold her family together, there is more than enough drama on and off the field to go around.
In some ways, All American feels refreshingly like a throwback. Rather than trying to break the rules of television or bog down viewers with increasingly complex arcs, All American leans into the classic themes that make for good drama: family, friendship and the trials of growing up. And, in addition, manages to work in some thought-provoking messages at the same time. These days, that’s something worth binging.
Season 4 of All American is currently airing on The CW, with new episodes on Mondays.